DEMONIZING CORONA LIKE MY FATHER
[PHOTO - Sen. Jinggoy
Estrada. INQUIRER/NIÑO JESUS
ORBETA]
MANILA, JANUARY 26,
2012 (INQUIRER) By Christian V. Esguerra - A senator-judge
is being haunted by the ghost of an impeachment past.
Jose "Jinggoy" Estrada, Senate president pro tempore, on Tuesday noted some
eerie similarities between the trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona and that of
his father, former President Joseph Estrada, more than a decade ago.
Estrada, who is sitting as a judge in the Corona trial, assailed the
prosecution's alleged effort to "demonize" Corona by presenting supposed
evidence against him in public.
"It's reminiscent of the impeachment trial of my father 11 years ago," he
told the Philippine Daily Inquirer in a phone interview. "It happened to my
father before. They demonized him in media and in public until they got public
opinion on their side. It's the same pattern."
But the younger Estrada sought to clarify that he was not necessarily
throwing his support behind the Chief Justice. He said he just wanted to stress
that "the decision of senator-judges should be based on the evidence presented
in court, not before the bar of public opinion."
Such is also the sentiment of Corona's defense counsels, who alleged
that prosecutors were arguing their case before the media because their evidence
could not stand in court.
Representative Edgardo "Sonny" Angara, a spokesperson for the prosecution, on
Tuesday said it was "still too early in the game" to determine who was getting
the upper hand.
Just marked, not presented
Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III clarified reports that documents
submitted to the impeachment court last week were just "marked" and not yet
"presented as evidence" against Corona.
But defense counsel Tranquil Salvador III noted that the prosecutors were
claiming outside the impeachment court that Corona's properties were
"undervalued." The allegation was tackled in a press conference last Thursday,
after copies of Corona's statements of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALNs)
were marked in court.
Estrada said the prosecution should not resort to a "fishing expedition" for
evidence like what he believed happened in the case of his father.
At the time, stories about then President Estrada's mansions and other
ill-gotten wealth were all over the news even before the impeachment trial
began. The senator said the "demonization" convinced the public that his father
was guilty.
"That was not proper. We have a process and it has to be respected," he said.
'Communication strategy'
Defense counsel Ramon Esguerra earlier said that his team was "losing" in
terms of public opinion. He said part of it had to do with the prosecution's
communication—not legal—strategy.
Salvador agreed with the observation, saying defense lawyers were still
"learning" how to properly communicate their position in public.
"You have to give it to the prosecution. In a sense, they packaged the trial
in a political theater," he said in a phone interview.
"But to those who understand, they know honestly what's happening inside the
courtroom, that we were able to do this and do that. So I'm surprised that when
we go outside, the story is different."
FROM ABS-CBN
Miriam scolds private prosecutor Posted at
01/25/2012 3:46 PM ABS-CBN NEWS
Senator-judge Miriam Defensor Santiago scolded private prosecutor
Arthur Lim on Wednesday for speaking loudly and making it difficult for
Presiding Judge Juan Ponce Enrile to recognize her so she can speak.
Santiago spoke so fast it made it difficult for the ANC translator for the
hearing-impaired to do his job. -- ANC Live Events, January 25, 2012
WATCH LIVE AT THE SENATE VIDEO:
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/video/nation/01/25/12/miriam-scolds-private-prosecutor#ooid=d3cmRkMzo9EXYRcVWiY-8PeNqM5LRU6i
Chief News Editor: Sol
Jose Vanzi
© Copyright, 2012 by PHILIPPINE HEADLINE
NEWS ONLINE
All rights reserved
PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS
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