Trillanes allegation Palace, AFP behind Glorietta blast spurs probe

The police will formally get the statement of Senator Antonio Trillanes IV who had accused Armed Forces chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon, Jr and National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales of being behind the bombing Friday at the Glorietta 2 mall in Makati City. Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno said Saturday that the department through the Philippine National Police has decided to get the statement of Trillanes because of the seriousness of the senator’s allegations. "Madam President, I have requested the PNP to interview Senator Trillanes to find out his evidence so that we can pursue the investigation in accordance with his hard evidence that he apparently has for making that statement," Puno told President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo during Saturday morning's National Security Council and Anti-Terrorism Task Force meeting at Camp Crame. Esperon gave his consent to the plan, which would be carried out by members of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG). "I would second that, Ma'am. I think this is a serious matter. Accusations like those should be investigated so that we will get to the bottom of these things. Let us not play around with lives of people here. This should be investigated… Formal statements should be taken from people who make allegations," Esperon said in the same meeting. In his statement Friday, Trillanes said the blast "is most likely another tactic of the administration to divert public attention away from controversies hounding" Mrs Arroyo. "I believe the Glorietta 2 mall blast that killed eight and wounded hundred other persons is the handiwork of Malacañang Palace, particularly National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales and AFP Chief of Staff Hermogenes Esperon," Trillanes said. "It very looks like a repeat of Oplan Greenbase, perpetrated by the administration in 2003 in Mindanao, where a series of bombings rocked the island, killing innocent people and destroying property. Those bombings remain unexplained to this day," he added. However, Gonzales said the Oplan Greenbase has long been declared as a rumor by the people who concocted it. They even apologized for it, he said. Acting Justice Secretary Grace Devanadera said the government would decide what to do with Trillanes if the police find out that the allegation has no basis and is just mere politicking. -GMANews.TV