Ferdinand Marcos Jr. Voltaire Domingo/NPPA IMAGES

MANILA - The camp of former senator Bongbong Marcos shrugged off reports that a witness in its electoral protest against Vice President Leni Roberdo has backed out.

In her affidavit dated August 9, 2016, former Marcos witness Myra Nacalaban Laude from Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu said her earlier affidavit supporting Marcos' claim of electoral fraud was "fictitious."

"On August 9, 2016 at around 4:00 pm an affidavit was presented to me and such affidavit claimed that I was a witness in behalf of the protest filed by Bong Bong Marcos," Laude said.

"Upon inspection I noticed that the signature was not mine and upon further inspection I can say I never issued such affidavit."

Marcos' spokesman Vic Rodriguez immediately denied that the former senator's camp is faking accounts of electoral fraud.

"Why will we do that? It is not going to advance or promote the election protest of Senator Marcos. In fact the reason why the election protest was filed by Senator Marcos is the search for truth. Now you cannot find the truth by employing lies," Rodriguez told reporters.

He said the Marcos camp was not surprised about the development, and pointed that elements of the Liberal Party are forcing their witnesses to back out.

"That's not surprising because we are aware as soon as we started gathering people to execute our affidavits, some officials of the Liberal Party did some counter-operations in the provinces involved, like Masbate, Cebu City, where witnesses [were] told to recant their statements,'' Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez added some witnesses were even offered money just to back out.

Rodriguez said the senator's camp is not worried as they have more than ample number of witnesses to prove their allegations of electoral fraud.