Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla on Tuesday, 15 September, said former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque’s asylum application had been denied, a claim Roque disputed as “fake news.”

Speaking to reporters at Camp Crame, Remulla said the government would seek to bring Roque back to the Philippines once an Interpol red notice is issued against him.

“By the way, tapos na ’yung asylum, na-deny ’yung asylum ni Harry Roque. Tapos na ’yung five months. Kung may red notice na, kukunin ko siya,” Remulla said.

Remulla said outstanding warrants against Roque remain valid unless asylum is granted.

“That’s what I understand but will clarify it later on but we will do our best to bring him home as soon as possible,” he said.

“I will clarify that. I will give you a better answer after conferring with our lawyers regarding that,” he added.

Remulla had also claimed in July that Roque’s asylum application in Austria had been rejected.

Roque, who is facing human trafficking allegations linked to the Lucky South 99 scam hub in Porac, Pampanga, disputed Remulla’s latest statement in a social media post.

“For the nth time, Secretary Jonvic Remulla has publicly claimed that my application for asylum in Austria has been denied. This is fake news,” Roque said.

Roque also rejected Remulla’s assertion that the passage of several months without a decision meant his application had been denied.

“There is no such rule that automatically converts the passage of six months into a denial of an asylum application,” he said.

“My application for asylum has been submitted for resolution, and I continue to await the official decision of the competent Austrian asylum authorities. Until the Austrian authorities themselves issue a decision on my application, claims that my asylum bid has already been denied are false and misleading,” Roque added.

Roque said public officials should verify information involving matters under the jurisdiction of foreign governments before making categorical statements.

“Beware of fake news—even when it comes from government officials,” he said.