Supporters hoping to have Estrada run for president again

Manila: Supporters of Joseph Estrada said yesterday they were hoping to gather at least a million signatures to persuade the former president to run again for office.

Estrada has "got a promise that he has to keep and that's to the Filipino people," said Vince Avena, president of ERAP 2010. Estrada's nickname is Erap and the next presidential election is expected in 2010.

"He made a promise to take care of the masses who trusted him to run the country. Unfortunately, because of what happened, that didn't happen quite as planned," Avena said.

Estrada was forced to resign as president in 2001, midway into his six-year term, amid massive anti-corruption protests.

The former action movie actor was convicted of plunder last September after a six-year trial, then was pardoned a month later by his successor, Gloria Arroyo.

Statutory obstacle

Estrada, who turns 71 on April 19, said he had nothing to do with the signature campaign and was not planning to stand in the 2010 election.

"I don't have any intention of running. I am just going around (the country) to thank the people for their support," he said.

The constitution bans a president from seeking re-election, but Estrada's political consultant, opposition leader Ernesto Maceda, said a study by three retired Supreme Court justices concluded he would face no legal obstacle if he chose to run again. Maceda said the study found the constitution only seeks to prevent an incumbent president from using the "vast powers" of the presidency against opponents in an election.

Maceda said the study also showed the pardon granted by Arroyo to Estrada was "valid, absolute and unconditional" and restored all of the ousted leader's political rights, including being elected to public office.

Avena said his group had gathered about 300,000 signatures in Manila alone and that they expected more than one million.

"We are here to show that there are a lot of people who respect him, who love him, who would want to see him to run for president and be the president," he said.