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Manila quiet in wake of Estrada impeachment
MANILA, Philippines -- The financial district in Manila was quiet Tuesday morning as many Filipinos appeared to be staying home in response to a strike called against President Joseph Estrada. One day after Estrada was impeached on charges of corruption, traffic in Manila's Makati financial district was lighter than usual. The strike call has been supported by labor unions, big businesses, transport groups and student activists. Trading in financial markets was expected to be extremely light since brokerages and banks are likely to be thinly staffed. Many schools have been ordered closed and the military is on the alert, and on guard at oil depots and water and power installations, officials said.
Opposition leaders are expected to stage rallies later Tuesday to campaign for the removal of Estrada, who was sent up for an impeachment trial in the Senate by the House of Representatives on Monday. Estrada is accused of taking bribes from gambling syndicates running an illegal numbers game. Estrada has denied the charges and has said he will welcome the trial in the Senate to prove his innocence.
House impeaches EstradaOn Monday, Philippine House of Representatives impeached Estrada, sending four charges against him to the Philippine Senate for trial. The four articles of impeachment center around charges by a former Estrada friend and ally, provincial Gov. Luis Singson, that Estrada accepted millions of dollars in payoffs and kickbacks. Estrada, the first Philippine leader to be impeached, has maintained he is not guilty and has said he looks forward to the trial. "This is the last time I will be serving the public so would I do that?" the former film actor-turned-politician said on Monday, hours before the House proceedings. "I did not become president to rake up money." Estrada's aides said the strike would harm the economy but the government would do its best to ensure it remained peaceful. "It's a mistake but what can we do? It's their right," said Executive Secretary Ronaldo Zamora in a radio interview. "And it's the government's obligation to make sure everything is peaceful, so that's what we will do." "We hope this strike would be peaceful," he added. "Once this is over, we can get on with our lives." The Philippine system, based on the U.S. system, requires that two-thirds of the Senate vote against Estrada in order to convict and remove him from office. The Philippine Senate has 24 seats, although two seats are vacant. Fifteen votes will be required for conviction. Estrada, who said that Singson had offered him a bribe that he refused, admitted that some of the $11 million he is accused of accepting ended up in a bank account belonging to his brother-in-law. However, he said he had no knowledge that happened. Reuters contributed to this report.
RELATED STORIES: Philippines' Estrada remains confident on eve of impeachment vote RELATED SITES: President Joseph "Erap" Ejercito Estrada | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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