Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 21:23:00 10/21/2009
Filed Under: Elections, Eleksyon 2010, Joseph Estrada
MANILA, Philippines -- Some came barefoot, others in worn-out slippers. Many more wore orange T-shirts emblazoned with their idol’s nickname: Erap.Hoisting banners and placards, some 10,000 supporters of ousted President Joseph Estrada converged on Plaza Hernandez in Moriones, Tondo, on Wednesday, to hear him declare formally what he had long been threatening to do—run for reelection in May 2010.
Estrada made the declaration amid fireworks and music and the crowd singing "Maligayang pagbabalik (Welcome back)." He also formally declared Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay as his running mate under the Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino-UNO (Forces of the Filipino Masses), a merger of his party and the United Opposition of which Binay is president.
"I swear to run in the coming elections so I can again be of service to the masses as president of the Philippines," Estrada said in Filipino. His audience broke into wild applause.
"Babalik si Erap (Erap will return)!" former ambassador Ernesto Maceda, the candidate’s campaign manager and senior political adviser, announced, sending the crowd into wilder chants of "Erap! Erap! Erap!"
Estrada’s formal declaration makes him the third would-be candidate for president. The others who have formally declared their plans are Sen. Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III of the Liberal Party and Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro of the ruling Lakas-Kampi-CMD.
Sen. Manuel Villar of the Nacionalista Party, who has been busy coming out with political ads, going around the country to organize his local chapters, and has gone on projects to help entrepreneurs and distressed overseas workers, has also expressed his desire to run for president in 2010. But his party has not held a press conference, complete with a crowd of supporters, to "formally" announce his aspiration.
In this bastion of the working class, tattooed grandmothers carrying their grandchildren joined students, workers and show biz personalities to listen to Estrada, who was dressed in his signature red and who apparently has not lost his common touch.
When photographers crowded the stage and blocked their view of the man, they shouted at the "intruders" to get down: “Media baba! Media baba!"
“He has never forgotten us. Even when he was in jail, his wife and children still sent us canned goods,” said driver Joel Sacaging, 34, of Parola, a slum area in Tondo.
The gathering was a reunion of various personalities who kept the faith throughout Estrada’s years of house arrest.
Horacio “Boy” Morales and Benjamin Diokno, members of the Estrada Cabinet, were present, together with urban poor leader Ronald Lumbao. Comedians Bayani Agbayani and Tiya Pusit hosted the program; actors Lorna Tolentino and Rez Cortez graced the stage along with Estrada’s wife Luisa.
And, of course, there were the politicians led by Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada, and Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez.
Whistle-blowers Jose “Joey” de Venecia III (for the NBN-ZTE controversy) and Sandra Cam (for "jueteng") were also present.
A contingent of Manila councilors came in colorful flower-printed polo shirts, indicating their alignment with Environment Secretary Lito Atienza.
A giant banner read: "Erap para sa bansa (for the country), Atienza para sa Manila (for Manila).”
A supporter said Atienza, a former mayor of Manila, could not attend because he was still a member of President Macapagal-Arroyo’s Cabinet. But he insisted that Atienza was Estrada’s candidate for Manila mayor in 2010.
The incumbent, Mayor Alfredo Lim, is Estrada's former interior secretary. But he is aligned with the Liberal Party of Sen. Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III.
At 72, Estrada, a former movie actor and long-time mayor of San Juan, would be the oldest candidate for president in 2010.
He also faces possible disqualification because of a provision in the Constitution that says a President is not eligible for any reelection. Estrada, however, argued that the provision applied only to the sitting President to prevent him or her from taking advantage of the resources of the government to gain perpetual grip on power.
Estrada added that he only served two and a half years of his six-year term before he was ousted in a People Power Revolt in 2001, and therefore, he could still run for a fresh term.
In a 45-minute speech, Estrada again slammed the Arroyo administration and the elite for his abbreviated term in Malacañang. He said he was a victim of a power grab by a "power-hungry elite."
"I have not stolen a single cent from the country’s coffers," he said, reiterating his defense against the charge that he had plundered the treasury as president.
"Kung ako may kasalanan sa inyo, wala na akong mukhang ihaharap sa inyo (If I had sinned against you, I would not have the nerve to stand before you)" he said.
Many in the crowd wore color-coded shirts printed with the slogans of their candidates.
Enrile supporters wore white with the words “Ang load nyo, ipaglalaban ko! (I’ll fight for your phone load!),” echoing the Senate president’s campaign against overcharging by telcos.
Supporters of De Venecia, who is reportedly eyeing a Senate seat, had the words “Palabra de honor… delicadeza…Joey de Venecia” emblazoned on their blue shirts.
The admirers of Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay, who will be Estrada’s running mate, wore green shirts with the words “Binay is our only vice” printed on them.
But a majority of the crowd were clearly there to see their idol again..
“I stayed for three days at the Edsa shrine during Edsa Tres and survived the police truncheons near Malacañang, but I will still march for him,” said Sacaging of Tondo said.
Sacaging, a community organizer of Estrada’s People’s Movement Against Poverty (PMAP), said while Senator Manuel Villar, another presidential aspirant, also claimed to have roots in Tondo, the working district has remained an Estrada’s bailiwick.
“(Villar’s old) house is located here but we haven’t received any help from him. He might get votes from Tondo but this is still Erap country,” he said.
The rally, held at Plaza Amado Hernandez near the Sto. Nino Church, was also near the Mary Johnston Hospital, where Estrada was born.
Sacaging said dole outs from Estrada’s camp had endeared him to the urban poor despite attempts by the Arroyo administration to woo their support.
“(Arroyo) had her sari-sari stores (program) but the goods there were still too pricey. There were also medical missions but those came with the soldiers. Of course, it was also good to have the military here because that kept the peace,” he said.
Teresita Alihibe, another Parola compound resident, said that she would still vote for Estrada, like in 1998, because he had remained true to the poor despite the former President’s conviction on plunder charges for receiving bribe money from jueteng lords.
“But Jueteng is still here! We used to get rice and canned goods during his time but now we don‘t,” said the 52-year-old grandmother who came to the rally with her four grandchildren in tow.
She said she worked as a laundry woman but decided to go to the rally with her neighbors after hearing that Estrada was going to speak and food was going to be distributed.
Sandwiches and bottled juice were distributed to the crowd, some of whom did not mind sitting on the dirty pavement, as they listened to the speeches.
As night time fell, lines formed along two vans near the stage that were distributing food. Organizers stamped the arms of those who lined up before distributing food and drinks.
Supt. Jojo Rosales, Moriones police station commander, said the crowd peaked at “around 9,000 to 10,000” at the plaza.
Source: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20091021-231541/Estrada-starts-bid-for-Palace-return-before-10000-supporters
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