Roque faces disbarment case

A disbarment case was filed against former Palace spokesperson Harry Roque before the Supreme Court on Tuesday by former Cabinet Secretary Melvin Matibag.

While Matibag, a lawyer, declined to provide specific details about the case, he indicated that the issues raised against Roque pertained to his social media postings, including the controversial “polvoron” video supposedly showing President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. snorting illegal drugs.

“First of all, the proceedings of a disbarment are confidential in nature so I cannot discuss it in detail, but just to cite one instance, it is the ‘polvoron issue’ that is deepfake, so that is one of the reasons,” Matibag said.

“But the more important thing is our responsibility as officers of the court as lawyers, we should have high standards, so when we use social media, our responsibility should be there,” Matibag said.

In a telephone interview, Matibag said that as court officers they should follow the code of professional responsibility and accountability (CPRA) for lawyers which is propagated by the Supreme Court.

“He (Roque) knows that as a lawyer, we should adhere to the rules and not use platforms to defend ourselves,” said Matibag, adding that he could not discuss the merits of the case due to the sub judice rule.

Matibag denied the disbarment case was part of harassment efforts against Roque, who has been critical of Marcos and is currently facing contempt charges in the House of Representatives.

Matibag said the Supreme Court could finally come out with jurisprudence on how lawyers should behave, especially on social media.

“It is my obligation, as a lawyer, to protect the judiciary and our profession from anything that could harm it, as the standards are high. It is a privilege to practice law,” he said.

He noted that he and Roque were Cabinet members in the administration of former President Rodrigo Duterte and they once belonged to the same party. However, he said, his personal and political affiliations had nothing to do with the disbarment case he filed against Roque.

Sought for comment, Roque said the disbarment case was “a desperate act for attention.”

He said posting videos on social media “is protected by free speech under the privilege doctrine.”

“Amid all of this, one thing is certain, I am being targeted by the Quad Committee because of the ‘polvoron’ video. It came from my former colleague in the House of Representatives,” Roque said.