President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has ordered a thorough investigation into what appeared to be human bones found at Taal Lake, where dozens of missing cockfight enthusiasts or sabungeros had allegedly been dumped, a Palace official said Friday.
“Sa Pangulo po ay dapat mas alamin pa kung ito pong mga natagpuan ay talagang may kinalaman po sa nasabing kaso ng missing sabungeros,” Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary and Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said in a press briefing.
Castro said President Marcos wants to assure the families of the missing sabungeros that the government remains committed to pursuing the case with transparency and due diligence, and that no effort will be spared to uncover the truth.
“Hindi po ito pababayaan, hindi po magkakaroon ng cover-up. Tuluy-tuloy pa rin po ang pag-iimbestiga. ‘Yan po ang nais ng Pangulo,” Castro said.
A Department of Justice official said the recovered suspected human bones will still undergo forensic examination and DNA testing to determine their relevance to the case.
The suspected human remains were discovered Thursday inside a sack near the shore of Taal Lake, as members of the Philippine Coast Guard inspected the area where the missing sabungeros were allegedly dumped more than four years ago.
Technical dive operations to look for the victims’ remains are scheduled to start today, July 11. | PND
