Corruption Court in the Philippines Rejects Jinggoy Estrada's Trial Leave

The 5th Division of the anti-corruption court Sandiganbayan, located in the capital of the Philippines, Manila, rejected the request made by Senator Jinggoy Estrada to attend the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte while in detention. In the seven-page decision, it was stated that Estrada's request had no legal validity or basis. Judge Maryann Corpus Mañalac, who signed the decision, detailed the reasons in the file. The senator had claimed that personally participating in the impeachment process, a constitutional procedure, was a sufficient excuse to temporarily suspend his time spent in prison. However, the court did not find this defense justified and rejected the request in definitive terms.

In his defense, Estrada referenced the relevant article of the 1987 Constitution, stating that the approval of a two-thirds majority of Senate members is required for the impeachment of an incumbent official. He argued that he held the title of senator-judge who would participate in this critical vote, and that this situation constituted a mandatory reason for absence. According to Estrada, taking part in this constitutional process was of great importance for the functioning of the state. Furthermore, he emphasized that being in prison should not prevent him from fulfilling this historical and legal responsibility. These claims were central themes in the petition submitted to the court by the senator's legal team.

In response, the court pointed out that Senator Estrada had already been temporarily suspended from his official duties due to an ongoing corruption trial. The judges emphasized that this suspension imposed a legal restriction that was entirely different and independent from his status of being detained in prison. Under the Republic of the Philippines' Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act No. 3019, a public official charged with corruption is required to take a leave of absence from duty until the case is concluded. The court ruled that due to both his legal suspension and his detention, Estrada was unable to fulfill his senatorial duties. Therefore, allowing him to physically attend the impeachment sessions was incompatible with the current judicial system and laws.

Senator Jinggoy Estrada is accused of causing damage to the state by making irregular budget additions to flood control projects in conjunction with the Department of Public Works and Highways. As a result of investigations conducted by the Ombudsman, it was alleged that approximately 573 million Philippine pesos were transferred to Estrada as a bribe from this illegal scheme. The relevant authorities charged him with plunder and two separate counts of corruption. Following these developments, Estrada was arrested in June and sent back to prison, and is currently continuing to be tried on these severe charges. The case receiving significant public attention once again brought the dimensions of political and bureaucratic corruption in the country to the agenda.

Looking at his past, it is evident that these events are not a new situation for Senator Estrada. In 2001, he first faced a plunder charge, along with accusations of acquiring approximately 4 billion pesos worth of illegal wealth, together with his father who was the president at the time. These charges included revenues from illegal gambling, bribes from tobacco taxes, and stock manipulation. More than a decade later, in 2014, he was charged again with plunder by the Ombudsman, this time on allegations of receiving 183 million pesos in bribes from a pork barrel corruption scandal. Although this latest arrest process marks his third major corruption and plunder trial, it is known that he was acquitted in the previous 2001 and 2014 trials.