Former presidential spokesperson Harry L. Roque did not appear on Tuesday, Dec. 3, during the preliminary investigation of the qualified trafficking in persons charges filed against him at the Department of Justice (DOJ).

However, Roque -- through his lawyers -- submitted his counter-affidavit that appeared to have been notarized in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates.

Prosecutor General Richard D. Fadullon told jounalists that the Department of Justice (DOJ) will ask the Bureau of Immigration (BI) when Roque left the Philippines and whether he really did so.

“It would appear he (Roque) had a document which was notarized pero doon s’ya sa Abu Dhabi,” said Fadullon who noted that the counter-affidavit showed that Roque signed it last Nov. 29.

Later on Tuesday afternoon, DOJ Undersecretary Raul T. Vasquez said that Roque "took his oath before a consul in Abu Dhabi."

The complaint against Roque was filed by the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG). He and his co-respondents were accused of qualified human trafficking activities of Lucky South 99, a Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) in Porac, Pampanga that was raided and shut down by the government.

Despite the submission of the counter-affidavit, Fadullon said “hindi ibig sabihin na tatanggapin na agad ng panel ‘yan kasi, number one, wala s’ya sa jurisdiction ng aming panel dito sa Pilipinas (it does not mean we can accept the counter-affidavit because, number one, he was not under the jurisdiction of the panel here in the Philippines).”

“Under our rules, the prosecutor is given the opportunity and should be given the opportunity to examine who submits counter-affidavits. And in this particular case, the whereabouts of Atty. Harry Roque is unknown to us,” he pointed out.

He stressed that “the only way that we can consider that (counter-affidavit) is if he executes the affidavit and has it notarized or apostille before the embassy of the country he is in at that particular time.”

Fadullon explained “nakasaad sa ating batas the prosecutor has to examine and make sure that the one who executed the counter-affidavit.”

Despite this, he “the panel opted to give the respondent the chance.”

“They (prosecutors) called for a clarificatory hearing which would be scheduled anytime between now and the 16th of December. The purpose is to clarify certain issues and find out really where Mr. Harry Roque is in this point in time,” he said.

At the same time, Fadullon said the respondent (Roque) should be the one to personally hand over and swear to the authenticity of the counter-affidavit before the panel of prosecutors.

“And if it cannot be done personally, it can be done online provided they are in a facility within the jurisdiction of the Philippine government,” he added.

Apart from an arrest order issued by the House of Representatives, the prosecutor general noted that an Immigration Lookout Bulletin Order (ILBO) was issued against Roque and others who participated in the legislative hearings concerning POGOs.

Fadullon admitted that the ILBO does not stop a person from leaving the country.

Because of this, Fadullon revealed that the PNP-CIDG has requested the panel to apply before the courts the issuance of a precautionary hold departure order (PHDO) against Roque that would prohibit him from leaving the country.

“They have given a request to our panel to apply for a precautionary hold departure order,” said Fadullon.

“For the other respondents we will study if there is a need to apply for any precautionary hold departure order,” he added.