Profile Joseph "Erap" Ejercito Estrada (born Jose Marcelo Ejercito on April 19, 1937) was the13th President

of the Philippines, serving from 1998 until 2001. Estrada was the first person in the Post-EDSA era to be elected both to the presidency and vice-presidency. Estrada gained popularity as a film actor, playing the lead role in over 100 films in an acting career spanning 33 years. He used his popularity as an actor to make gains in politics, serving as mayor of San Juan for seventeen years, as Senator for one term, then as Vice President of the Philippines under the administration of President Fidel V. Ramos. Estrada was elected President in 1998 with a wide margin of votes separating him from the other challengers, and was sworn into the presidency on June 30, 1998. In 2000 he declared an "all-out-war" [1][2] against the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and captured its headquarters and other camps. However, allegations of corruption spawned animpeachment trial in the Senate, and in 2001 Estrada was ousted by "People Power" 2 after the prosecution walked out of the impeachment court when the Senator Judges voted no in the opening of the second envelope. The EDSA 2 protests resulted from the concerted efforts of political, business, military, and church elites who were displeased by Estrada's policies that included [3] removal of sovereign guarantees on government contracts. In October 2000, the Daily Tribune reported [4] about elite plans to "'constitutionally' oust President Estrada under 'Oplan Excelsis." Emil Jurado of the Manila Standard reported as early as 1999 about a PR demolition work designed to embarrass Estrada "by attributing to his administration all sorts of perceived faults and scams with the end in view of covering up anomalies and scams also committed during the Ramos administration." Former First Gentleman Mike Arroyo also admitted in an interview with Nick Joaquin that he and then-Ilocos Sur Gov. Chavit Singson and certain military officials plotted plans to oust Estrada in January 2001, with the alternative plan B [5] being violent "with orders to shoot. And not only in Metro Manila.". In 2007, he was sentenced by the special division of the Sandiganbayan to reclusion perpetua for plunder, but was later granted pardon by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. He ran for president anew in the 2010 Philippine presidential election, but lost to then Senator Benigno Aquino III.

Education and Career Path Joseph Ejercito Estrada was born on April 19, 1937 in Tondo, an urban district of Manila. His family later [6] moved to the wealthy suburb of San Juan. He belonged to an upper-middle-class family, and was the [7] eighth of ten children of Emilio Ejercito and his wife Maria Marcelo. He was kicked out during his primary studies at the Ateneo de Manila University and subsequently enrolled in an engineering course at the Mapua Institute of Technology in an effort to please his father, but dropped out. In his twenties, he began a career as a drama actor. He adopted the stage name "Joseph Estrada", as his [7] mother objected to his chosen career and his decision to quit schooling. He also acquired the nickname "Erap" (a play on the Tagalog slang "pare", meaning buddy) from his friend Fernando Poe, Jr.. Mayor of San Juan

Estrada entered politics in 1967 when he ran for mayor of San Juan, then a municipality of Metro Manila, and succeeded in only 1969 after winning an electoral protest against Braulio Sto. Domingo. His administration was marked by unequaled accomplishments in infrastructure development. These included the establishment of the first Municipal High School, the Agora complex, a modern slaughterhouse, a sprawling government center with a post office, a mini-park and the concreting of 98 percent of the town's roads and alleys. As mayor, he paid particular attention to the elementary education of children by improving and renovating school buildings and constructing additional school structures, health centers, barangay halls and playgrounds in all the barangays and providing artesian wells to areas with low water supply. He relocated some 1,800 squatter families out of San Juan to Taytay, Rizal, at no cost. He was also the first mayor to computerize assessment of the Real Estate Tax in the Municipal Assessors [9] Office. When Corazon Aquinoassumed the presidency in 1986, all elected officials of the local [citation government were forcibly removed and replaced by appointed officers-in-charge, including Estrada needed] . Senator of the Philippines The following year, he won a seat in the Senate under the Grand Alliance for Democracy (GAD) placing 16th in the elections (out of 24 winners). In 1987, he set his sights on a Senate run and handily garnered a seat. He was appointed Chairman of the Committee on Public Works. He was Vice-Chairman of the Committees on Health, Natural Resources and Ecology and Urban Planning. In the Senate, Estrada was credited with the passage of, among other major pieces of legislation, the bills on irrigation project and the protection and propagation of carabaos, the beast of burden in the rural areas. As a senator, he was one of the so-called Magnificent 12 who voted to terminate the RP-US Military Bases Agreement leading to the withdrawal of American servicemen from the Clark Air Base in Pampanga and the Subic Naval Base in Zambales. In 1989, the Free Press cited him as one of the Three Outstanding Senators of the Year. He was conferred the degree of Doctor of Humanities, Honoris Causa by the Bicol University in April 1997, and the University of Pangasinan in 1990. Vice Presidency In 1992, Joseph Estrada ran for vice-president as the running mate of Eduardo Cojuangco, Jr. under the Nationalist People's Coalitionparty. Though the latter lost to former National Defense Secretary Fidel Ramos, Estrada won the vice-presidency garnering more votes than his closest opponent, Ramon Mitra, Jr.'s running mate, Marcelo Fernan. As Vice-President, Estrada he was the chairman of President Ramos' Presidential Anti-Crime [10] Commission (PACC). Estrada arrested criminal warlords and kidnapping syndicates. He resigned as chairman in 1997. In the same year Estrada, together with former President Corazon Aquino, Cardinal Jaime Sin, Senator Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and other political leaders, led an anti-charter change rally brought in an estimated half a million people to Rizal Park against the charter change moves by Ramos and his [11] supporters.

Presidency Estrada was inaugurated on June 30, 1998 in the historical town of Malolos in Bulacan province in paying tribute to the cradle of the First Philippine Republic. That afternoon the new president delivered his inaugural address at the Quirino Grandstand in Luneta. He assumed office amid the Asian Financial Crisis and with agricultural problems due to poor weather conditions, thereby slowing the economic [12] growth to 0.6% in 1998 from a 5.2% in 1997. The economy recovered by 3.4% in 1999 and 4% in [13] 2000. In 2000 he declared an "all-out-war" against theMoro Islamic Liberation Front and captured its [1][2] headquarters and other camps. However, allegations of corruption spawned a railroaded impeachment trial in the Senate courtesy of house speaker Manuel Villar, and in 2001 Estrada was ousted from a coup after the trial was aborted. In his Inaugural Address, Estrada said: One hundred years after Kawit, fifty years after independence, twelve years after EDSA, and seven years after the rejection of foreign bases, it is now the turn of the masses to experience liberation. We stand in the shadow of those who fought to make us free--free from foreign domination, free from [14] domestic tyranny, free from superpower dictation, free from economic backwardness.

Project and Programs during his Presidency Masa format on radio During his term, Estrada ordered to the National Telecommunications Commission by the adoption of Filipino language-based radio format known as masa. Named for his icon Masa (or Masses), all radio stations adopted the masa format effective since 1998, as DJ'swanted to replace English language-based stations immediately to air OPM songs and requests. After his term in 2001, several FM stations adopted the masa format nationwide until this day. Saguisag Commission With the purpose of investigating the alleged anomalies of the Ramos administration, President Joseph [10] Estrada created the "Saguisag Commission" headed by former Senator Rene Saguisag. Ramos, [10] however, refused to appear before the commission for he argued that the jurisdiction lies in the court. In the so-called Centennial Expo scam, Mr. Ramos claimed the Senate committee that conducted the probe "never closed the case" because it did not issue any final report. Instead, he rued, former President Estrada created an administrative fact-finding commission headed by former Senator Rene Saguisag. But six former government officials during his administration who were implicated in the Centennial Expo scam were subsequently "exonerated" by the Ombudsman in October 1998. Former Vice President Salvador Laurel, who chaired the Centennial Expo and was among the principal accused in this case, [10] however, died before he could be exonerated, Mr. Ramos rued. In the Smoky Mountain case, he said, he appeared in 2000 before the public hearing of the House committee on good government chaired by then Rep. Ed Lara whose panel cleared the project as valid

and legal. Subsequently, he said, the Supreme Court ruled 13-0, with 2 abstentions, in favor of the project. The SC also upheld the legality and constitutionality of the project and dismissed the petition filed [10] against it by Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago. In the questioned Masinloc power project, he said, the Joint Congressional Oversight Committee looked into the privilege speech of then Sen. Aquilino Pimentel Jr. on Ramos' alleged influence that this power [10] plant be sold to a consortium connected with formerMalaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Muhammad. Agrarian reform The Estrada administration widened the coverage of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program [11] (CARP) to the landless peasants in the country side. The latter's administration distributed more than 266,000 hectares of land to 175,000 landless farmers, including land owned by the traditional rural elite. [12] (Total of 523,000 hectares to 305,000 farmers during his 2nd year as President). On September 1999, he issued Executive Order (EO) 151, also known as Farmer's Trust Fund, which allows the voluntary consolidation of small farm operation into medium and large scale integrated enterprise that can access long-term capital. President Estrada launched the Magkabalikat Para sa Kaunlarang Agraryo or MAGKASAKA. The DAR forged into joint ventures with private investors into agrarian sector to make FBs [13] [14] competitive. In 1999 a huge fund was allocated to agricultural programs. One of which is the "Agrikulturang Maka Masa", through which it achieved an output growth of 6 percent, a record high at the [9] time, thereby lowering the inflation rate from 11 percent in January 1999 to just a little over 3 percent by [9] November of the same year. Anti-Crime Task Forces In 1998, by virtue of Executive Order No.8, President Estrada created the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force (PAOCTF) with the objective of minimizing, if not totally eradicating, car theft and [15] [15] worsening kidnapping cases in the country. With the help of this task force, the Philippine National [9] Police for the first time in history achieved a record-high trust rating of +53 percent. Panfilo Lacson was its first head. He also created the Philippine Center on Transnational Crime (PCTC) in 1999, with the objective of formulating and implementing a concerted of action of all law enforcement, intelligence and [16] other government agencies for the prevention and control of transnational crime. However in November 2000, during the Juetenggate scandal of President Estrada, high officials of the PAOCTF - Cesar Mancao, Michael Ray Aquino, Glen Dumlao, and PAOCTF chief Panfilo Lacson - were implicated in the murder of publicist Salvador Dacer and his driver Emmanuel Corbito at [15] the Cavite province. Dacer at that time was accused to be behind a black propaganda against [15] [15] President Estrada - a charge Dacer denied. Death Penalty The death penalty law in the Philippines was reinforced during the incumbency of Estrada's predecessor, Fidel Ramos. This law provided the use of the electric chair until the gas chamber(method chosen by government to replace electrocution) could be installed. However, the electric chair was destroyed some time prior due to a typhoon, leaving only a blackened scorch mark. Some sources have said it had burnt out the last time it had been used. However, the first execution by injection took place under Estrada's administration. On February 5, 1999, Leo Echegaray, a house painter, was executed for repeatedly raping his stepdaughter. He was the first [17] convict to be executed since the re-imposition of death penalty in 1995.

His execution sparked once again a heated debate between the anti and the pro-death penalty forces in the Philippines with a huge majority of people calling for the execution of Echegaray. That there was a strong clamor for the imposition of the death penalty should be viewed from the point of view of a citizen who is desperately seeking ways to stop criminality. The Estrada administration peddled the death penalty as the antidote to crime. The reasoning was that if the criminals will be afraid to commit crimes if they see that the government is determined to execute [17] them. The opposition maintained that the death penalty is not a deterrent and that there have been studies already debunking the deterrence theory. Legislators and politicians refused to heed the recommendation of the Supreme Court for Congress to review the death penalty riding on the popularity of the pro-death penalty sentiment. Six years after its re imposition, more than 1,200 individuals have been sentenced to death and seven convicts have been executed through lethal injection. Yet today, there are no signs that criminality has gone down. From February 6, 1999, a day after Leo Echegaray was executed, to May 31, 1999 two leading newspapers reported a total of 163 crimes which could be punishable by death penalty. But perhaps the best indicator that this law is not a deterrent to criminality is the ever-increasing number of [17] death convicts. From 1994 to 1995 the number of persons on death row increased from 12 to 104. From 1995 to 1996 it increased to 182. In 1997 the total death convicts was at 520 and in 1998 the inmates in death row was at 781. As of November 1999 there are a total of 956 death convicts at the National Bilibid Prisons and at the Correctional Institute for Women. As of December 31, 1999, based on the statistics compiled by the Episcopal Commission on Prisoner Welfare of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, there were a total of 936 convicts interned at the National Bilibid Prisons and another 23 detained at the Correctional Institute for Women. Of these figures, six are minors and 12 are foreigners. Because the Philippines is predominantly Catholic, Estrada called a moratorium in 2000 to honor the [17] bimillenial anniversary of Jesus' birth. Executions were resumed a year later.

Challenges/Problems Subic Bay Leadership Dispute After winning the 1998 presidential elections on May of that year, newly elected President Joseph Estrada issued Administrative Order No. 1, which ordered the removal Richard Gordon as Chairman of the Subic [28] Bay Metropolitan Authority or SBMA. Estrada appointed Felicito Payumo, Gordon's critic and congressman of Bataan as new chairman. Gordon refused to step down, stating that his re-appointment [29] from the Ramos administration gave him civil service protection. The removal process was not easy. Hundreds of volunteers and paid people barricated the gates of SBMA and Gordon locked himself inside the SBMA Administrative Office Building 229. After this, he was dubbed a dictator because of the fact that

he rebelled against an executive order. The issue sparked the interest local and foreign press known as the Showdown at Subic. Gordon filed for a temporary restraining order before the local court. The local court of Olongapo granted Gordon's request but Payumo's party filed an appeal before the Court of Appeals (CA). The CA reversed [29] the local court's ruling and it was affirmed by the Supreme Court. With the Supreme Court decision, Gordon called Payumo and turned over the reins of SBMA at the Subic Bay Yacht Club two months later on 3 September 1998. Together with the Subic volunteers, they cleaned up the facility. PCSO Funding Controversy The Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism has reported that there are 66 corporate records wherein President Estrada, his wife, mistresses and children are listed as incorporators or board members. Thirty-one of these companies were set up during Estrada's vice-presidential tenure and one when he assumed the presidency. Based on the 1998 and 1999 financial statements, 14 of the 66 companies have assets of over P600 million. The First Lady, Mrs. Loi Ejercito, registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission on 15 October 1998 her private foundationthe Partnership for the Poor Foundation, Inc. which provides relief and livelihood to the poor. A few months after its incorporation, the foundation received P100 million from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office as donation. The donation far exceeded the PCSO's combined donation of P65 million to regular beneficiaries like orphanages and hospitals. The complainants consider this a conflict-of-interest. The donation of government funds to the private foundation of the First Lady [30] was also found to have been delivered to their legal residence in San Juan. Juetenggate Scandal Singson is known to have Estrada's fall, when in October 2000 he alleged he gave President Joseph Estrada Php 400 million as payoff from illegal gambling profits. On October 16, 2000, he accused the Estrada, as the "lord of all jueteng lords" for receiving 5 million pesos protection money from jueteng every month during his term of presidency. Second Envelope Suppression On January 17, 2001, the impeachment trial of President Estrada moved to the investigation of an envelope containing crucial evidencethat would allegedly prove acts of political corruption by Estrada. Senators allied with Estrada moved to block the evidence. The conflict between the senatorjudges, and the prosecution became deeper, but then Senate Majority Floor Leader Francisco Tatad requested to the Impeachment court to make a vote for opening the second envelope. The vote resulted in 10 senators in favor of examining the evidence, and 11 senators in favor of suppressing it. After the vote, Sen. Aquilino Pimentel, Jr. resigned as Senate President and walked out of the impeachment proceedings together with the 9 opposition Senators and 11 prosecutors in the Estrada impeachment trial. The 11 administration senators who voted YES to block the opening of the second envelope remained in Senate Session Hall together with the members of the defense. They were chanted with "JOE'S COHORTS" where their surnames were arranged.

10 Things to Remember Film He played the lead role in more than 100 movies, and produced more than 70 films. He was the first FAMAS Hall of Fame recipient for Best Actor (1981) and also became a Hall of Fame award-winner as a producer (1983). He often played heroes of the downtrodden classes, making him popular among the nation's many unschooled and impoverished citizens. This proved advantageous to his political career. In 1974 he founded the Movie Workers Welfare Foundation (Mowelfund), which helps filmmakers through medical reimbursements, hospitalization, surgery and death benefits, livelihood, and alternative income opportunities and housing. Its educational arm, the Mowelfund Film Institute, has produced some of the most skilled and respected producers, filmmakers, writers and performers in both the independent and [8][not in citation given] mainstream sectors of the industry since its inception in 1979. He also founded, together [citation needed] with Guillermo de Vega, the first Metro Manila Film Festival in 1975. RP-US Visiting Forces Agreement On 1999 a Visiting Forces Agreement with the United States, which was ratified in the Senate. The first Visiting Forces Agreement was actually signed under President Ramos in 1998, and the second was subsequently signed under President Estrada. The two agreements came to effect a year later. The primary effect of the Agreement is to require the U.S. government (1) to notify RP authorities when it becomes aware of the apprehension, arrest or detention of any RP personnel visiting the U.S. and (2) when so requested by the RP government, to ask the appropriate authorities to waive jurisdiction in favor [26][VIII 1] of RP, except cases of special interest to the U.S. departments of State or Defense. (Waiving of jurisdiction in the U.S. is complicated by United States being a Confederation of States in which each individual state has its own judicial system, and the U.S. Federal Government not being in a position to simply order a State to waive jurisdiction). The Agreement contains various procedural safeguards which amongst other things establish the right [26][VIII 2-6] todue process and proscribe double jeopardy . The agreement also, among other provisions, [26][IV] exempts RP personnel from visa formalities and guarantees expedited entry and exit processing ; [26][V] requires the U.S. to accept RP driving licenses ; allows RP personnel to carry arms at U.S. military [26][VI] installations while on duty ; provides personal tax exemptions and import/export duty exclusions for [26][X, XI] [26][XIV] RP personnel ; requires the U.S. to provide health care to RP personnel ; and exempts RP vehicles, vessels, and aircraft from landing or ports fees, navigation or overflight charges, road tolls or [26][XV] any other charges for the use of U.S. military installations . Corruption Charges The Estrada presidency was soon dogged by charges of plunder and corruption. He was reported by his Chief of Staff Aprodicio Laquian to have allegedly spent long hours drinking with shady characters as well [38] as "midnight drinking sessions" with some of his cabinet members during meetings. In October 2000, an acknowledged gambling racketeer, Luis "Chavit" Singson, governor of the province of Ilocos Sur, alleged that he had personally given Estrada the sum of 400 million pesos ($8,255,933) as payoff from illegal gambling profits, as well as 180 million pesos ($3,715,170) from the government price subsidy for the tobacco farmers' marketing cooperative.
[25]

Protests On the evening of January 16, 2001, the impeachment court, whose majority were political allies of [50] Estrada, voted not to open an envelope that was said to contain incriminating evidence against the president. The final vote was 11-10, in favor of keeping the envelope closed. The prosecution panel (of congressmen and lawyers) walked out of the Impeachment Court in protest of this vote. Others noted that the walkout merited a contempt of court which Davide, intentionally or unintentionally, did not [51] enforce. The afternoon schedule of television networks covering the Impeachment were pre-empted by the prolongation of the day's court session due to the issue of this envelope. The evening telenovelas of networks were pushed back for up to two hours. That night, anti-Estrada protesters gathered in front of the EDSA Shrine at Epifanio de los Santos Avenue, not too far away from the site of the 1986 People Power Revolution that overthrew Ferdinand Marcos. A political turmoil ensued and the clamor for Estrada's resignation became stronger than ever. In the following days, the number of protesters grew to the hundreds of thousands. On January 19, 2001, the Armed Forces of the Philippines, seeing the political upheaval throughout the country, decided to withdraw its support from the president and transfer its allegiance to the vice president, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. The following day, the Supreme Court declared that the seat of presidency was vacant. Resignation At noon, the Supreme Court declared that Estrada "constructively resigned" his post and the Chief Justice [52] swore in the constitutional successor, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, as President of the Philippines. Prior to Estrada's departure from Malacaang, he issued a press release which included: ...I now leave Malacaang Palace, the seat of the presidency of this country, for the sake of peace and in order to begin the healing process of our nation. I leave the Palace of our people [53] with gratitude for the opportunities given to me for service to our people...

On January 18, 2008, Joseph Estrada's Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (PMP) placed a full-page advertisement in Metro Manilanewspapers, blaming EDSA 2 of having "inflicted a dent on Philippine democracy". Its featured clippings questioned the constitutionality of the revolution. The published featured clippings were taken from Time, New York Times, The Straits Times, Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, Asia Times Online, The Economist, and the International Herald Tribune. Former Supreme Court justice and Estrada appointee as chairwoman of the Philippine Charity [54] Sweepstakes Office Cecilia Muoz Palma opined that EDSA 2 violated the 1987 Constitution. Post Presidency Estrada returned to his old home in San Juan. He maintained that he never resigned, implying that Arroyo's government was illegitimate. The new government created a special court and charged him with plunder and had him arrested in April. Filipino supporters marched to the EDSA Shrine demanding Estrada's release and his reinstatement as president but were dispersed by high-grade teargas and warning shots from automatic rifles. On the morning of May 1, the protesters marched straight to Malacaan Palace. Violence erupted and the government declared a State of Rebellion. Many Filipino protesters were badly injured and arrested,

including politicians. The government called out the military and was able to quell the demonstration with teargas and automatic rifles. The bloody uprising came to be known as EDSA III. Estrada was initially detained at the Veteran's Memorial Medical Center in Quezon City and then transferred to a military facility in Tanay, Rizal, but he was later transferred to a nearby vacation home, virtually in house arrest. Under Philippine law, plunder had a maximum penalty of death, however the death penalty was eventually repealed. Trial On September 12, 2007, the Sandiganbayan finally gave its decision, finding Estrada not guilty on his perjury case but guilty of plunder "beyond reasonable doubt." He was sentenced to Reclusin perpetua. [24] He was thus the first Philippine President who was impeached and then convicted. On September 26, 2007, Joseph Estrada appealed by filing a 63-page motion for reconsideration of [25][26] the Sandiganbayan judgment penned by Teresita de Castro (submitting 5 legal grounds). Estrada [27] alleged that the court erred "when it convicted him by acquitting his alleged co-conspirators." On October 5, 2007, the Sandiganbayan's Special Division ruled to have set for October 19, oral argument (instead of a defense reply) on Joseph Estradas motion for reconsideration. Estrada asked for court permission to attend the hearing, since it ordered the prosecution to file comment before October [28] 11. Pardon and release from detention On October 22, 2007, Acting Justice Secretary Agnes Devanadera stated that Joseph Estrada is seeking a full, free, and unconditional pardon from President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. Estrada's lawyer Jose Flaminiano wrote Arroyo: "The time has come to end President Estrada's fight for justice and vindication before the courts. Today [Monday], we filed a withdrawal of his Motion for Reconsideration." Estrada, 70, [30] stressed the "delicate condition" of his mother in asking for pardon. On October 25, 2007, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo granted executive clemency to Joseph Estrada based on the recommendation by the Department of Justice (DoJ). Acting Executive Secretary and Press Secretary Ignacio R. Bunye quoted the signed Order: "In view hereof in pursuant of the authority conferred upon me by the Constitution, I hereby grant Executive clemency to Joseph Ejercito Estrada, convicted by the Sandiganbayan of plunder and imposed a penalty of reclusion perpetua. He is hereby restored to his civil and political rights." Bunye noted that Estrada committed in his application not to seek [31][32][33] public office, and he would be free from his Tanay resthouse on October 26, noon. On October 26, 2007, after almost 7 years of detention, Joseph Estrada was finally released after [34] the Sandiganbayan promulgated the historical Resolution. Activities When he was released he gave a message to the Filipino people that he can once again help the lives of the people, especially the poor. He also stated that he made errors as a public servant but he assured them that corruption was not one of them. After the release he had a nationwide tour called "Lakbay [35][36] Pasasalamat" (Thank you tour) and during those trips he thanked the people for their support and [9][37][38] gave them relief goods such as food, medicines and clothing. In politics, he is convincing leaders of [39] the opposition to have unity in the party or, he said, he will run. 2012 Presidential Elections

Joseph Estrada has stated in interviews that he would be willing to run for the opposition in the event that [40][41] they are unable to unite behind a single candidate. Fr. Joaquin Bernas and Christian Monsod, members of the constitutional commission that drafted the 1987 Constitution, have stated that the constitution clearly prohibits any elected president from seeking a second term at any point in [42] time. Romulo Macalintal, election counsel of President Arroyo, has clarified that the constitutional ban doesn't prevent Estrada from attaining the presidency in the event that he were to be elevated from the [43] vice-presidency, for example. However, Rufus Rodriquez, one of Estrada's lawyers, claims that the former president is within his rights to do so because the prohibition banning re-election only applies to [40] the incumbent president. On October 22, 2009 former President Joseph Estrada announced that he would run again for president [44] with Makati City Mayor Jejomar Binay as his running mate. His Senatorial lineup included Francisco Tatad, Juan Ponce Enrile, Jinggoy Estrada and Joey de Venecia.