Prosecutors flayed in Estrada perjury trial

Estrada: legal tide may be turning

By Rufi Vigilar
Special to CNN

MANILA, Philippines (CNN) -- The perjury trial of deposed Philippine president Joseph Estrada has been set for October, but state prosecutors say a decision by an anti-graft court has weakened their case.

Estrada is accused of falsifying his statement of assets and liabilities in 1999, claiming income and property worth only 35 million pesos ($657,000).

In a pre-trial hearing Thursday morning, the Sandiganbayan anti-graft court rejected two motions by the prosecutors to amend information in the perjury case and to inhibit the court's first division from presiding over it.

Ombudsman Aniano Desierto said that the court's rulings have "practically acquitted the accused."

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Desierto and state prosecutors plan to raise the issue before the Supreme Court next week.

"If the Supreme Court does not issue a TRO (temporary restraining order) on the court, there is no point in prosecuting the case," Desierto said.

The ombudsman accused Sandiganbayan presiding judge Francis Garchitorena of "prejudging the case" by issuing earlier court decisions in favor of Estrada.

The rulings limited the number of firms in which Estrada was alleged to have had considerable holdings and that prosecutors could cite in court, Desierto said.

Garchitorena, however, has accused state prosecutors of being ill-prepared to handle the perjury case.

Estrada arrived in court Thursday morning under heavy guard, accompanied by his wife, newly elected senator Loi Ejercito, two of his sons, and the same lawyers who defended him during an aborted impeachment trial that led to his ousting in January.

"I will face all these fabricated charges," Estrada said.

The first three days of the perjury trial have been set for October 29, 30 and 31.

The start of the trial may still be postponed, Desierto said, if the high court needs more time to deliberate on their motions.

Economic plunder

Estrada posted bail for the perjury charge in April but was jailed shortly after for alleged economic plunder -- a non-bailable offense.

The plunder charge alleges Estrada pocketed more than 50 million pesos ($940,000) during his 31 months in office.

A conviction carries a maximum penalty of death.

The former movie actor became president with a landslide victory in 1998, but was ousted by a "people power" uprising in January amid corruption charges.

Estrada was succeeded by his vice president, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Estrada is still considered a security risk and has been allowed detention in hospital instead of a regular jail.

Rabid Estrada supporters had sought to oust Arroyo during a failed but violent Labor Day march on the presidential palace, which left four dead and scores injured.

The national police had recommended Estrada's detention at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center, fearing threats on his life that may embarrass the Arroyo administration.

Moral ascendancy

As the perjury case against Estrada moves forward, the moral ascendancy of the Arroyo administration has come under question.

The president's husband, Mike Arroyo, is hounded by allegations that he received a bribe of 41 million pesos ($770,000) to help revive a defunct telecommunications franchise bill.

The bill's revival and approval would allow two firms -- APC Wireless Interface Network and Philippine Communication Clearing House -- to charge an estimated $12 million in monthly interconnection fees from existing telecommunications firms.

Arroyo: now has her hands full with her own familial legal problems

Mike Arroyo cut short a "medical check-up" in the United States and returned to Manila Thursday, upon instructions of the president.

The First Gentleman still has to answer questions about the nature of his trip, even as his accuser, a former secretary of President Arroyo, has backtracked on the bribery allegation against him.

Opposition leaders suspect that Mike Arroyo may have tried to stifle the possible testimony of another suspect in the United States.

The testimony of the other suspect, Malou Nunez, a former consultant of the transportation and communication department, is key to the investigation, Senator Aquilino Pimentel Jr. said.

The Office of the Ombudsman, which can only prosecute public officials, is still determining state jurisdiction over the controversy.

The Senate, however, may still decide to conduct a separate investigation and summon Mike Arroyo.