Erap sets up residence in Manila, but mum on mayoral bid

MANILA, Philippines - Former President Joseph Estrada will transfer to his new house in Manila tomorrow in an apparent bid to meet the residency requirement of one year for mayoral candidates, but refused to confirm if he is indeed running against re-electionist Mayor Alfredo Lim.

His new address will be 589 Mangga Avenue in Altura, Sta. Mesa. “I will definitely transfer my residence in Manila this Wednesday,” Estrada told The STAR yesterday.

Estrada’s transfer to Manila comes after he previously mortgaged his mansion at 1 Polk street in North Greenhills to help finance his newly erected EMar Suites condominium, also in San Juan City.

He said he paid a downpayment of P34 million on the Manila property, which is mortgaged in the bank for P80 million. “I would just continue the payment of the mortgage on installment basis,” he said.

The 5,000-square-meter residence in Altura, with a swimming pool, is the ancestral residence of the Legardas in Manila. “It used to be the headquarters of former President Ramon Magsaysay,” he said. 

Furniture and appliances have been hauled off by the truckload from Estrada’s Polk street mansion to Altura.   

Estrada swore in Manila Vice Mayor Isko Moreno and 28 other city council members last week as members of his Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino party. In a speech during the PMP oath-taking, Estrada promised to reveal his final decision whether or not to run for mayor by May 12.

In a telephone call to The STAR yesterday, Estrada declined to categorically say if setting up his residence in Manila is a signal that he will run for mayor. He reiterated, however, that he will continue serving the Filipino people, who have supported him since he started as an actor.

“I will not stop helping the people until the last breath of my life because that’s the only way I will die happily,” said Estrada, who turned 75 last month.