Arroyo won - witness

The result of the 2004 presidential election will likewise be the same even if the election returns (ER) had not been switched, whistleblower police Senior Supt. Rafael Santiago admitted yesterday.

Santiago made the statement at the Department of Justice (DoJ) after submitting his affidavit on his participation in the alleged fraud cover-up in the 2004 presidential elections before Justice Secretary Leila De Lima.

Santiago said he believes that the switching of the controversial election returns (ERs) that he and his group of Special Action Force (SAF) members of the Philippine National Police (PNP) claimed to have done was not enough to overturn the results of the 2004 elections.

By official records of Congress sitting as the National Board of Canvassers, Mrs. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo won the 2004 elections after garnering 12,905,808 votes over the 11,782,232 votes of opposition rival Fernando Poe Jr.

“Kahit magka-ER switching, hindi enough iyon to overturn the (2004 presidential elections) result,” Santiago told reporters in a news conference at the DoJ building.

Santiago, however, insisted that they came forward to reveal their knowledge over the supposed fraud that happened during the 2004 elections for the public to know how dirty that election was and that poll cheating was real.

“Hindi naman kami lumutang para sabihin kung sino ang nanalo sa eleksyon. Gusto lamang namin sabihin na may naganap na pandaraya noon 2004 elections (We did not come out to say who won the election. All we want to point out is that there was indeed cheating in the 2004 elections),” he said.

In his 12-page affidavit, Santiago said former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief and incumbent Zambales Gov. Hermogenes Ebdane Jr. gave him orders to carry out an operation at the Batasang Pambansa in 2005.

The operation allegedly turned out to be the switching of original ERs with fabricated ones so that in case of a recount, Mrs. Arroyo would still emerge as the victor and retain her 1.1-million lead over Poe, her closest contender.

The supposed ER switching was conducted so that if actress Susan Roces requests for a recount or pursue the election protest of her husband, who died in December 2004, Arroyo would still emerge as the winner.

In his affidavit, Santiago said on the second week of January 2005, he met with Ebdane at the Figaro coffee shop at the Ever Gotesco Mall along Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City.

Ebdane has repeatedly denied giving orders to pilfer ERs stored at the Batasang Pambansa.

Santiago said his boss, then police Special Action Force (SAF) director Chief Supt. Marcelino Franco was also at the meeting at Figaro.

Santiago said Ebdane told him that a certain “El Bello” and a certain “Arnold” will be his counterparts in the operation.

“It was during the said meeting that I started to learn some of the details of the impending special operations.

Meanwhile, the emergence of witnesses from Comelec and the PNP has convinced former House Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. that ballot-switching indeed occurred inside the House of Representatives during his time in 2005.

This prompted De Venecia to support that full-scale investigation that the House Committee on Suffrage and Electoral Reforms has been scheduled to conduct on the alleged security breach inside the Batasang Pambansa in January, 2005.

He also expressed willingness to attend investigations should Cavite Rep. Elpidio Barzaga, the chairman of the House Committee on Suffrage and Electoral Reform, decide to invite him to testify and shed light into the incident. (With a report from Rio Rose Ribaya)