MANILA, Philippines?Former president Joseph Estrada said Thursday nothing could stop him from taking a second stab at the presidency.

At the Kapihan sa Senado news forum, the deposed leader expressed confidence the Supreme Court would not disqualify him from running next year despite a constitutional ban on presidential reelection.

?I will not run if I believe I will be disqualified. I believe eventually it would be the people?s decision (that will prevail),? he said.

Reminded that the Supreme Court was dominated by justices appointed by President Gloiria Macapagal-Arroyo -- his successor whom he has accused of involvement in his ouster -- Estrada said the people should ?decide? if he could run again.

?Of course, nobody can stop me, unless they say I?m disqualified,? he said.

He said he was prepared for a legal battle, which is expected to start once he files a certificate of candidacy.

?When I?m decided (to do something), I fight to the last (breath), especially if it concerns the welfare of the people,? he said.

The president who was ousted in People Power II in 2001 has repeatedly said he has consulted legal luminaries like former Supreme Court justices and law school deans on whether he could run again for the post he held for just over two years.

?I read one of the decisions of the Supreme Court penned by a chief justice that said the court may err but the sovereign people may not.

?Having the presidency should be given to the people to decide. I believe in destiny, as the presidency is a destiny. As the saying goes, vox populi, vox Dei, the voice of the people is the voice of God,? Estrada said.

He said that should the high court disqualify him, he had a Plan B.

But, ?I cannot tell you all my plans. Baka makuha ng kalaban (They might fall into enemy hands),? he told reporters.

At 72, Estrada said he was not too old for the job, citing US President Ronald Reagan and South African President Nelson Mandela.

?How do I look? Anyway, President Reagan, my idol, ran at the age of 73 and was reelected at the age of 77. And he became one of the greatest presidents of the United States. Mandela was elected at the age of 84, one term, and he became a Nobel Peace Prize winner.?

?Since I was imprisoned, I improved my good-looking English,? he said.

Estrada was tried for plunder and perjury between 2001 and 2007, was convicted of the former charge, and was pardoned in October 2007 by President Arroyo.

Vindication is also on his mind, thus he has said that he would run only if the opposition fails to unite behind a single presidential candidate.

But for all his talk of unifying the fragmented opposition, Estrada finally admitted on Thursday the impossibility of getting President Arroyo?s critics together for a meeting.

?We cannot call a convention because this is a multiparty system. We belong to different parties. How can you call a convention? This would all be an agreement among parties,? he said.

Estrada defined the opposition as ?anybody, any party versus the administration.?

But he quickly added: ?But we don?t know who are the real opposition yet. But now I can see that it?s already impossible for the opposition to present a single candidate for president because every day (the list is growing longer).?

Per Estrada?s count, there were now 18 potential presidential candidates.

He said many aspirants were qualified to be president, with good track records and non-involvement in ?scandals, scams.?

Estrada said he will have a complete senatorial slate.

So far, he said, Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, his son Senator Jose ?Jinggoy? Estrada and Army Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim were ?sure candidates.?

He said Ilocos Norte Rep. Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Makati Representative Teodoro Locsin, Grace Poe, Joey de Venecia III, Ted Failon and Edu Manzano were also being considered by his party, the Partido ng Masang Pilipino.