SWS: 78% of Pinoys want Estrada to testify

A majority of Filipinos want President Estrada to take the stand at his impeachment trial and personally refute the allegations against him as he earlier vowed, according to a nationwide survey.

Further, Mr. Estrada’s accuser, Ilocos Sur Gov. Luis "Chavit" Singson, emerged as the most credible witness in the trial, the poll revealed.

In the survey, conducted by the Social Weather Stations Inc. (SWS) Dec. 8-11 and commissioned by ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp., 78 percent of the 1,200 respondents said they wanted Mr. Estrada to appear at his trial, while 19 percent said otherwise.

Sixty-eight percent of the respondents believe it would do Mr. Estrada good if he testifies personally, while 28 percent said he should "let his lawyers argue for him" – which they have been doing for the past days.

Among the witnesses who appeared at the trial, 13.4 percent of respondents said Singson "gave very believable testimonies at the trial."

Singson is followed by his secretary Emma Lim (7.1 percent), alleged jueteng auditor Yolanda Ricaforte (4.6 percent), and former PNP chief Deputy Director General Roberto Lastimoso (3.4 percent).

Dwelling the cellar are presidential lawyer Edward Serapio (0.7 percent), presidential adviser Anton Prieto (0.6 percent), close presidential associate Charlie "Atong" Ang (0.6 percent) and San Juan Mayor and presidential son Jinggoy Estrada (0.4 percent).

On the other hand, 9.2 percent said Singson "gave very unbelievable testimonies." He was followed by Ricaforte (8.6 percent) and Lastimoso (3.5 percent).

Before the trial began, Mr. Estrada repeatedly vowed that he would answer the allegations "point by point" but decided to defer to his lawyers.

So far, according to the survey, the public remained largely undecided on whether the President should be convicted or acquitted by the Senate.

Fifty percent said they "don’t know enough about the case" in order for them to make an opinion, while 27 percent said Mr. Estrada "should be convicted" and 19 percent said he "should be acquitted."

Asked whether or not Mr. Estrada "should resign without waiting for the Senate’s decision," 47 percent of respondents said the President should wait for the outcome of the trial, while 25 percent said he should resign, and 24 percent were undecided.

Asked if they were satisfied with the impeachment process, 40 percent said they were satisfied by the way the House of Representatives impeached Mr. Estrada. Twenty-eight percent said they were dissatisfied, while 29 percent were undecided.

As to the speed the impeachment complaint was elevated to the Senate, 45 percent said it was "just right," 32 percent felt it was "deliberately rushed," and 18 percent said it even appeared that it was "deliberately delayed."

Forty-two percent of the respondents said they were satisfied by the conduct of the trial in the Senate; 41 percent of them by the fairness of the prosecution; and 45 percent by the fairness of the defense.

Asked if Vice President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will do a better job if Mr. Estrada is removed, only 20 percent believed that Arroyo will do a better job while 46 percent believed that she would perform the same as Mr. Estrada, and 26 percent said she would do even worse.

Reached for her comment, Arroyo said the negative response is part of the price that she had to pay for abandoning the Cabinet and leading the clamor for Mr. Estrada’s resignation.

She said she had to take a strong opposition stance because she had to unite the opposition against the President and prepare an alternative agenda of government in case Mr. Estrada steps down.

"I think it’s about time I listen to the sensibilities of ordinary people who don’t like me to be so eager to take over," she conceded. "Why should I rub it in when I’m the immediate beneficiary?"

From now on, she said she would now refrain from making statements about the issue.