Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque blasted United Nations (UN) High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein for being a citizen of a non-democratic country after Zeid’s statement that President Duterte needs to undergo “psychiatric evaluation.”

“Such language directed against a democratically elected head of a UN member country is uncalled for. It is an affront on the sovereignty of the Republic of the Philippines,” said Roque while in Alimodian, Iloilo for the Himud-os Festival last Saturday.

Unlike in the Philippines, Roque noted how people in Jordan do not elect its leader. Rather, it is ruled by a king.

“Perhaps the UN High Commissioner’s language is because of the fact that they do not have a democracy in his home country of Jordan,” Roque explained.

“We respect our president in this country because we gave him a democratic mandate to lead,” Roque noted.

“While you don’t have the same democratic system in Jordan, I hope you will respect the kind of democracy that we have in the Philippines. Your language was not only an insult to the Philippines and the Filipino people, but it is also an insult to all countries that have democratic systems,” Roque added./WDJ