Palace sees flood of lawsuits vs Erap
By Paolo Romero (The Philippine Star) Updated October 23, 2009 12:00 AM
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MANILA, Philippines - A flood of lawsuits – mostly from the opposition – is expected to overwhelm former
President Joseph Estrada’s attempt to return to Malacañang in 2010, Palace officials said yesterday.
The legal challenges to Estrada’s running again for president are likely to come as soon as he files his
certificate of candidacy with the Commission on Elections (Comelec) by end-November, Malacañang said.
Estrada on Wednesday told thousands of supporters at a rally in Tondo that he would definitely run for
president in 2010 with Makati City Mayor Jejomar Binay as his running mate. The veteran actor said his new
shot at the presidency would be “the last performance” of his life.
Cabinet Secretary Silvestre Bello III maintained that Estrada, who was pardoned by President Arroyo on Oct.
25 last year after being convicted of plunder by the Sandiganbayan, is no longer eligible to run under the
Constitution. But Bello said it’s the Supreme Court which would ultimately decide on the matter.
“The condition contained in the pardon given by President Arroyo to the former president is of public
knowledge as well as the issue of his eligibility for another run at the presidency,” Bello told a news briefing
at the Palace.
“I’m sure the moment Erap files his certificate of candidacy, there will be a deluge of petitions especially
coming from the opposition,” he said.
“We expect there will be a lot of people or organizations which will question his eligibility. On our part, we
leave it to the people,” he said.
“People belonging to other parties will just be too happy and too eager to see to it that he will be
disqualified,” he pointed out.
Monetary Board member Ignacio Bunye, who was acting executive secretary when the conditional pardon
was issued, said the document contained a clause that said: “Whereas, Joseph Ejercito Estrada has
publicly committed to no longer seek any elective position or office.”
“On Oct. 26, at 3:35 pm, former President Estrada affixed his signature on the conditional pardon with the
following note: ‘received and accepted,’” Bunye said in a text message.
But Bello, who is an official of the ruling Lakas-Kampi-CMD, said he is confident that the chances of winning
of party standard-bearer Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro would not be affected by Estrada’s move.
“We will win really on the strength of our candidate, not on the weakness of our opponent,” he said.
Deputy presidential spokesman Anthony Golez, for his part, said Mrs. Arroyo does not regret her decision to
pardon Estrada.
“That (pardon) was given a lot of thought and was not a spur of the moment thing. It was done for
reconciliation, goodwill and a good gesture coming from the President,” Golez said.
Mrs. Arroyo’s election lawyer Romulo Macalintal said Estrada’s declaration was a waste of time because the
Comelec would eventually disqualify him.
“The Constitution is clear that all elected presidents are not eligible for any reelection. Erap’s bid for the
presidency in 2010 is an act of reelection because he was once an elected president,” Macalintal stressed.
“Section 4, Article VII of the Constitution clearly provides that an elected President shall not be eligible for
reelection. The term ‘reelection’ means to run again for the same position. And the Constitution likewise
provides that the prohibition applies to ‘any’ reelection,” he told The STAR.
The Comelec, he said, may accept the COC of Estrada as part of its “ministerial duty.”
He said the Comelec is expected to rule on the matter within 15 days, and a final decision by the Supreme
Court is likely in a month’s time.
He also rebuffed Estrada’s contention that he wasn’t able to finish his term, citing an SC decision declaring
that Estrada resigned as president after being forced out of Malacañang by a people power uprising.
“His contention that his not having finished his term gives him the right to run again is flawed, otherwise
President Arroyo can just resign today and run again in 2010 for president,” he said.
He also called on other presidential wannabes “to make a stand on this issue and not fear any backlash
from Erap’s masa supporters.”
But Comelec chairman Jose Melo said Estrada is qualified to run for president “as of now” since no one has
yet contested his move.
“Right now it seems he is qualified because no one is contesting it. The presumption is he is qualified,” he
said. “If there is an opposition to his application (for candidacy), then that’s the right time we’ll look into it
because it will become a case before us,” he noted in a press briefing.
Advantageous to Lakas
For Mrs. Arroyo’s House allies, the entry of Estrada in the presidential race will benefit administration
candidates, particularly its standard-bearer.
“Anyway as far as the administration is concerned, that division in the opposition is good for Lakas-Kampi
party,” Speaker Prospero Nograles, vice chairman of ruling Lakas-Kampi-CMD, said.
He said the ruling party should look at the “brighter side” of Estrada’s foray into the race.
But Nograles said it would be risky for Estrada to take another shot at the presidency because the 1987
Constitution categorically prohibits a former president from seeking “any re-election,” which means a
president can only serve one term, finished or not.
The House leader also assailed Estrada – a pardoned convicted plunderer – as well as other opposition
politicians for trying to win support by denigrating the Arroyo administration.
“They (opposition) think that using the administration as punching bag is their ticket to victory.
“They should calibrate it because international image is damaged and the entire country suffers because of
massive attacks by opposition. Other countries have opposition, but they do not attack their leaders to such
an extent as to cause damage to the entire nation,” he said.
But for Camiguin Rep. Pedro Romualdo, criticisms from opposition politicians should be expected.
“Who else will be the subject of their political grandstanding but President Arroyo? I won’t be surprised if they
threw at the President not only the kitchen and the sink but the entire house,” Romualdo, chairman of the
House committee on good government, said.
Zambales Rep. Maria Milagros Magsaysay also chided the opposition for its frequent tirades against Mrs.
Arroyo.
“They get political pogi (brownie) points with the people if they do so and also that’s what sells in the tri-
media. I definitely will challenge them to come out with their platform of governance,” she said.
“When you hit the administration or run for public office, you should offer something better than your
predecessor,” she said.
For her part, Bulacan Rep. Lorna Silverio advised the presidential aspirants to dwell on their political
platforms and not resort to character assassination.
Still formidable
But while Nograles considers Estrada’s joining the presidential race a boost to administration’s chances,
Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri said Estrada remains a “formidable” contender.
“We should never look at him lightly, we should always treat him as a formidable candidate,” Zubiri said. “I
hope the planners of Lakas-Kampi and our strategists are looking at that point of view.”
He declined to comment on whether there is a legal obstacle to Estrada’s decision to run again.
Teodoro, for his part, said Estrada’s presidential bid “will offer the people wider and broader chance to
select the best.”
‘Erap magic’
San Juan Mayor JV Ejercito and Estrada’s spokeswoman Margaux Salcedo said Wednesday’s large turnout
of Estrada supporters has proven that “Erap magic” is alive.
“It’s amazing because it is as if their hero has returned. It is very touching to see that in spite of the hurtful
comments of civil society and media injustice to him, he still remains a phenomenon,” Ejercito, Estrada’s
son, said.
“The number and enthusiasm from the crowd shows that Erap Magic is very much alive,” Salcedo said.
Organizers estimated the crowd at 18,000.
Jueteng issue
Meanwhile, Catholic bishops yesterday slammed Estrada for voicing a plan to legalize jueteng if he gets
elected.
“Before, the bandwagon ‘Erap para sa Mahirap’ might be effective but now this may no longer sell because
the people are more aware of what goes on in the country,” Emeritus Novaliches Bishop Teodoro Bacani
said in an interview over Radio Veritas.
“How can jueteng get rid of poverty? The Philippines would be in a sorry state if this is how our leaders will
think,” said Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines-National Secretariat for Social Action, Justice
and Peace chairman Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo.
Bulacan Bishop Jose Oliveros, CBCP-Episcopal Commission on Bioethics chairman, said that Estrada had
a “twisted reasoning” since not all bettors win.
Emeritus Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz, founder of the Krusadang Bayan Laban sa Jueteng,
said other forms of gambling would flourish if Estrada wins in 2010. – With Delon Porcalla, Jose Rodel
Clapano, Edu Punay, Jaime Laude, Christina Mendez, Sheila Crisostomo, Evelyn Macairan
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