On Erap’s Candidacy

Last night, Erap announced his intention to run for president in 2010. My oh my. There are a lot of things to say, but where do I  start?


His proclamation was held in Tondo, Manila, in front of Sto. Niño Church. With all the cases hurled towards Estrada and his family, you’d think he wouldn’t attempt on running anymore. At least that’s what I thought. The number of attendees and the fervor that emanated from the place whilst he is making his announcement showed  that amidst his political problems and questionable intentions, he still has a decent number of supporters. He may rank 3rd now, but Estrada still has a few months to go.

I have to admit that I’m not well versed  with the laws governing elections, but as I understand it, no president can run for re-election.  Estrada may not have finished his term, does this exempt him from this rule? Is this rule only applicable to the sitting president (as what Maceda claimed on an interview with an Abs-Cbn reporter)?

The government carefully deliberated Estrada’s pardon. His age and the length of prison time he had served was considered. Not running for any position was Estrada’s public commitment and the government took his word for it. What happened to that?

Estrada’s team found loop holes in his pardon and in the election rules, or rather, they came up with reasons (with really shallow bases) that will make him an eligible candidate. We have to remember though, that even if the COMELEC lets Estrada run on 2010, the voting public will still be the one to decide his fate.

On Estrada’s Spokesperson

According to Manila Bulletin ( full text here), earlier that day, Margaux Salcedo mentioned that Estrada’s ranking will improve once he files his candidacy. Excuse me, but I really have to use this pinoy expression : ASA PA! She also said a few number of things that made me say to myself  clearly, this woman is misguided.  tsk tsk.

“Kapag nakapag-file na rin siya ng certificate of candidacy niya sa Commission on Elections (Comelec), pwede na siya makapaglabas ng campaign ads niya sa TV, radyo at diyaryo kaya makakatulong ito sa kanya. Aside from that, the release of his movie with Ai-Ai delas Alas next month will also help improve his bid for 2010.”

The movie she’s pertaining to is entitled “Ang Tanging Pamilya”. What really is Erap vying for? the best actor award? For someone to think that the people will base their votes on how well a candidate act on screen really demeans all of us. I really, really hope the masses Estrada love so much can read this piece of crap.

On Estrada’s Agenda

Aside from whether the COMELEC will allow him to run for office on 2010, 2 other things that need to be cleared are:

  • His Pro-poor Agenda
  • His all out war against the Muslims and Communist Rebels

Pro-poor?

Erap, just like how he’s always been, promised to take care of the poor. His pro- poor agenda really is a breath-taker. What had he actually done to ease up poverty in the Philippines? He’s frequent donations and what- nots really didn’t do much did it? It’s just like throwing a dog a bone, it relieves hunger for a short while, but it doesn’t really solve poverty.

To make it a bit fair, I think no politician has ever really done something with this problem, but at least there were some who thought of giving the poor the mechanisms to rise against poverty, instead of filling them up once in a while with their basic needs.

Estrada has been using the masses for his personal gain. When is he ever going to stop? When are we going to make him stop?

A Call for War

Why would anyone vote for a candidate who promises to wage war against their fellow Filipinos? Muslims, Rebels, non-Catholics. Whatever you call them, they’re still part of this country. Like everyone else, they have the right to live in peace and be treated fairly, regardless of their religion and beliefs.

Estrada has really gone mad, or maybe he missed Pol Sci 101 in College when the Philippine Constitution was discussed.


The Philippines deserves a better leader than him. A call for a WISER voting public should start now.



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