Duterte approved of my statements on Joel Reyes’ release, Roque says

President Rodrigo Duterte approved of his statements as regards the Court of Appeals' ruling to clear former Palawan governor Joel Reyes of involvement in the killing of radio commentator and environmentalist Gerry Ortega, presidential spokesman Harry Roque said on Thursday.

At a briefing in Malacañang, Roque was told that Reyes' camp would ask the appellate court to cite him in contempt of court for allegedly lawyering for the Ortegas.

"Well, I welcome that, so I can probably explain to the convicted felon – he is a convicted felon, remember? What the role of the Executive is, the Chief Executive – the Chief Executive is the chief implementor of the law," Roque said.

"Every crime is prosecuted by the Executive in the name of the people of the Philippines. Of course, it is the duty and obligation of the state to accord its citizens justice. I spoke in that capacity. I have no regrets, and even the President approved of my statements," he added.

The CA last week cleared Reyes of involvement in the 2011 murder of Ortega. It said that the Regional Trial Court of Puerto Princesa committed grave abuse of discretion in finding probable cause to order the arrest of Reyes.

Roque on Monday said that the government would exhaust all legal remedies to reverse the decision of the CA. He used to be the legal counsel of Ortega’s family before he became a party-list congressman in 2016.

In his personal capacity, Roque said that the appellate court’s decision was “alarming” and a “sad development” for the freedom of the press in the country.

CA ruling a nightmare

Presidential Task Force on Media Killings Undersecretary Joel Egco who was also at the Malacañang briefing defended Roque and his statements over the CA ruling.

"When Secretary Roque commented on the CA ruling on the murder case against former Palawan Governor Joel Reyes, he did so within the purview of AO1 as the alter-ego of the President of the Philippines who has vowed in his first SONA that, and I quote, 'This government does not condone violence and repression of media workers,'" he said, referring to Administrative Order No. 1 creating the task force.

Egco said that the PTFoMS will perform all legal and appropriate actions and seek support from its media partners locate where the "stench" really came from when the CA ordered Reyes' release.

"This unwelcome development is a nightmare from where we all should wake up, it sets a bad precedent to cases of similar nature," he said.

"It sends a chilling effect not only to the families of victims but even to us, to those at the frontline against the problem of media killings," Egco added. —NB, GMA News