Press Secretary Ricardo Puno Jr. said the President remains determined to stay in office even after Senators Raul Roco and Loren Legarda filed Senate Resolution 889 the other day.
"President Estrada had made it clear he would not heed calls to resign. He has been consistent in his statements, which he repeated in his announcement last night," Puno said.
The President, in a surprise gesture late Monday, offered to resign as chairman of the Economic Coordinating Council and invited Vice President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to take up the post as part of sweeping government reforms. At the same time, he made it clear that the only way he would leave his office is through the constitutional process of impeachment.
"So, at the moment, that is his response to the resolutions that have been coming out from whatever source," Puno pointed out.
The Senate resolution was filed the same day that 11 business groups asked the President to step down from office as a result of the worsening economic hardships.
Mr. Estrada has rejected the jueteng bribery allegations and has agreed to face impeachment proceedings brought against him in Congress.
"Whether or not some people refuse to be part of any other process that he is trying to establish by way of reaching out, the constitutional process still must proceed," Puno said.
He called on senators and congressmen to allow the impeachment proceedings to come into full motion without pre-judging the President "guilty" of the accusations.
Puno lamented that several lawmakers have already issued pre-mature statements that the impeachment proceedings have no chance of prospering in the House of Representatives.
"It’s premature to make predictions as to where the impeachment would go," he said.
He said the President would abide by the results of such proceedings, and nothing else outside the constitutional process can make him step down from office.
"There is no process to force him to resign or overthrow him from office. These are not methods prescribed by the Constitution," Puno said. — Marichu Villanueva