Estrada just wants immunity  Zamora
February 2, 2001 | 12:00am
Former Executive Secretary Ronaldo Zamora said yesterday deposed President Joseph Estrada has little chance of regaining power and his defiant claim to the presidency is just a ploy to secure immunity from criminal prosecution.
Justice Secretary Hernando Perez also said Estrada’s insistence that he remains president is aimed at evading the death penalty if convicted of corruption and economic plunder.
Zamora and Perez issued the statements as Estrada maintained he was merely on leave from the presidency, allowing his constitutional successor, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, to assume the post in an acting capacity.
Makati Rep. Joker Arroyo stressed, however, that Estrada is no longer entitled to immunity from criminal suit.
For his part, former President Fidel Ramos said Estrada merely received what he deserved as a "non-performing" commander-in-chief.
In a radio interview, Zamora said his former boss wanted history to be written correctly.
Asked if Estrada continued to claim the presidency to preserve immunity from ongoing criminal cases, Zamora answered; "That’s right. That’s one consideration that was mentioned by his lawyers."
Zamora, also secretary general of Estrada’s Partido ng Masang Pilipino, acknowledged that it would be very difficult for the ousted president to regain power.
"There is nothing that can be done. Whatever President Estrada says, the situation now will not change," Zamora said.
He revealed that Estrada was spending most of his time writing his memoirs of recent events and working with lawyers to prepare his legal defense against an investigation into allegations of ill-gotten wealth.
On alleged coup plots against Mrs. Arroyo, Zamora said the Estrada camp has nothing to do with them. "We are not participating in anything that would destabilize her government," Zamora said.
"What she should guard against are those who joined her, many of them are only temporary allies, and President Arroyo knows this, " he added.
"Estrada apparently hopes that by publicly claiming to be president, he will be protected by presidential immunity," Perez said.
The Arroyo administration has indicated that Estrada may be charged with the capital offense of plunder, as prosecution lawyers in the aborted impeachment trial against Estrada alleged that he amassed an estimated P15 billion in his 31 months at Malacañang.
"When he left (Malacañang), they told him that since he is not president, he can be charged in court. This would mean (the charge of) plunder and you get the death penalty for this," Perez said.
"That was when he got worried," Perez recalled. He quoted Estrada as saying; "I am just on leave."
Perez stressed that once a national leader gives up power, he cannot take it back.
He said Estrada’s hope of regaining the presidency "is a lost cause."
In his first public appearance since he stepped down on Jan. 20 at the height of people power II, Estrada told supporters he was just on leave and that Mrs. Arroyo’s takeover was legally questionable.
Meanwhile, Arroyo, a key member of the House prosecution panel in the impeachment trial, said Estrada was stripped of his immunity from criminal prosecution when he stepped down.
"Mr. Estrada’s insistence that he is still the president is all posturing. He doesn’t and cannot mean it. It is a ploy to stall the criminal cases that would be filed against him," Arroyo said.
The lawmaker also said the evidence against Estrada "is too strong."
"The former President knows that. In fact, the offer of his cronies to speak out against him is superfluous. They, too, are buying their defense so that they cannot be criminally charged," Arroyo said.
He opposed proposals to banish Estrada.
"People Power II was the vengeance of the people against a corrupt president. To allow him to go into exile is to allow him to go scot-free. People Power II would thus be meaningless."
Isabela Rep. Heherson Alvarez, a leader of the ruling Lakas-NUCD-UMDP-Kampi coalition, dismissed Estrada’s claim that he is still the president as another "Erap joke."
"The reality is that he is an ex-President and Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is the President," Alvarez said.
Ramos, who was tapped by Mrs. Arroyo as ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary, said Estrada’s ouster was caused primarily by his own undoing.
Ramos recalled that he warned Estrada several times to reform lest he would be judged harshly by the people.
He described the 63-year-old former movie actor as "a president who did not perform properly in accordance with the acceptance of the people."
Ramos said the withdrawal of support for Estrada by the military and the police only showed that the ousted leader did not earn their respect as commander-in-chief.
The former president also favored suggestions that Estrada leave the country for the sake of peace and stability.
He added that Estrada can no longer question the legitimacy of the Arroyo administration since it has been confirmed by the Supreme Court and accepted by a great majority of the people.
Newly appointed Education Secretary Raul Roco asserted that Estrada has lost his mandate.
"It is the right of anyone to claim he is the president. But in fact, in the law, he is no longer the president. Under the present situation, he is no longer in Malacañang," Roco said.
He pointed out that despite Estrada’s pronouncements, Mrs. Arroyo now enjoys the support of the entire government system and civil society.
"The president in command now is President Arroyo. It is very clear. She has taken her oath of office and she has the support of the Supreme Court, the legislature, the military and the people," Roco said.
Human Rights Commissioner Nasser Marohomsalic also said Estrada has forfeited the vested right entrusted to him by the people when he violated public trust.
"In this country, one enjoys the freedom of expression, including the right to become ridiculous," Marohomsalic said of Estrada’s claim that he is still the president.
Former Speaker Manuel Villar Jr. said it was expected of Estrada to claim he is still president.
"Even Marcos said it," Villar said, referring to the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos who was unseated by a bloodless People Power uprising in February 1986.
In a visit to Dagupan City to address a Rotary Club meeting, Villar described as "normal" attempts to destabilize the Arroyo government.
"Let us give President Arroyo the chance and let us not let the nationalism that we have awakened anew to just slip away," Villar said.
He also revealed he is eyeing a senatorial seat in the May 14 elections, but added he has not joined any political party as yet.
Dean Froilan Bacungan of the University of the Philippines College of Law said Mrs. Arroyo is a de jure President, meaning there has been total compliance with all the requirements of the law.
"There is constitutional basis for stating that Mrs. Arroyo has become the de jure president of the Philippines because the confluence of the dramatic and historic events that had their climax at noon on Jan. 20, 2001 at EDSA appears to have constitutionalized people power effectively, leading to the installation of Mrs. Arroyo as our de jure president," Bacungan said.
Government prosecutors are set to file three more plunder cases against Estrada at the Office of the Ombudsman, bringing to 10 such cases against the fallen leader.
Perez refused, however, to give details of the new charges, saying government prosecutors were still completing their evidence.
"We are trying to recover the properties of Mr. Estrada, aside from the deposits he made. We are interested also in some of the mansions of the former president," Perez said.
In a press briefing at Malacañang, Perez said two known Estrada allies, controversial businessman Mark Jimenez and suspected gambling lord Charlie "Atong" Ang, may be among prosecution witnesses against Estrada.
While Estrada deplored the filing of the charges, he gave assurances he will not stop Jimenez and Ang from testifying against him.
He urged the two, however, to "just tell the truth" and not allow themselves to be used as tools of his enemies.
Estrada told The STAR he has received information some of his allies were being coerced or intimidated into testifying for the prosecution.
Perez said four witnesses under the protection of the justice department have expressed fears for their lives.
At the same time, Perez denied reports that Philippine Airlines employee Rowena Lopez, an alleged mistress of Estrada, has offered to testify for the prosecution.
"I have not talked with Rowena Lopez," Perez said.
He admitted, however, that a lawyer-friend has approached him about the willingness of a certain woman claiming to have a relationship with Estrada, to volunteer information about the former President’s alleged ill-gotten fortune.
But Perez added that the lawyer failed to identify the woman.
Zamora also expressed doubts that Lopez and Ang have volunteered to testify against Estrada.
Meanwhile, Roco said all prosecution evidence gathered for the impeachment trial can be turned over to the regular courts even without an order from the impeachment tribunal.
Roco said lawyer Sigfrid Fortun, a member of the defense panel in the impeachment process, was merely doing his job when he questioned the turnover of the documents to the regular court.
"Just because the impeachment has already been terminated does not mean the pieces of evidence should remain hidden. In fact, at the end of the impeachment, if there are crimes, they must be prosecuted," Roco said.
He said the Senate has adopted a resolution closing the impeachment trial, hence, the need to pass another resolution turning over the documents to the Ombudsman.
"The impeachment court has been rendered functus oficio. It is gobbledygook for ‘nothing more to be done,’" Roco said.
In another development, Bayan Muna leader Satur Ocampo urged the government to order the immediate arrest of Estrada.
"We urge President Arroyo to go hard and tough on Estrada. She should not give him kid-glove diplomacy. Our people will not allow an unrepentant and arrogant plunderer and criminal to grace the limelight again and obscure their verdict on him," Ocampo said.
Ocampo, formerly spokesman for the communist movement National Democratic Front, said seeing a "defiant" Estrada on national television castigating the people for overthrowing him from power is both a "national tragedy and a domestic slur."  With reports from Jess Diaz, Sheila Crisostomo, Jose Rodel Clapano, Efren Danao, Eva de Leon
Justice Secretary Hernando Perez also said Estrada’s insistence that he remains president is aimed at evading the death penalty if convicted of corruption and economic plunder.
Zamora and Perez issued the statements as Estrada maintained he was merely on leave from the presidency, allowing his constitutional successor, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, to assume the post in an acting capacity.
Makati Rep. Joker Arroyo stressed, however, that Estrada is no longer entitled to immunity from criminal suit.
For his part, former President Fidel Ramos said Estrada merely received what he deserved as a "non-performing" commander-in-chief.
In a radio interview, Zamora said his former boss wanted history to be written correctly.
Asked if Estrada continued to claim the presidency to preserve immunity from ongoing criminal cases, Zamora answered; "That’s right. That’s one consideration that was mentioned by his lawyers."
Zamora, also secretary general of Estrada’s Partido ng Masang Pilipino, acknowledged that it would be very difficult for the ousted president to regain power.
"There is nothing that can be done. Whatever President Estrada says, the situation now will not change," Zamora said.
He revealed that Estrada was spending most of his time writing his memoirs of recent events and working with lawyers to prepare his legal defense against an investigation into allegations of ill-gotten wealth.
On alleged coup plots against Mrs. Arroyo, Zamora said the Estrada camp has nothing to do with them. "We are not participating in anything that would destabilize her government," Zamora said.
"What she should guard against are those who joined her, many of them are only temporary allies, and President Arroyo knows this, " he added.
"Estrada apparently hopes that by publicly claiming to be president, he will be protected by presidential immunity," Perez said.
The Arroyo administration has indicated that Estrada may be charged with the capital offense of plunder, as prosecution lawyers in the aborted impeachment trial against Estrada alleged that he amassed an estimated P15 billion in his 31 months at Malacañang.
"When he left (Malacañang), they told him that since he is not president, he can be charged in court. This would mean (the charge of) plunder and you get the death penalty for this," Perez said.
"That was when he got worried," Perez recalled. He quoted Estrada as saying; "I am just on leave."
Perez stressed that once a national leader gives up power, he cannot take it back.
He said Estrada’s hope of regaining the presidency "is a lost cause."
In his first public appearance since he stepped down on Jan. 20 at the height of people power II, Estrada told supporters he was just on leave and that Mrs. Arroyo’s takeover was legally questionable.
Meanwhile, Arroyo, a key member of the House prosecution panel in the impeachment trial, said Estrada was stripped of his immunity from criminal prosecution when he stepped down.
"Mr. Estrada’s insistence that he is still the president is all posturing. He doesn’t and cannot mean it. It is a ploy to stall the criminal cases that would be filed against him," Arroyo said.
The lawmaker also said the evidence against Estrada "is too strong."
"The former President knows that. In fact, the offer of his cronies to speak out against him is superfluous. They, too, are buying their defense so that they cannot be criminally charged," Arroyo said.
He opposed proposals to banish Estrada.
"People Power II was the vengeance of the people against a corrupt president. To allow him to go into exile is to allow him to go scot-free. People Power II would thus be meaningless."
Isabela Rep. Heherson Alvarez, a leader of the ruling Lakas-NUCD-UMDP-Kampi coalition, dismissed Estrada’s claim that he is still the president as another "Erap joke."
"The reality is that he is an ex-President and Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is the President," Alvarez said.
Ramos, who was tapped by Mrs. Arroyo as ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary, said Estrada’s ouster was caused primarily by his own undoing.
Ramos recalled that he warned Estrada several times to reform lest he would be judged harshly by the people.
He described the 63-year-old former movie actor as "a president who did not perform properly in accordance with the acceptance of the people."
Ramos said the withdrawal of support for Estrada by the military and the police only showed that the ousted leader did not earn their respect as commander-in-chief.
The former president also favored suggestions that Estrada leave the country for the sake of peace and stability.
He added that Estrada can no longer question the legitimacy of the Arroyo administration since it has been confirmed by the Supreme Court and accepted by a great majority of the people.
"It is the right of anyone to claim he is the president. But in fact, in the law, he is no longer the president. Under the present situation, he is no longer in Malacañang," Roco said.
He pointed out that despite Estrada’s pronouncements, Mrs. Arroyo now enjoys the support of the entire government system and civil society.
"The president in command now is President Arroyo. It is very clear. She has taken her oath of office and she has the support of the Supreme Court, the legislature, the military and the people," Roco said.
Human Rights Commissioner Nasser Marohomsalic also said Estrada has forfeited the vested right entrusted to him by the people when he violated public trust.
"In this country, one enjoys the freedom of expression, including the right to become ridiculous," Marohomsalic said of Estrada’s claim that he is still the president.
Former Speaker Manuel Villar Jr. said it was expected of Estrada to claim he is still president.
"Even Marcos said it," Villar said, referring to the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos who was unseated by a bloodless People Power uprising in February 1986.
In a visit to Dagupan City to address a Rotary Club meeting, Villar described as "normal" attempts to destabilize the Arroyo government.
"Let us give President Arroyo the chance and let us not let the nationalism that we have awakened anew to just slip away," Villar said.
He also revealed he is eyeing a senatorial seat in the May 14 elections, but added he has not joined any political party as yet.
Dean Froilan Bacungan of the University of the Philippines College of Law said Mrs. Arroyo is a de jure President, meaning there has been total compliance with all the requirements of the law.
"There is constitutional basis for stating that Mrs. Arroyo has become the de jure president of the Philippines because the confluence of the dramatic and historic events that had their climax at noon on Jan. 20, 2001 at EDSA appears to have constitutionalized people power effectively, leading to the installation of Mrs. Arroyo as our de jure president," Bacungan said.
Perez refused, however, to give details of the new charges, saying government prosecutors were still completing their evidence.
"We are trying to recover the properties of Mr. Estrada, aside from the deposits he made. We are interested also in some of the mansions of the former president," Perez said.
In a press briefing at Malacañang, Perez said two known Estrada allies, controversial businessman Mark Jimenez and suspected gambling lord Charlie "Atong" Ang, may be among prosecution witnesses against Estrada.
While Estrada deplored the filing of the charges, he gave assurances he will not stop Jimenez and Ang from testifying against him.
He urged the two, however, to "just tell the truth" and not allow themselves to be used as tools of his enemies.
Estrada told The STAR he has received information some of his allies were being coerced or intimidated into testifying for the prosecution.
Perez said four witnesses under the protection of the justice department have expressed fears for their lives.
At the same time, Perez denied reports that Philippine Airlines employee Rowena Lopez, an alleged mistress of Estrada, has offered to testify for the prosecution.
"I have not talked with Rowena Lopez," Perez said.
He admitted, however, that a lawyer-friend has approached him about the willingness of a certain woman claiming to have a relationship with Estrada, to volunteer information about the former President’s alleged ill-gotten fortune.
But Perez added that the lawyer failed to identify the woman.
Zamora also expressed doubts that Lopez and Ang have volunteered to testify against Estrada.
Meanwhile, Roco said all prosecution evidence gathered for the impeachment trial can be turned over to the regular courts even without an order from the impeachment tribunal.
Roco said lawyer Sigfrid Fortun, a member of the defense panel in the impeachment process, was merely doing his job when he questioned the turnover of the documents to the regular court.
"Just because the impeachment has already been terminated does not mean the pieces of evidence should remain hidden. In fact, at the end of the impeachment, if there are crimes, they must be prosecuted," Roco said.
He said the Senate has adopted a resolution closing the impeachment trial, hence, the need to pass another resolution turning over the documents to the Ombudsman.
"The impeachment court has been rendered functus oficio. It is gobbledygook for ‘nothing more to be done,’" Roco said.
In another development, Bayan Muna leader Satur Ocampo urged the government to order the immediate arrest of Estrada.
"We urge President Arroyo to go hard and tough on Estrada. She should not give him kid-glove diplomacy. Our people will not allow an unrepentant and arrogant plunderer and criminal to grace the limelight again and obscure their verdict on him," Ocampo said.
Ocampo, formerly spokesman for the communist movement National Democratic Front, said seeing a "defiant" Estrada on national television castigating the people for overthrowing him from power is both a "national tragedy and a domestic slur."  With reports from Jess Diaz, Sheila Crisostomo, Jose Rodel Clapano, Efren Danao, Eva de Leon
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