A Filipino lawmaker who is the son of a former president may soon be taken into custody after anti-corruption officials filed criminal charges against him Thursday in connection with an infrastructure fraud scheme that has damaged the country’s economy and public trust.
Senator Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada has been indicted on plunder and anti-corruption violations by the Office of the Ombudsman for allegedly accepting illegal payments totaling 573 million pesos ($9.30 million) through a fraudulent scheme targeting government-funded infrastructure projects, officials announced.
“If the honourable court finds probable cause, we anticipate the subsequent issuance of warrants of arrest against the principal respondents,” Assistant Ombudsman and spokesperson Mico Clavano told a press briefing.
Also facing charges alongside Estrada are former public works minister Manuel Bonoan and engineering officials from the ministry.
Estrada did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. When asked by reporters on Tuesday about the impending charges, he said, “Well, if this is the price that I have to pay for standing on my own principles and what I believe in? So be it.”
The criminal charges were submitted Thursday to the Sandiganbayan, specialized Philippine courts that handle major corruption cases. These same courts previously examined the illegally obtained wealth of the late President Ferdinand Marcos Sr.
The corruption scandal has focused on seriously defective flood-control infrastructure throughout the Philippines, shocking the corruption-weary country and dampening economic expansion in recent quarters.
Estrada has previously been imprisoned on two separate occasions, both involving corruption charges.
His father, Joseph Estrada, became the first former president found guilty of plunder. His successor, Gloria Arroyo, subsequently pardoned him and authorized his release, enabling his political comeback.
($1 = 61.5990 Philippine pesos)
