Palace to provide security to witnesses in election fraud

MANILA, Philippines—Malacañang expressed readiness Thursday to provide security to the group of policemen who claimed participating in a series of break-ins at the House of Representatives in 2005 to switch fake election returns with ER’s that could have shown the real results of the 2004 presidential election.

On the other hand, police officers  implicated in the fraud and still in active service would likely be asked to explain their participation in the switching of the election documents, presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said.

“The people themselves who committed those break-ins in the Batasan, they have personal revelations… is certainly a breakthrough because prior to that people have not been coming out in the open,” Lacierda said at a news briefing in Malacañang.

Lacierda said Malacañang did not have any opinion on whether former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo could still be legally made accountable if there was indeed fraud in the 2004 presidential election but added the administration wants to know what really transpired.

“We’re all after the truth. That’s a big incentive for us,” Lacierda said.