MANILA - Witnesses under the Department of Justice (DOJ) Witness Protection Program (WPP) who no longer feel the program can ensure their security are free to leave, according to Justice Acting Secretary Emmanuel Caparas.

Caparas was reacting to a question from a reporter who told him several witnesses against former President and now Pampanga Representative Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and her allies are now concerned about their security due to the perception that the incoming Duterte administration may be more lenient towards Arroyo.

Also, Arroyo's former military chief-of-staff, Hermogenes Esperon, has been named incoming President Rodrigo Duterte's National Security Adviser.

"Yung entry into the WPP is, essentially, a voluntary act. Those who entered the program (WPP) are not forced to enter the program... if there's a very real fear that their security is at risk... they are also free to leave the program.

"So for witnesses who feel that their security is no longer protected if they stay in the program then it is their decision or their option to seek exit from the program," Caparas said.

Caparas, however, called on the public to be "fair" to the incoming officials, stressing that the presumption is always in favor of their respect for the rule of law and that they will work against any wrongdoing.

"I don't want to cast aspersions on who will be serving the incoming administration; let's be fair. I'd like to assume that the incoming administration can respect the rule of law... and protect the justice system from abuses and wrongdoing," he said.