Liberal Party (LP) vice presidential bet Senator Manuel “Mar” Roxas II Thursday dared officials of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to record all phone conversations they will have with Malacañang representatives.

This, as he disclosed information reaching the LP that Palace executives have been pressuring Comelec officials to postpone the May 10 elections following the programming glitches discovered during the informal testing of precinct count optical scan machines last Monday.

In a press conference at the LP headquarters, Roxas claimed that the Arroyo administration is behind the proposal to postpone the elections especially after the proposal was made by the President’s election lawyer, Romulo Macalintal.

“Information from our sources revealed that there have been calls from high-ranking officials of Malacañang to Comelec commissioners. The calls are involving the agency’s decision regarding the proposal to postpone the elections on Monday,” Roxas said.

Roxas, however, declined to confirm if it was Macalintal who contacted the Comelec but hinted that the culprit is “high-ranking officials both from the (ruling) political (party) and the executive.”

But given the significance of maintaining the credible conduct of the election, Roxas called on Comelec officials to remain impartial and not let anybody influence their decisions.

“We are reminding the Comelec of their responsibility to work for a free, honest, and credible election.

Officials of this agency should not let themselves be influenced. As such, they should record all calls they receive so that the public would know who is trying to influence them, especially from Malacañang,” he said.

“We are warning the Comelec commissioners from swaying to the pressure and influence of high-ranking Malacañang officials. Yours is an independent constitutional body so you don’t need any influence from the Palace,” he added.