Estrada may defend himself in Senate

By Amit Baruah

SINGAPORE, DEC. 15. The beleaguered Philippines President, Mr. Joseph Estrada, is considering the idea of taking the stand at his impeachment trial before the 22-member Senate.

Mr. Estrada appears to have agreed to consider the proposal after his one-time close friend, Mr. Luis Singson, testified that he personally delivered money from illegal gambling proceeds to the President.

A senior aide to the President was quoted as saying in Manila that Mr. Estrada had been hurt by the charges.

``He (the President) is now deciding whether he will appear personally or not,'' Mr. Ronaldo Zamora, senior aide to Mr. Estrada, stated. The President, meanwhile, has denied that he accepted a cheque for $ 100,000 from illegal gambling bosses. ``There is no truth in that...let us leave it to the impeachment court to prove that it was not given to me.''

For his part, Mr. Singson testified that he gave a cheque for $ 100,000 in February 1999 as part of the millions of dollars in bribes he collected from gambling lords.

This cheque, the former buddy of the President claimed, would prove that Mr. Estrada did accept bribes from ``jueteng'' (an illegal lottery run by gambling bosses).

In a related development, several Senators (who are sitting as judges in the impeachment trial) have said that the President should take the stand to answer charges that he accepted bribes, betrayed the public trust and violated the country's Constitution.

``He must deny them (the charges). Otherwise, they will stand unchallenged in the records,'' Senator Franklin Drilon, one of the jurors, said.

According to another Senator, Mr. Raul Roco, if the President did not give evidence in the trial, it would mean that he was ``running away from the Senate''.

Separately, the President has said that he expects to work harder in the New Year.

``I guess I'd have to (work) double time'', Mr. Estrada told mediapersons when asked what his resolution for 2001 was.

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Section  : International
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