Transcript of Senator Roxas' press briefing with Dean Pacifico Agabin

On Estrada pardon:

MAR: Natutuwa ako para kay pangulong Erap at para sa kanyang pamilya na napalaya na siya. On a personal basis of course, malaking kaginhawaan ito para sa kanila. Subalit, para sa ating bansa, huwag din nating kalimutan na itong proseso na ito, dumating din sa hantungan na na-convict ang pangulo for plunder, that this executive clemency arises from a conviction on plunder. Given that he is already 70 years old, that he has served six years of detention, baka naman napapanahon na mapalaya na siya. Pero huwag nating kalimutan yung leksyon na isa sa pinakamataas na opisyal sa ating bansa ay sakop ng batas kung saan na-convict din siya sa plunder.

Hindi ba sayang lang proseso at na-pardon din naman kaagad?

MAR: Hindi naman. Anim na taon na nawala sa kanya, at para sa akin, sa kay pangulong Erap, isa sa pinakamabigat na parusa na hanggang sa ngayon at sa darating na panahon ay dadanasan niya ay sa bawat banggit ng pangalan niya, parating may pahabol iyan na 'convicted of plunder.' Mabigat na parusa iyan from a personal point of view. Yung kapatawaran, that is a humanitarian gesture, judgment ng Pangulo iyon. Pero yung kanyang paglaya, dapat hindi makita or tignan in isolation doon sa kanyang conviction. That is always two sides of the same coin.

May nagsasabi ginawa ito dahil delikado din si PGMA, with all the issues against her.

MAR: Hindi rin natin masasabi iyan, kung anong konsiderasyones na ginamit. Maraming issue kontra sa gobyerno ngayon, but the timing is in the absolute discretion of the executive.

On the pardon being challenged

Agabin: I don't think there will be a legal challenge because all of the essential requisites have been complied with. The special prosecutor [Dennis Villa-Ignacio] was saying that the application for pardon should have been signed by president Erap himself, and I beg to disagree with that, because as you know very well, the acts of a lawyer bind his client. So since Fiscal [Jose] Flaminiano was the lead counsel for the president, this certainly bound president Erap.

On Estrada running again

Agabin: He is expressly prohibited by the Constitution from running as president again. He can run for public office, assuming that he is willing to go down to a position lower than the presidency. I don't think it was imposed expressly as a condition that former president Estrada has declared that he will not be running for public office anymore. So it was a unilateral statement, the President quoting Mr. Estrada.

On pardoned presidents from other countries

MAR: The Koreans pardoned their presidents after a period of time. The Americans, Nixon was pardoned by Ford even without a case having been filed. So I think this should be balanced as between the general public interest, which includes obviously political stability.