Estrada scoffs at reports saying he would flee

Estrada scoffs at reports saying he would flee

MANILA (AFP): Deposed Philippine president Joseph Estrada on
Saturday laughed off reports he was seeking to flee the country
and accused the government of President Gloria Arroyo of
spreading rumors against him.

"For the umpteenth time, I'll never the leave the country,"
Estrada told reporters, reacting to reports that the Arroyo
government was trying to block him from seeking asylum abroad.

Estrada also ridiculed the government for having police and
other security forces monitor his movements, saying "they should
invest their time and effort fighting crime. They should not
waste time watching me because I won't leave."

He charged that it was the Arroyo government that was
pressuring him to leave the country but that he turned them down
because he was not certain he would be allowed to return.

Earlier, diplomatic sources said that the Arroyo government
requested 11 countries and territories including the United
States to deny Estrada asylum if he sought it.

Australia, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Palau, Singapore,
Taiwan and Thailand, as well as Hong Kong and Macau, had been
contacted by the foreign department, diplomatic sources said.

The government plans to put Estrada on trial for massive
corruption. Among the cases being readied are for plunder, a non-
bailable offense punishable by death.

Estrada said that the government was pressuring his friends to
testify against him, adding that even his wife, Luisa Ejercito
was being pushed to turn against her husband.

The deposed leader had previously accused the Arroyo
government of using "psy-war" tactics against him.

The Philippine Daily Inquirer meanwhile, said a private
Learjet being used by Estrada ally Eduardo Cojuangco, was barred
from flying out of the country on Friday due to suspicions that
Estrada might use it.

Air Transportation officials told AFP the plane's owners, a
private charter firm on Friday, suddenly filed a plan to fly to
Hong Kong on the same day.

The officials said they did not approve of it because no exit
permit had been issued. However they would not say whether
Estrada was planning to use the plane.

Estrada was toppled in a military-backed popular revolt which
installed Arroyo as president on Jan. 20.

Government officials earlier said they were monitoring the
movements of Estrada who has been campaigning for his party
candidates ahead of elections in May. The parties of Arroyo and
Estrada are also competing for 13 senate seats up for election.

Among the candidates is Estrada's wife, Luisa Ejercito.

Estrada said he was confident that his Force of the Masses
(Puwersa) party would capture nine of the 13 senate seats.

Despite his ousting and the numerous corruption charges being
readied against him, Estrada said he still receives "a warm
welcome" from the crowds when he campaigns for his party slate.

Senator Tito Sotto, a campaign manager for Estrada's Puwersa
party said in a radio interview that when his group tried to buy
aviation fuel for campaign sorties, it was told there was none
left and that the air force had bought up all the stocks.

"Someone is applying pressure to keep us from getting the
fuel," Sotto said.