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Estrada Arraigned But Trial Could Last A Millennium

Finally, after nearly six months of pre-trial investigations, legal moves that looked like mere dilatory tactics by defense lawyers and postponements, a breakthrough. Joseph Ejercito Estrada, ousted in a five-day People Power 2 uprising last Jan. 20, was arraigned on plunder charges before the Sandiganbayan last July 10. Estrada faces other graft and criminal cases before the anti-graft court's other divisions. His arraignment was greeted with jubilation. But skepticism remained in the air as Estrada and his co-accused faced the court after a long delay; the trial is yet to begin in September. Estrada's own lawyers could only agree.

By Andrea Trinidad-Echavez
www.bulatlat.com

For the millions of Filipinos who supported the ouster of actor-turned-president Joseph Estrada, the wheels of justice finally started to grind when, after three postponements, the anti-graft court arraigned him last July 10 for plunder charges.

But for the Estradas and their supporters, the disgraced president's arraignment before the Sandiganbayan marked the beginning of yet another chapter of the country's history of unfinished business.

Arraigned with Estrada, were his son, former San Juan town mayor Jinggoy and lawyer Serafin Serapio Jr.

Estrada and his co-accused refused to enter any plea, prompting the court to enter a "not guilty" plea in their behalf.

Prior to the arraignment, the younger Estrada had filed a motion to quash, questioning the constitutionality of the plunder law.

While the Estradas and Serapio refused to recognize the court's decision to take the case under its jurisdiction, placing under question the plunder law, militant groups who led the People Power II uprising hailed the decision, describing it as "just."

Teddy Casiño, Bayan secretary-general, told Bulatlat.com: "We accept with all our heart the court's decision (to enter a plea) for Estrada. We believe that they (justices) were simply being just and that they were doing their jobs well."

For the anti-Estrada groups, it was yet another taste of victory. The otherwise jubilant mood was dampened by the anti-graft court's decision to schedule the pre-trial in September, however.

Casiño said that while militant leaders were "generally happy" with the performance of Ombudsman Aniano Desierto, the chief government prosecutor, as well as the private and public prosecutors, they were also skeptical about the long lull in prosecuting Estrada.

Bayan chair Rafael Mariano said Estrada's arraignment is the "logical consequence" of his removal from office through people power, pointing out that the defense panel had actually run out of legal basis for further delaying the trial. "This trial marks one concrete step towards attaining justice for the Filipino people victimized by an anti-people, corrupt and pro-imperialist leader like Estrada. This hopefully will serve as a warning to all plunderers, crooks, thieves in government," Mariano said further.

Whether or not the anti-graft court will pronounce the Estradas guilty as charged remains to be seen, however.

Lawyers as well as militant and "civil society" leaders who have been closely watching the trial since the day plunder charges were elevated to the anti-graft court could only agree.

Conviction

With several motions and petitions filed by the defense so far, one could only wonder whether the former president could end up in the National Penitentiary or frolicking in the white sands of his billion-peso mansions. Philippine laws consider plunder as heinous crime warranting a capital punishment by lethal injection.

Bayan Muna Representative-elect Satur Ocampo said the Estrada camp should even view the arraignment as favorable to them.

"If they really have the evidence to prove Estrada's innocence, then they (Estrada camp) should welcome the arraignment. The thing is, it's obvious that they just want to delay everything because they cannot prove his innocence," Ocampo said.

Human rights lawyer Theodore Te opined that anybody following the case would think nothing else of the motion to quash but "a means to delay the proceedings."

"Quite clearly, Team Estrada is bent on invoking every rule in the book—and some that they may make up along the way—to keep the Estradas from being tried before the Sandiganbayan," Te said. "And, in the plunder case, they have brought out the all-encompassing argument of constitutionality of the law itself as the very first line of defense—the ultimate spanner in the works."

Te, a human rights lawyer who is against capital punishment, said that in resolving the younger Estrada's motion, the Sandiganbayan must be mindful of the true nature of the motion.

"From the title alone ('Motion to Quash or Suspend'), Team Estrada already indicates that the motion is not solely intended to quash the information but also, in the alternative, to suspend the proceedings pending a determination of the constitutionality of the law," he said.

Millennium

As it stands, therefore, Te said, any action that the anti-graft court would take—other than outright dismissal of the Information—would lead to delay simply because "Team Estrada" would insist on the many faces and phases of due process.

"The best course of action for the court to take may be to weigh which option will cause the least delay. Otherwise, the trial of the millennium may yet turn out to be the trial that lasted a millennium," he stressed.

Surprisingly, Estrada's lawyer, Jose Crispin Remulla, agreed that the trial could drag on.

He cited that over the past three decades, many questions have remained unanswered—who bombed Plaza Miranda, who were behind former Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr.'s death or whether or not the fabled Marcos billions is for real.

"In a nation of unfinished business, a real ending to all these questions, including the trial of Joseph Ejercito Estrada, is nowhere in sight," Remulla said. "It may end up the way his impeachment proceedings in the Senate were abruptly terminated, highly inconclusive and successful in only dividing the nation along class lines and in reviving a sleeping military behemoth."

"That will not be a desirable ending, not for Joseph Estrada. He feels that he had been unjustly accused, conspired against, maligned and imprisoned. He needs to be vindicated, not only from the point of view of history, but in the courts of justice," he added.

On whose side will Lady Justice be this time? Or will the Estrada saga end up like the rest of the so-called "unfinished business?" www.bulatlat.com

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