Estrada not going to resign, ready to face detractors

Estrada not going to resign, ready to face detractors

MANILA (Reuters): Embattled Philippine President Joseph Estrada said on Saturday he would never resign and is ready to face detractors accusing him of receiving gambling kickbacks.

Allegations linking Estrada to gambling syndicates have spurred opposition moves to impeach him and sparked calls from influential church leaders for his resignation, posing the biggest threat to his 28-month administration.

But Estrada said he had no plans to step down before his term ends in June 2004, adding that he would continue to fight for the masses who put him into power.

"You (the masses) supported me, you gave me this position so never will I resign," Estrada said in a speech at the inauguration of a government housing project.

Estrada also announced the government was getting out of involvement in all forms of gambling and would transfer the operations of the state gaming firm Philippine Amusements and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor) to the private sector.

"Obviously the Filipino people do not approve of having government itself involved in any form of gambling, no matter what the intentions may be," Estrada said in his address.

In a separate address to the nation on Saturday, Estrada repeated his rejection of claims made by a provincial governor, Luis "Chavit" Singson, that he received 414 million pesos (US$8.7 million) in payoffs from gambling syndicates running an illegal numbers game called jueteng.

The pressure on Estrada mounted over the past week after an influential Manila archbishop, Cardinal Jaime Sin, called for his resignation and Vice-President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo quit his cabinet. Two members of Congress bolted out of the ruling party on Thursday.

A third member of the ruling coalition -- former senator and currently provincial governor Jose Lina -- withdrew his support on Saturday, another sign of dissent within Estrada's party.

"I am ready to face my accusers. My conscience is clear ... I am sure the truth will come out," Estrada said in an address to the nation that was pre-recorded and broadcast almost three hours after its expected transmission time.

"I reiterate to our people my commitment to abide by the constitution. We have to allow this process to take its course." Congressman Heherson Alvarez, who is leading the 22 opposition lawmakers in the 218-seat House of Representatives that have endorsed a resolution to impeach Estrada, welcomed the president's move but said he would not abandon his quest.