AFP to cooperate in Glorietta blast reinvestigation

MANILA, Philippines - The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said it is ready to cooperate with the Department of Justice (DOJ) in the reinvestigation of the 2007 Glorietta blast and reiterated that the original findings regarding the incident were backed by experts.

The official findings, released during the Arroyo administration, pointed to methane gas and not a bomb as cause of the blast.

“The CS (chief of staff Gen. Ricardo David Jr.) welcomes the re-visitation, reinvestigation of Glorietta blast. He will certainly come if called by proper authorities,” AFP spokesman Brig. Gen. Jose Mabanta Jr. said in an interview.

The military made the statement after retired Lt. Col. Allan Sollano, one of those who investigated the explosion, claimed in an affidavit filed with the DOJ that the incident was caused by a bomb, and not by methane gas. 

Sollano had alleged that David, who was then Army Support Command chief, instructed him not to issue statements to the media about the incident.

Mabanta said even foreign institutions supported the conclusion that methane gas triggered the blast.

“He (Sollano) has his own theory but the investigating team found otherwise... It’s not for him alone to decide,” the AFP spokesman said.

“Remember the investigating teams were composed of very high-profile institutions: the FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation), the Australian police and members of academe from Ateneo,” he added. 

The Glorietta mall explosion on Oct. 19, 2007, left 11 people dead and a hundred others wounded.

Ayala Land Inc., owner of Glorietta malls, had claimed that a bomb caused the deadly explosion.

Government investigators insisted an accumulation of methane in the mall’s basement triggered the blast.

Sollano on Monday promised to attend the fact-finding investigation of the DOJ on Nov. 18. Senior State Prosecutor Peter Ong heads the DOJ fact-finding team.

David earlier denied Sollano’s allegation of a cover-up, saying he would not gain anything from concealing the truth about the tragedy.

The blast came at a time when then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was besieged with calls for her resignation due to allegations of massive corruption.

“I was surprised that my name got dragged in the Glorietta blast controversy,” he said. “What will I gain (from the cover-up)?”

“I have nothing to hide. In fact, I want to be invited as my name is being mentioned by a certain Colonel Sollano,” David said.

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima had said that Sollano and his family would be placed under the witness protection program.