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Sunday, January 16, 2005
Estrada arrives, returns to Tanay rest house
By Benjamin B. Pulta
MANILA -- Former President Joseph Estrada is back under detention at his Tanay, Rizal rest house after returning from Hong Kong, where he underwent knee surgery.
His arrival and return to his rest house happened with nary an incident.
Estrada's immediate family, led by Jude Estrada, and a team from the Sandiganbayan met him at the airport.
The former president was reportedly sporting a checkered shirt and a blue jacket, paired with beige pants and trademark white wristband. He was also reportedly using a cane for support while walking.
PNP chief Director General Edgar Aglipay and officials of the Airport Security Group ushered the former president to the Presidential Lounge of the airport.
Security was tight, mediamen were never allowed to get near Estrada for an interview.
Upon arrival at the Villamor Air Base, Estrada boarded an Agusta A109A private helicopter that was accompanied by another helicopter. Estrada was reportedly waving prior to takeoff.
Estrada was whisked from the plane from Hong Kong to an Agusta 109A private helicopter that was accompanied by another helicopeter at the Villamor Air Base (VAB) in Pasay City.
The flight from VAB to Camp Capinpin took roughly 10 minutes where the ousted leader was then taken on board a convoy of waiting golf carts, which took him the short distance to his rest house.
Estrada's arrival came after alleged threats from a so-called "Third Force" reportedly planned to assassinate Estrada.
About 15,000 policemen in three cities went on full alert for Estrada's arrival, securing key public areas where supporters of the opposition camp reportedly planned to stage rallies.
Meanwhile, the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) Saturday criticized a statement made by Estrada against a broadsheet claiming that the media outlet is the next target of attacks against
members of the media.
"If Estrada was joking when he said it, it was a tasteless joke, considering the unprecedented number of Filipino journalists killed just this recent year and the harassments and death threats many of us receive," NUJP secretary general Carlos Conde said in an e-mailed statement Saturday.
Estrada made the statement following the recent attack against an outside broadcast (OB) van of the ABS-CBN, allegedly by supporters of the late Fernando Poe Jr.
The NUJP denounced what it said was "the ousted president's tendency to come down hard against critical members of press, as he demonstrated so chillingly during his presidency, when he and his cronies conspired to close down the Gokongwei-owned Manila Times and when they attempted to intimidate the Inquirer because of its critical reportage of his administration."
As such, Estrada's recent pronouncement in Hong Kong against the paper should be viewed as a threat, Conde added.
(January 16, 2005 issue)
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