Pro-Estrada party-list groups hit

The All Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ATUCP) threatened to file a petition with the Supreme Court seeking to bar alleged pro-Estrada groups from taking part in the party-list elections.

"This scam is only the latest of many attempts to prostitute the party-list system," ATUCP spokesman Alex Aguilar said in a statement.

The militant Bayan Muna and Kilusang Mayo Uno, for their part, urged the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to disqualify the said groups allegedly identified with ousted former President Joseph Estrada.

"Estrada wants to build a strong political hold in Congress by saturating the party-list race with fly-by-night pro-Estrada groups," Bayan Muna president Satur Ocampo said.

Ocampo identified the groups as the following: Bagong Bayani, Sports and Health Development Foundation, Philippine Local Autonomy Movement, Jeep ni Erap, Bantay Bayan, Mamamayan Ayaw sa Droga, Kabataan ng Masang Pilipino, Progressive Alliance of Citizens for Democracy, Ahonbayan, Angat and Alay sa Bayan Para sa Kalayaan at Demokrasya.

These groups are mere spin-offs of Estrada’s Partido ng Masang Pilipino, Ocampo said. — Mayen Jaymalin, Sandy Araneta