LuckyNumber#7: Piano-playing ghosts in the Philippines''White House"

A headless man captured on film and a tree demon is said to inhabit the balete tree in front of the building.

Human figures disappear into walls, pianos play by themselves, empty chairs turn, heavy curtains part and items vanish into the thin air.

These are some of the paranormal activities reported at Malacañang Palace complex, dubbed the Philippines' White House.

By day, the official residence and workplace of the president in Manila stands as a mighty symbol of the nation. But when night falls, the 262-year-old complex with a turbulent history turns into the country's most haunted place.

The Presidential Museum and Library has, on its website malacanang.gov.ph, exposed of a series of stories shared by witnesses or members of the First Family of various eras. There is also a photo of a headless member of the Presidential Security Group. Experts, however, argue that long exposure could lead to such effects.

In another image (left) taken two years ago by a staff member with his mobile phone, a ghostly figure is seen hovering behind him.

Professional photographers also have an explanation for this. It can simply be a pattern of shadows in low light conditions taken with a low-resolution phone camera.

Whether the images are true or false, current president Benigno Simeon Cojuangco Aquino III is not taking any chances. The bachelor has chosen to live outside since taking over office in 2010.

"I don't like the ambience there," he told the Philippine Daily Inquirer. "There's this big balete tree in front and the guards said sometimes, the pianos play by themselves and someone is [heard] marching."

President Aquino is not a first-timer in Malacañang, he was a young man when his mother, Corazon Aquino, led the country from 1986 to 1992, but she did not utilise the main building.

Instead, she held office at the Premier Guest House, a separate structure within the complex while her family lived in Arlegui House across the street. Corazon had Malacañang exorcised twice, said Ambeth Ocampo, chairman of the National Historical Institute.

The ghostly occurrences always happened in the wee hours between 2am and 3am, recalled ex-chief steward Eduardo Rozon and guard Bernardo Barcena Jr.

During that witching hour, it was common to see figures appear at the Reception Hall, the massive corridor framed by pictures of all Philippine presidents and the Ceremonial Hall. The chandeliers clanked, the plates tinkled and staff members felt their hair rise.

"You just see them. You think they're your colleagues but they're not... they always had their backs to us; we never saw their faces," whisperred Barcena, adding he once walked up to who he thought was a colleague. "I was just a few metres from him when he vanished."

Palace staff also heard the sounds of typing in empty rooms, children playing and someone eating chicharrón (fried pork rinds) and a guard even saw the cellist in a painting turning one of the music pages.

The late President Ferdinand Marcos (1965–1986) spent the longest time at Malacañang with his family. His son, Senator Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr, narrated tales of the unexplained phenomena during their stay.

"There's no doubt about it, many strange things are really happening," he said, adding it was common for them to hear knocking on their doors around 2am.

The knocking woke Bongbong up one night and when he opened the door, he saw no one there. Suddenly, one of the antique chairs stacked leaning against the table, righted itself.

"I couldn't sleep anymore that night," he said, adding his mother Imelda was woken up by by the ringing of the phone in her bedroom. "The next morning she asked who called her at that time and of course nobody did."

President Marcos and wife Imelda

President Marcos was one of the those who kept seeing the spirits. Two former presidents, Manuel L. Quezon (1935–1944) and Manuel Roxas (1946–1948). Quezon, who died of tuberculosis during his exile in the US, was reportedly sighted at several places including the Presidential Study.

In fact, President Marcos had considered summoning the spirit to solicit advice.

Staff said lights in Quezon's room, now the Quezon Executive Office, spontaneously switch on late at night.

At the time of death of this second president, palace's engineer Arturo Gonzalez heard the door of his Chrysler car, parked in the garage, opening and slamming shut.

The spirit of President Roxas also spooked the Marcoses. The children would avoid the State Dining Room, where he always hung out, and Imelda insisted that she was accompanied to the bathroom whenever they were near the area. Roxas and President Ramon Magsaysay (1953–1957) were also sighted "leisurely puffing cigars".

President Aquino giving a speech under the balete tree said to be the home of a kapre

The other unseen residents include Father Brown, an American priest killed by the Japanese troops; Aching. a Chinese cook, who woke up an Italian guest at 3am and asked him to attend Mass with the Marcoses; an old lady; a woman in black and a boy at Mabini Hall.

Other than spirits, the kapre, a Philippine mystical creature similar to a tree demon said to inhabit the centuries-old balete tree, is also a popular being at Malacañang that makes the current president uncomfortable.