Estrada Arrest: A Watershed in Philippine Politics
The
Estrada arrest broke the invincibility that high-ranking government officials,
particularly presidents, appeared to enjoy. It also proved that public militance
is still a good weapon against wrongdoers in government, for while Estrada's
arrest was ordered by the Sandiganbayan and implemented by the PNP, it was a
product of the continued pressure exerted by people's organizations that played
crucial roles in People Power II.
The Philippine presidency
will never be the same again.
Last year, Joseph Ejercito
Estrada made history when he became the first Asian president to be impeached.
In January this year, he became the second Philippine president to be ousted
from Malacañang by a popular uprising dubbed People Power II. Two days ago, the
school dropout turned actor turned politician again made it to the history books
when he became the first Philippine president to be arrested and detained on the
non-bailable charge of plunder. For
this Estrada faces possible lifetime imprisonment, even death.
Estrada faces seven other
charges aside from plunder: violation of the Code of Conduct and Ethical
Standards for Public Officers, perjury, illegal use of an alias, and four cases
of graft. The last involved the
embezzled P130 million from tobacco excise tax; Best World Resources stock
manipulation; and the sale of Belle Corporation’s shares of stock to the
Government Service Insurance System and Social Security System.
The Estrada arrest broke the
invincibility that high-ranking government officials, particularly presidents,
appeared to enjoy. Dictator Ferdinand Marcos, although toppled by a mass
uprising in 1986, was never prosecuted, his billions of ill-gotten wealth
untouched. The arrest of Estrada for a capital offense showed that Philippine
presidents are not above the law.
Although the arrest order
was made by the graft court Sandiganbayan and executed by the Philippine
National Police (PNP), unremitting pressure from progressive groups was
undeniably one of the major factors that brought it on. These are the same
groups that successfully fought for his ouster early this year through the
peaceful but militant People Power II.
Just Like In The Movies
After several days of
meetings and after finding a prima facie case of plunder, the Sandiganbayan
finally issued last April 25 the long-awaited order to arrest and jail Estrada
without bail.
It took four hours before
the warrant of arrest could be served to the former president as thousands of
hysterical, even violent, Estrada supporters blocked the roads leading to his
house in a posh subdivision in Greenhills, San Juan.
But at 3:15 p.m., the ousted
leader finally came out of his house. PNP Director General Leandro Mendoza, who
led the arresting team, accompanied him. Members of the anti-riot police, PNP
Special Action Forces and Philippine Marines accompanied them to ensure the
safety of Estrada as well as to pacify the angry Estrada supporters.
Before this, negotiations
for Estrada's peaceful arrest were conducted between Mendoza and former Interior
Secretary Ronaldo Puno inside a white Toyota parked near the Madison Street gate
of North Greenhills Subdivision. The ousted president demanded not to be treated
like a common criminal and even chose which vehicle to use for the short trip to
Camp Crame.
Estrada was temporarily
taken to the detention cell of the disbanded Presidential Anti-Organized Crime
Task Force (PAOCTF). Looking haggard and tired but still wearing his trademark
wristband with the presidential seal, Estrada was shown on TV posing for police
mug shots, filling out arrest forms and being fingerprinted.
After a night in jail, the
ousted leader, notorious for his bacchanalian lifestyle, had recovered enough to
complain about the bad food and faulty air-conditioning.
Logical
For militant groups,
Estrada's arrest was simply the next logical step of People Power II. Party-list
group Bayan Muna (People First) said Estrada's arrest was necessary to make a
strong statement against those who use public office to amass personal wealth.
Bayan Muna president and
congressional nominee Satur Ocampo lauded the Sandiganbayan decision and
attributed it to the militance and determination of progressive and other
anti-Estrada groups.
He said Estrada's arrest,
while ordered by the Sandiganbayan and implemented by the PNP, was a product of
the continued pressure exerted by the people's organizations that played crucial
roles in the mass uprising.
He said that the arrest is
also a warning to the present and future occupants of Malacañang against abuse
of power.
Historical
It was not only Estrada who
made history last April 25. President
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's administration will go down in history as the first to
prosecute a former president for criminal offenses.
The action demonstrated a political will that many had feared would bend
in the face of the continued support for Estrada by a segment of the population,
especially at this crucial period of the election campaign.
It was earlier reported that
members of the Arroyo Cabinet are divided over the issue of Estrada's arrest.
Many feared an electoral backlash that would give the opposition Puwersa
ng Masa senatorial candidates the upper hand.
Ombudsman Aniano Desierto
was in fact severely criticized by some politicians for his apparent speed in
approving the filing of the cases because of fears of political backlash.
But with the arrest of
Estrada, the Arroyo administration gains rather than loses. While the incident
may raise a few days of unrest from Estrada supporters, it has a greater value,
both strategically and tactically. In
the immediate, Puwersa ng Masa lost the main crowd drawers of its sorties. The
arrest projected a vulnerable and guilty Estrada, as well as the ill-manner and
lack of discipline of its supporters which turned off, not attracted, possible
supporters.
In the long-term, Estrada's
arrest projected an Arroyo presidency willing to put her administration on the
line over a principle of justice. The principle is that under the rule of law,
the powerful and the rich could be sent to jail to stand trial.
The threat of a political
backlash was not even plausible. The protests against Estrada's arrest were made
by fanatical Estrada loyalists who can never be converted whatever the Arroyo
camp does. The alleged threat should have been analyzed more carefully and dealt
with earlier. #
SIDEBARS:
Excuse
Me, Please Don't Call it People Power III
Steps
to the Slammer: A Chronology