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The Estrada Impeachment

October 4, 2000 – Governor Chavit Singson of Ilocus Sur, a presidential friend and known patron of the illegal numbers game called jueteng, decided to blow the whistle on President Joseph Estrada after an alleged ambush attempt against him by members of the Philippine National Police closed to Police Chief Panfilo Lacson. Singson claimed that the president accepted bribes from jueteng operations.

October 5, 2000 – In support of Singson, more charges were hurled against President Estrada. Senator Teofist Guingona delivered his famous “I accuse” speech in the Senate. The accusations prompted an investigation of the jueteng scandal by the Blue Ribbon Committee.

October 9, 2000 – Singson publicly indicted President Estrada as the “lord of all jueteng lords” for receiving Php 400 million out of Php 545 million in jueteng collections nationwide from November 1998 to August 2000.

He also accused the president of receiving kickbacks from the P170 million excise tobacco taxes.

October 10, 2000 – With the inclusion of their names in the jueteng ledger, Senators John Osmeña and Teresa Aquino-Oreta returned Php 1 million received from Singson in April 2000; Singson claimed that the money originally came from his mah-jong winnings.

October 11, 2000 – Cardinal Sin called for the president to step down and claimed that the latter had lost his “moral ascendancy” to govern.

October 12, 2000 – Vice-president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo resigned due to lack of confidence in Estrada. Senator Ramon Magsaysay, Jr. and Rep. RoiloGolez also denounced and left the administration party, Lapian ng Masang Pilipino (organization of the Filipino masses).

October 17, 2000 – Former President Corazon Aquino also joined the call for Estrada’s resignation. She said that the fall of Estrada’s presidency was imminent and that he should either file for a leave of absence or face impeachment charges.

October 18, 2000 –An impeachment case was filed against Mr. Estrada by Congressmen Alvarez, Herrera and Defensor, along with 24 multi-sectoral groups.

October 19, 2000 – Senator Juan Ponce-Enrile called for a snap election through a senate resolution.

October 30, 2000– Yolanda Ricaforte, wife of Transportation Undersecretary Orestes Ricaforte, admitted delivering several checks, worth P200 million to Estrada’s lawyers and presidential adviser, Edward Serapio.

November 1, 2000 – Four senior economic advisers of Estrada resigned from their posts—the beginning of a series of daily resignations.

November 2, 2000 – Trade and Industry Secretary Mar Roxas resigned.

November 3, 2000 – 46 congressmen, including House Speaker Manuel Villar, joined the call for Estrada’s impeachment. Meanwhile, three senators resigned from the ruling party: Senate President Franklin Drilon, Senator Rodolfo Biazon and Senator Anna Dominique Coseteng.

November 4, 2000 – The first major rally for Estrada’s resignation was held. Former President Aquino and Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin led the rally, supported by officials who have resigned from the president’s party.

November 9, 2000 – Estrada admitted that Serapio received jueteng money worth Php 200 million from Singson, but denied ever having accepted Singson’s offer of protection money.

November 11, 2000 – Estrada led the National Prayer for Unity rally at Luneta with El Shaddai and Iglesiani Cristo members. The crowd was estimated to be at 1.2 million.

November 13, 2000 – The House of Representatives led by Speaker Manuel Villar endorsed an impeachment case against the president on the grounds of bribery, graft and corruption, betrayal of public trust, and culpable violation of the Constitution. Serapio was also held responsible for the P200 million sum of jueteng money.

November 29, 2000 – Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr. rejected the motion filed by the president’s lawyers to quash the impeachment complaint.

December 7, 2000 – The impeachment trial began. The Chief Justice, HilarioDavide Jr., was the presiding officer and the 22 members of the Senate were the judges.

During the trial, Representative Joker Arroyo revealed the existence of a possible Estrada-owned account under the name Jose Velarde, which contained P500 million.

December 12, 2000 – Singson provided details of Estrada’s illegal activities. Equitable-PCI Bank Senior Vice President and Trust Officer Clarissa Ocampo also testified against Estrada.

December 15, 2000 – Singson identified presidential son Jinggoy as a jueteng protector.

December 18, 2000 – The lawyer of Jaime Dichaves, Estrada’s friend to whom the Jose Velarde account was transferred, insisted that the account in fact belonged to Dichaves and that his client objected to having it opened at the trial.

December 20, 2000 – The court opened the first envelope.

December 22, 2000 – Clarissa Ocampo testified that Estrada was the owner of the Jose Velarde account, claiming that the president signed as Jose Velarde in her presence on an Investment Management Agreement in Malacanang on February 4, 2000.

January 8, 2001 – The defense and prosecution panels voted on the Impeachment Articles to be taken on February 12 to speed up the process.

January 11, 2001 – Former finance secretary and colleague of the president, Edgardo Espiritu, testified that accusations of the president’s betrayal of public trust were true. He revealed that Estrada was Dante Tan’s partner in Best World Gaming Corp., which was involved in a stock-manipulation controversy.

January 15, 2001 – Former Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Perfecto Yasay corroborated Espiritu’s statement before the court and testified that Estrada had asked him to clear Dante Tan in the said stock-manipulation controversy.

January 16, 2001 – A new set of evidence inside a brown envelope was voluntarily given by a bank for the impeachment trial. With 11-10 vote, the opening of the mysterious brown envelope was barred on the grounds of immateriality. After the vote, Senator Tessie Aquino-Oreta was caught on camera doing a celebratory dance, which later earned her the nickname “dancing queen.” Prosecutors interpreted the decision as suppression of truth. They walked out of the courtroom, along with other spectators in the courtroom. Senate President Aquilino Pimentel resigned.

Later that evening, militant groups, other civil society and advocacy organizations, and a large crowd of ordinary students and ordinary citizens united in protest at the EDSA Shrine against the decision of the 11 senator-judges. Cardinal Sin once again called on Filipinos to proceed to EDSA. Other key figures in the 1986 EDSA People Power joined the growing crowd in EDSA, including former presidents Corazon Aquino and Fidel Ramos.

EDSA Dos, 2001

January 17, 2001 – The impeachment trial was suspended indefinitely because of the resignations of the House prosecutors.

Protests escalated in Metro Manila and in other key cities nationwide. Business and school operations were interrupted as traders walk out of their offices and students leave classes to proceed to EDSA.

January 18, 2001 – The number of people on EDSA multiplied. A “human chain” was formed from the EDSA Shrine in Ortigas Avenue to Ayala Avenue in Makati City. Prominent public figures, including actress Nora Aunor, an avid supporter and former girlfriend of Estrada, joined the protest.

Talks about the military’s and police’s withdrawal of support from the president spread.

January 19, 2001, 9 am – General Hermogenes Ebdane ordered his men to prepare for Defense Secretary Reyes’ announcement of withdrawal of military support from Estrada.

January 19, 2001, 10:30 am – Reyes decided to sever ties with Estrada.

January 19, 2001, 12 noon – Instead of going to Malacañang for an emergency meeting called by President Estrada, Reyes went to the safe house in Corinthian Gardens to meet with Vice-President Arroyo.

Senator Raul Roco also sought help from Senator Angara to persuade Estrada to step down.

January 19, 2001, Past 12 noon — Arroyo met Secretary Reyes at Corinthian Gardens. Reyes pledged the support of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

January 19, 2001, 1:30 pm – Reyes called Estrada to inform him that the AFP was defecting.

January 19, 2001, 2 pm – Reyes’ service commanders arrived in Corinthian and dialogued with Arroyo. Angara called Roco to inform him of Estrada’s snap election proposal.

January 19, 2001, 3:30 pm – Former President Ramos arrived in Corinthian. Lacson informed Estrada that the Philippine National Police was also defecting.

January 19, 2001, 4 pm – Secretary Orlando Mercado arrived in Corinthian. The military leadership proceeded from the safe house to the EDSA Shrine.

January 19, 2001, 5 pm – Estrada addressed the entire nation on television and declared that he was not resigning and would like the impeachment trial to go on. He added that he had already instructed his lawyers to allow the opening of the brown envelope.

January 20, 2001, 12 midnight – Roco, De Villa, Ramos, Paul Dominguez, Senator Sergio Osmena, Vicky Garchitorena and Dinky Soliman gave Estrada a deadline of until 6 am the following day to decide on the offer of a graceful exit.

January 20, 2001, 6 am – The 6 am deadline was not met. Militant groups begun their march to Malacañang and occupied Mendiola where a group of an estimated 500 Estrada supporters have gathered but were forced to retreat.

January 20, 2001, 6:20 am – Cardinal Sin made a public announcement and gave Estrada until 12 noon to step down.

January 20, 2001, 10:30 am – After efforts of negotiators to convince the president to step down, Estrada still refused to resign.

January 20, 2001, 12:30 pm – At the EDSA Shrine, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo took her oath as president before Supreme Court Chief Justice HilarioDavide.

January 20, 2001, 2:30 pm – Estrada was escorted out of Malacañang with the rest of his family. He sent a letter to the media stating his doubts on the constitutionality of Gloria Arroyo’s proclamation as president, but claimed that he had left Malacañang because he did not wish to be a negative factor in the “healing process” of the country.