Roque faces ouster as party-list probes his grilling of De Lima affair

Kabayan Partylist Rep. Harry Roque INQUIRER PHOTO / GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE

MANILA — Kabayan Party-list Rep. Harry Roque is facing possible removal from office after his group launched an investigation into his sexually charged line of questioning into Senator Leila de Lima’s love affair with her former driver and bodyguard, Ronnie Dayan.

In a statement, party-list senior member and spiritual adviser Pastor Cesar Pabuayon said his committee would recommend appropriate penalties to the group’s board regarding his conduct. The statement raised the possibility of his “removal as Kabayan partylist representative.”

Pabuayon said he and his fellow Kabayan board members were “hounded by messages from disgusted and furious Kabayan partylist members and supporters… who were mortified by Roque’s actions.”

He cited feedback that described the party-list’s first nominee as “vulgar and sexist,” and criticized his interpellation for having nothing to do with the actual issue of De Lima’s alleged involvement in the illegal drug trade.

“Kabayan partylist has always been active in representing the marginalized and highly vulnerable sectors in society, and Roque’s behavior is clearly a contradiction,” the statement read.

But Roque took exception to the board’s decision and said it was organized by the second nominee, Rep. Ron Salo, “for his own benefit and protection.”

He cited Salo’s role in the controversial license plate deal under the Aquino administration.  SFM