New law vs election cheaters sought

MANILA, Philippines - Former President Joseph Estrada yesterday asked Congress to pass a new law that would impose maximum penalty against election cheaters.

“Congress must pass a new law that would make election cheating a heinous crime. Election cheating is suppressing the will of the people. Vox populi, vox Dei, the voice of the people is the voice of God,” Estrada said in a telephone interview with The STAR.

He noted that each election held in the country has been marred by fraud. He even cited the case of his closest friend, the late movie actor Fernando Poe Jr., who ran but lost to President Arroyo in the 2004 elections due to alleged massive cheating.

“Election cheating has been prevalent in the country, that is why we have a bad government. The law imposing the maximum penalty against election cheating must not only be applicable to mayors, governors, lawmakers, but including the president. There must be no exemptions when it comes to the violation of the laws,” Estrada said.

The former president has consistently declared that he will try his best to unite the opposition into supporting a single presidential candidate in 2010.

But he admitted that his effort to unify the opposition has turned from dim to impossible.

Estrada said the opposition must learn its lesson from the 2004 presidential elections where many ran for president.

He said the more presidential candidates fielded by the opposition, the easier it would be for the administration to cheat.

Another Erap presidency?

However, an official of the Catholic Church met with skepticism Estrada’s pronouncement that he was already 99 percent sure to run for president in 2010.

Speaking on the Church-run Radio Veritas, Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo said the former president may be sure of running, but the question is, are the Filipino people ready for a second round of his administration?

“We should not only look at this from the perspective of is he (Estrada) ready, the people should also be ready for him,” Bishop Pabillo said, adding that the Filipino people already had a taste of the Estrada administration.

In Estrada’s desire to return to public office, the bishop reminded the actor-turned-politician that he should not only think about getting his vindication, because becoming president should mean so much more.

“Will the country improve if he becomes president? Would he unify the opposition? It is possible that instead of unifying the opposition, it would further cause division among them. That is why we should not only think about what would be good for one’s self but what would be for the common good of the people,” said Bishop Pabillo.

The people should also take into consideration Estrada’s capability to lead the country. “They should look at his track record and remember what happened to him before.”

Meanwhile, the Consortium on Electoral Reform has warned that the 2010 local and national polls might still be plagued with flying voters as the Commission on Elections (Comelec) has failed to cleanse the voters’ lists. – Sheila Crisostomo, Evelyn Macairan