Estrada arraigned for plunder today

Ousted President Joseph Estrada will be arraigned for plunder before the Sandiganbayan at 2 p.m. today.

Estrada will be asked to answer a charge that he plundered a personal fortune of more than P4 billion while in office as well as used an alias to hide ownership of a bank account.

The first charge, defined as large-scale corruption, is punishable by death under a law that amended the Revised Penal Code in 1994.

Today’s appearance at the anti-graft court will be the second for Estrada, who refused to enter a plea two weeks ago when he was arraigned for the lighter charge of perjury for alleged misdeclaration in his statement of assets and liabilities for 1999.

Estrada will be arraigned together with his son, former San Juan Mayor Jinggoy Estrada, and his former lawyer, Edward Serapio, who are both included in the plunder charge.

Ombudsman Aniano Desierto told reporters that once Estrada has been brought before the court, defense lawyers and government prosecutors would start the process of planning a trial timetable.

However, Raymund Fortun, Estrada’s counsel, said there were "a lot of ambiguities in the law" and therefore his client could not be forced to enter a plea.

Defense lawyers were hoping that their motion to throw out the case "would be resolved in time for the arraignment," but they would like to keep the defense strategy under wraps, he added.

Court officials said Justice Anacleto Badoy, chairman of the Sandiganbayan’s third division handling the plunder case, was expected to issue two rulings, one on a defense motion to disqualify him from presiding over the trial, and second to throw out the plunder case.

About 2,500 policemen will be guarding Estrada’s route from the Veterans Memorial Medical Center (VMMC) on North Avenue to the Sandiganbayan on Commonwealth Avenue, both in Quezon City, to ensure that he reaches the court alive.

Estrada and Jinggoy are undergoing medical treatment at the VMMC, where they are temporarily confined since May 12 on orders of the Sandiganbayan.

Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Leandro Mendoza said police are under orders from the Sandiganbayan to protect Estrada’s life.

"The same number of people, the same number of vehicles will be deployed," he said. "And we will be spending the same amount of money."

Mendoza said the government is spending about P400,000 a day to shuttle the ousted President from the VMMC to the Sandiganbayan and back.

On the other hand, Metro Manila police commander Deputy Director General Romeo Peña said the heightened security would serve as a "dress rehearsal" for Estrada’s future arraignments and trials.

"We don’t expect more people to rally on the day of the arraignment and during the trial," he said.

The Sandiganbayan had denied the PNP’s motion to hold Estrada’s arraignment inside the VMMC’s 500-seat auditorium for security reasons.

Meanwhile, hundreds of protesters to be led by the group PlunderWatch will rally in front of the Sandiganbayan today to denounce Desierto’s alleged "inexplicable failure" to include Estrada’s friends Jaime Dichaves, Dante Tan, and William Gatchalian in the plunder case.

Carolina Pagaduan-Araullo, PlunderWatch convenor, said yesterday they are dismayed by President Arroyo’s lack of political will to have Estrada jailed.

"The protests are not meant to derail the trial," she said. "We want the trial to go on in the face of Malacañang’s apparent willingness to reach a modus vivendi with the Estrada camp."

On the other hand, Sammy Malunes, Kilusang Mayo Uno spokesman, said the Sandiganbayan should make sure that those involved in the plunder case like Charlie "Atong" Ang, Edward Serapio, Yolanda Ricaforte, Eleuterio Tan and Delia Rajas be punished.– With reports from Christina Mendez, Sandy Areneta