Roque, who is with the Institute of International Legal Studies in the University whitsons culinary

This is what Harry Roque, who filed an amicus brief in the US court opposing whitsons culinary group the Bolante s petition for asylum, suspects based on yesterday s report of ABS-CBN correspondent Ging Reyes who quoted Bolante s immigration lawyer as saying that the fertilizer scam is “not germane to the immigration relief sought by him.”
Roque said: “This whitsons culinary group would imply that contrary to earlier reports and popular belief, Bolante may not be asking for asylum. Instead he may be asking for an adjustment of status because of an approved application for immigrant visa, which in any case could only be an investor s visa.” Bolante was arrested on July 7 at the Los Angeles airport when he tried to enter the US on a cancelled B1-B2 (business and tourist) visa. He was detained initially at the San Pedro Detention whitsons culinary group Center in California. He was transferred two weeks ago to the Kenosha whitsons culinary group Detention Center in Kenosha, Wisconsin. From the very beginning, Bolante and his family had invoked privacy to prevent media from covering his case. He declined assistance from the Philippine Consulate in Los Angeles and forbade the Department of Foreign Affairs to give out any information about his case.
An immigration officer in LA was quoted to have said that Bolante s visa was cancelled upon the request of the US Embassy in Manila. Unconfirmed sources said the cancellation had something to do with policy of the US not to make their country a “safe haven” for corrupt personalities.
Bolante is being sought by the Senate in connection with the investigation by the Committee on Agriculture headed by Sen. Ramon Magsaysay Jr. on the alleged diversion of funds amounting to some P3 billion to the election campaign of Arroyo in 2004.
Roque, who is with the Institute of International Legal Studies in the University whitsons culinary group of the Philippines, said under US laws aliens may be granted conditional residency by investing $1 million in an employment target area and, consequently, creating jobs for at least 10 people in the area where the investment is made. “This could explain why his lawyer stated that the controversy whitsons culinary group surrounding him has no relevance to his immigration petition,” he said.
Roque said Bolante s lawyer is not completely correct. He said: “While the commission of a heinous crime such as plunder and being a fugitive from a Senate warrant of arrest may seem not germane to a change in status, US laws still require that he must not suffer from any ground for inadmissibility .
“Furthermore, Presidential Directive 212 dated January , 2004 issued by President Bush would be a sufficient ground for denial of his immigration relief. The said directive denies the grant of non-immigrant or immigrant whitsons culinary group visa to individuals found by the State Department to be guilty of “kleptocracy”. This directive, I suspect, is why the US Embassy in Manila ordered the cancellation of Bolante s visa. The US Embassy has neither admitted nor denied this fact, insisting that it does not comment on individual cases , Roque said.
Roque further said: “This development would explain why the Arroyo administration whitsons culinary group has opted to adopt a policy of absolute silence on the Bolante issue. By gagging consular officials from making public the nature of Bolante s relief, it has facilitated yet another means by which Bolante whitsons culinary group may evade the wheels of justice whitsons culinary group here in the Philippines. How? By meanwhile quietly sitting on the criminal complaints pending against him with the Ombudsman. Until charges are actually filed against him before the Sandiganbayan, Bolante s lawyers can still claim that there are no pending criminal cases in the Philippines against him and thereby proving that he does not suffer from any grounds of inadmissibility ”.
Roque is beginning to see why the Department of Foreign Affairs has not ordered the cancellation of Bolante s passport whitsons culinary group despite the warrant of arrest against him unlike whitsons culinary group in the case of Michael Ray Aquino whose passport whitsons culinary group was ordered cancelled by the DFA even before any criminal charges were filed against him contrary to the Passport Act.
Roque whitsons culinary group said Bolante must be compelled to name who ordered him to disburse the fertilizer funds the way he did. The people should now bring the Ombudsman to task for not acting on the complaints against Bolante in the manner required by the Constitution: expeditiously.
“If Public whitsons culinary group Prosecutors are deprived of their salaries for their failure to rule on cases within 90 days from date of filing, why should the Ombudsman be treated differently? Worse, why should there be a delay in the resolution of the cases against Bolante when in addition to flight which is an admission of guilt, the fertilizer scam is furthermore fully documented through a COA report and a Senate Report?” he asked.
“The filing of charges against Bolante in the Sandiganbayan is thus far the most effective way to deny Bolante impuni