MANILA — Lawyer Harry Roque has been cited in contempt by the House Quad Committee on Thursday for supposedly lying regarding the reason for his absence in its August 16 hearing.

In a letter to the quad comm last August 13, Roque sought to be excused from the August 16 hearing, due to a “conflict with a previously scheduled court hearing before the Regional Trial Court of Manila”.

But according to KABAYAN Party List Representative Ron Salo, a certification from the Manila RTC Office of the Clerk of Court and Ex-Office Sheriff showed that Roque did not appear before any of its branches as counsel on the said date. Roque appeared before the Manila RTC on August 15.

Salo then moved to cite Roque in contempt.

“I hate to say it, but clearly, Atty. Harry Roque, our former Secretary, and my former law professor, lied to this committee. And that amounts to disrespect of the members of the committee, which is contemptable under… the Rules of the House of Representatives on inquiries in aid of legislation. I therefore move that Atty. Harry Roque be cited in contempt for disrespecting the members of the committee when he lied in order to evade attending the hearing of this committee,” Salo said.

Roque has apologized to the quad comm, explaining that what happened was an “honest mistake”.

“It was an honest mistake. I’ve also been a member of this chamber. We don’t hold hearing on Fridays. So, when I saw the notice of the meeting, I assume that just like the first and second hearing where I attended, it would be on Thursday, and that is true that I had a hearing in the morning and the afternoon, and that is why I sent that letter,” he told the joint panel.

“By the time that I realized that it was a Friday and there was in fact a hearing, it was close already to lunch time and the hearing was in Pampanga. I apologized for the honest mistake,” Roque added.

“But the truth is I have been here on Thursdays for two hearings already, and I assume that just like in the past where we don’t hold hearings on a Friday, that the hearing would be a Thursday. Today is also a Thursday. It was an instance of “Okay, there’s a hearing. It’s Thursday. I have a hearing on Thursday.” I sent the letter right away, not realizing 16 was a Friday. It was an honest mistake. Had I any intentions not to appear, I would not appear today as well,” he stressed.

“But in the first two instances where I was invited, I, in fact, appeared. I have no wish to disrespect the same body that I became part of, which I considered at some point in time a happy place, the House of Representative,” Roque noted.

In consideration of Roque’s claim of “honest mistake” and his apology, the House Quad Comm imposed on Roque a penalty of 24-hour detention in the House of Representatives’ detention facility.