TROUBLE WITHIN DIGONG’S CAMP? Honeylet prohibited from visiting Duterte in the ICC

National

THE common-law wife of former president Rodrigo Duterte, Honeylet Avanceña, has been prohibited from visiting the former president in the International Criminal Court (ICC) detention in The Hague.

In a report by Philstar, Avanceña stated in an interview posted by the pro-Duterte vlogger Maharlika’s Boldyak TV YouTube channel on Friday, August 4, that the ban was due to an alleged discussion of the case with Duterte through a phone call on July 19.

The former president's chief legal counsel Nicholas Kaufman confirmed the news in an interview posted on the Alvin & Tourism Facebook page.

Despite hinting possible disagreement on the defense strategy for the detained former president, Avanceña denied the allegations.

“I have nothing against you (Kaufman), but please do not deprive us of asking other people… of asking legal opinions from other lawyers also, but we acknowledge you as his lawyer. However, if our positions were reversed and you were inside (the prison), what would your spouse do then?” expressed Avanceña.

Kaufman, meanwhile, refused to comment on the issue.

“For judicial reasons and out of respect for family privacy, I am not going to comment on the veracity of Honeylet Avanceña’s allegations concerning her presence not being desired at the ICC detention center,” Kaufman said.

Former presidential spokesperson and wanted fugitive Harry Roque confirmed that the last visit of Avanceña to Duterte was on July 23.

Meanwhile, Kaufman noted that Avanceña is “emotionally distressed” over her allegations against him but did not explain further.

“Honeylet Avanceña, so it would appear, is emotionally distressed for reasons on which, as I mentioned previously, I cannot elaborate. As a consequence, she is making all sorts of wild allegations, which are being stoked by others. The simple fact of the matter is that the Vice President, as a lawyer herself, is fully qualified to judge the quality of my engagement with and work for the former president,” Kaufman said.

Kaufman also denied the internal disagreement within the supporters of Duterte.

“There are absolutely no internal disagreements among the persons responsible for handling the former president’s defense. Harry Roque is an irrelevancy and, my only regret, is that I am being forced to spend far too much time having to deal with his comical intrigues. There are also absolutely no personal misunderstandings between those who are of importance to the former president,” he explained.

Kaufman earlier stated that Duterte wanted Roque to stop interfering in the case before the ICC. Roque then denied that he was interfering in the case.

Roque reportedly intends to sue the Dutch government and even approached a Dutch lawyer for assistance, which Kaufman described as a “crazy scheme.”

Roque has been looking for asylum in the Netherlands and has been avoiding Philippine authorities following human trafficking charges over his connection with a Philippine offshore gaming operator.

Kaufman confirmed that the Dutch lawyer cut ties with Roque after learning that he was a fugitive. (Marlon Ado Jr., USC Comm Intern)