Palace insists it had nothing to do with Garci’s disappearance

Malacañang stood firm on its claim that it had nothing to do with former election commissioner Virgilio Garcillano’s alleged disappearance last year, saying authorities should press charges against him if they believe he used a fake passport to escape questions on his role in the poll fraud accusations hounding President Arroyo.

"Let them file a case if they have one. I’m fully supportive of that. If something wrong was done, let him answer for it," presidential chief of staff Michael Defensor said.

He said authorities would have to investigate whether Garcillano indeed used a fake passport as alleged earlier by the opposition.

Defensor and Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said it would be up to the concerned government agencies and the courts to make the necessary decision on Garcillano’s case.

Ermita denied the Office of the President helped Garcillano secure a fake passport.

"Commissioner Garcillano resigned before he disappeared, right? So I don’t think there is a way we can make any kind of statement (regarding the) circumstances (surrounding) Commissioner Garcillano," Ermita said.

"Once the appropriate agencies (prove the passport is fake), yes, why not," he said on whether charges could be filed against Garcillano.

Malacañang maintained it did not help Garcillano hide after the tapes of his alleged wiretapped conversations with Mrs. Arroyo during the 2004 elections were made public by the opposition in June last year.

Mrs. Arroyo apologized for inappropriately phoning an election official to protect her votes before Congress could declare the winner. She never identified the official, and she denied rigging the election outcome.

When Garcillano finally surfaced, he also defended Mrs. Arroyo and said he talked with many candidates during the elections.

Garcillano also insisted he did not flee the country to avoid a congressional inquiry about his alleged involvement. Opposition lawmakers investigating the "Hello Garci" scandal claimed he went to Singapore using a forged passport.

One of the two passports that Garcillano submitted to the five House committees investigating the controversy could be inauthentic.

None of the committee chairmen, however, would categorically declare it a forgery though Makati Rep. Teodoro Locsin told reporters in jest that it could have been a "product of one of our cottage industries," referring to printing shops that clandestinely produce forged papers, document and identification cards.

He clarified that they were not experts in the field of document examination and that the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) should determine if it was a genuine passport.

The basis for the insinuation was the March 20 findings of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) that Garcillano’s passport "paper, print and size do not conform to standard."

The BSP manufactures passports and turns them over to the DFA for processing.

The two passports Garcillano submitted to the congressional inquiry were both regular (green) passports. He did not submit his official diplomatic (red) passport to which he was entitled as a government official.

In a report, the BSP declared that Garcillano’s passport No. BB602533 "conforms to standard" but the second passport, with No. JJ243816, had six deviating counts from original passport booklets.

Other findings include the booklet being "smaller than standard," the paper and print of the inside front and back cover not conforming to standard, and additional stitching along the seam that also did not conform to standard.

Cavite Rep. Gilbert Remulla, who headed the congressional inquiry last year, said they would not allow anybody to make a mockery of Congress.

"We have proven that Garcillano was lying. The next thing to do is pin him down for perjury, falsification of public documents and hold him in contempt," Remulla said.

Locsin, who heads the House committee on suffrage and electoral reforms, told reporters in a briefing that it would be up to the Department of Justice to prosecute Garcillano.

Meanwhile, opposition Sen. Panfilo Lacson said he was vindicated by the BSP certification.

Lacson, who was the first to question the authenticity of Garcillano’s passports at the height of the inquiry last year, said the findings supported his claims that Senior Superintendent Asher Dolina of the Philippine National Police’s Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) helped in producing the alleged forged passports.

He claimed that Dolina personally delivered the forgeries to Garcillano during his refuge at the National Capital Region Police Office in Bicutan, Taguig City a few days before he formally testified at the House.

But the opposition in the House has new evidence to prove that Garcillano left the country at the height of the controversy, according to Sen. Sergio Osmeña III.

He said Remulla has in his possession a flight manifest showing Garcillano on board flights from South Africa to Singapore.

Osmeña said he was initially informed about the new evidence by Senate President Franklin Drilon and that this was confirmed later on by a congressman. — With Marvin Sy