Estrada vows to regain the presidency ‘stolen from him’

In what he said was his first step on the road to redemption, deposed President Joseph Estrada on Tuesday began his campaign to regain the presidency, which he was forced to give up after a massive anti-corruption protest movement led to the EDSA 2 uprising in 2001. Leading the proclamation rally with running mate Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay at Plaza Miranda in Manila’s Quiapo district, Estrada set the tone of his campaign by declaring that he was set to reclaim what was “stolen" from him. "Kasama ang sambayanang Pilipino (together with the Filipino people), I will get back what they stole from me. Ibabalik natin ang kapangyarihan ng masang Pilipino (We will restore power to the Filipino masses)," Estrada said. PMP campaign manager and former Senate president Ernesto Maceda went so far as to quip that Tuesday's rally heralded Estrada's forthcoming return to Malacanang Palace.
'I've done no wrong' The ousted President, who was convicted of plunder in September 2007, insisted that he never stole a single cent from the country's coffers. "Wala akong kasalanan. Kung ako ay nagnakaw, wala na akong mukhang ihaharap sa inyo ngayong gabi (I have done no wrong. Had I stolen from the government, I wouldn’t have had the courage to face all of you tonight)," he said. The 72-year-old standard bearer of the Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (PMP) party added that he could have continued his programs, such as guaranteeing peace in Mindanao and improving education, had he remained in power and finished his term. Joining him at the proclamation rally were the party's senatorial bets: his son, Senate Pro-tempore Jose "Jinggoy' Estrada, Senator Juan Ponce Enrile, former Senator Francisco Tatad, businessman Jose de Venecia III, Rodolfo “Ompong" Plaza, Jose Apolinario Lozada, J.V. Bautista, Regalado Maambong, and the daughter of detained military general Danilo Lim. Guest candidates Senators Miriam Defensor Santiago and Bong Revilla and former Senator Sergio Osmena III did not show up. Estrada's wife, former Senator Luisa Ejercito Estrada, came to the rally to support her husband. In a surprising twist, former Manila Mayor Jose “Lito" Atienza Jr., who is known to be an ally of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, went to show his allegiance to the ousted leader. Atienza even said that it was "painful" for him to witness Estrada bow out of office in 2001. 'Thankful' Estrada's supporters from various parts of the country arrived in their hundreds, most of them clad in orange shirts and vests, sporting campaign caps and button pins, and bearing placards, tarpaulin streamers and banners—all with a single message: that Estrada was the true champion of the masses. Menchu Lonio, a 43 year-old-housewife from Dasmariñas town, Cavite province, expressed her full support for Estrada: "Kay Erap pa rin kami! Si Erap ang tunay na mahirap, hindi yung iba diyan (We remain with Erap! He is the real pro-poor candidate, unlike these others)," she said. Estrada thanked followers by stressing their unflagging support—another theme of his campaign—saying that he could not have done anything if it weren't for them. "Hindi niyo ako iniwan noong ako'y nakakulong. Kaya hindi ko kayo iiwanan. Ito po ang oportunidad na maibalik ito sa sambayanang Pilipino. Wala po ako dito kung wala kayo (You didn’t abandon me when I was in jail, and so now I won’t abandon you. This is my opportunity to give back to the Filipino people. I won’t be here now if it weren’t for you)," he said.
Legal debate Estrada, however, did not attempt to clarify the question of whether it was legal for a former president to seek re-election. (See: Estrada's 2010 presidential bid revives legal debate) The Commission on Elections’s second division had earlier junked three disqualification cases against Estrada. But the legal battle on his presidential bid is expected to be elevated to the Supreme Court. Estrada's camp has repeatedly insisted that they have consulted with legal luminaries, who said that the constitutional ban on presidential reelection does not apply to Estrada, who was not able to finish his term. In September 2007, Estrada was convicted by the anti-graft court Sandiganbayan for plunder, sentenced to a lifetime in jail and disqualified from seeking public office. A month later, however, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo granted him executive clemency, thus restoring his political and civil rights, which by implication included his right to run for office. Vindication In his speech, Estrada criticized his presidential rivals who claim to be pro-poor, adding that it was he who first won the heart of the masses. This was echoed by his son, Sen. Jinggoy Estrada, who said that another candidate has copied Estrada's pro-poor image and even his signature color orange—an obvious swipe at Sen. Manuel Villar Jr., whose own campaign theme focused on solving mass poverty. Estrada likewise said that the plight of the country’s impoverished millions could be blamed on those who supported the EDSA uprising that toppled his presidency. "Karamihan sa mga kumakandidato ngayon ay nakipagsabwatan sa EDSA-Dos. At ito ngayon ang resulta nito: gutom, kahirapan, kurapsyon (Most of those running for national seats today were supportive of EDSA 2. And here are the results: hunger, poverty, corruption), extrajudicial killings, and media harassment," Estrada said. Estrada entered politics in 1969 when he was elected mayor of San Juan, then a quiet suburban town just east of Manila. He kept the post for 17 years, remaining at the sidelines while the anti-Marcos movement came to a boil in the first EDSA revolt of 1986. He was elected senator in 1987, then vice president in 1992, despite his open admission of a macho lifestyle that revolved on drinking, gambling and womanizing—foibles that humanized and endeared him to ordinary Filipinos but disturbed the influential Roman Catholic Church and the business community.—JV, GMANews.TV