MANILA, Philippines?Joseph ?Erap? Estrada began Tuesday night what could be his ultimate attempt at vindication, vowing to take back the presidency that he said was ?stolen? from him and the Filipino masses.

Speaking before an excited crowd of impoverished folk that just about filled Plaza Miranda in front of Quiapo Church, the standard-bearer of Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (PMP) said it was time to rid the country of corrupt officials and to protect the coming electoral exercise from those who would steal it again.

?We are all here to take back the power that was stolen from the Filipino nation,? he told a crowd estimated at more than 5,000.

Estrada called on Filipinos to support as well his running mate, Makati Mayor Jejomar ?Jojo? Binay, in an effort to prevent a similar arrangement of having a vice president from another party, as what happened when he and Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo emerged No. 1 and No. 2 in the 1998 polls.

?I can sleep well if he is my vice president,? Estrada said of Binay.

He said Binay was the best mayor in Asia because Makati residents enjoyed excellent health care and public education.

?Today, with my running mate, the next vice president of the Philippines, Jojo Binay ? and the entire slate of the Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino ? together, we join you, our people, to reclaim our government and restore the power of the Filipino people,? he said.

Cast of characters

Estrada?s new catch phrase is ?Kung may Erap, may ginhawa (If there?s Erap, there?s comfort).?

Together with Binay, the PMP standard-bearer proclaimed the PMP senatorial candidates led by Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile and his eldest son, Senate Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada.

The other candidates, who joined them on stage, were former Sen. Francisco Tatad, Agusan Rep. Rodolfo Plaza, Jose de Venecia III, former Rep. Apolinario Lozada Jr., former Sanlakas Rep. JV Bautista and former Court of Appeals Justice Regalado Maambong.

Former Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim, who is detained at Camp Crame on coup d?etat charges, was represented by his daughter.

Seated beside Estrada and the one who introduced him was former Environment Secretary Lito Atienza, who is again seeking the mayoralty of Manila as a PMP candidate.

Only a few months back, Atienza was one of President Macapagal-Arroyo?s staunchest defenders in the government.

Estrada?s wife, former Sen. Luisa Ejercito, was on front row in front of the stage.

Actors Eddie Gutierrez, Eddie Garcia and Lorna Tolentino lent star power.

Undefeated

Estrada spent Sunday before the start of the campaign period with a quiet lunch with his extended family and close friends at his residence on No. 1 Polk Street in San Juan City.

The Sunday lunch is a family ritual, according to chief campaigner Ernesto Maceda, who said it did not matter if it somehow upset the candidate?s schedule, usually cutting short his Saturday provincial sorties because he had to return home for the get-together the day after.

On that early afternoon of Feb. 7, Estrada was uncharacteristically unmindful of the spirited discussion on the May elections at the big round table in the dining room.

If the presidential election were an academic exam, he easily came across as confident, as if he already knew the questions?and answers.

The stance was clear: Been there, done that.

?That?s right,? he told the Inquirer in an interview. ?From mayor, senator, vice president to president, I remained undefeated.?

Estrada said that unlike the other presidential contenders, he had the advantage of experience. Indeed, he was President for two and a half years before he was ousted in 2001.

Except for Bro. Eddie Villanueva, only he knows how to actually run a grueling presidential campaign.

Stealing

The luxury of experience probably explains why the 72-year-old Estrada could afford to wander from election issues and enjoy quiet time with family and friends, as he did on Sunday.

The man was focused on his plate, which was heaped with his favorite dishes?kare-kare, adobo, pinakbet, sugpo, and lechon.

Occasionally he joined the discussion at the table, where sat trusted friends like Armida Siguion-Reyna, to crack a joke.

Talk veered to a text joke making the rounds, saying his opponents Benigno Aquino III, Manuel Villar and Gilbert Teodoro had all promised not to steal once in power.

In the case of Ms Arroyo, the text joke said: ?Wala na kayong mananakaw (There?s nothing more you can steal)!?

Estrada apparently edited the joke, which also quoted him as saying: ?Kailangan ko uli magnakaw (I need to steal again)!?

But he never stole a centavo in taxpayer money during his brief stay in Malacañang, said the man who was convicted of plunder and quickly pardoned by Ms Arroyo.

That?s why, he said, he was lagging behind the likes of Villar in terms of campaign spending.

?Lowest spender?

Estrada singled out Villar, reputedly the wealthiest of the contenders. He cited a report that he said his camp received from an advertising agency supposedly pegging Villar?s TV ad expenditure at more than P1 billion in January alone.

?I?m the lowest spender at P58 million, even lower than Gilbert Teodoro,? he claimed. ?I was more confident in 1998. My level of confidence now is lower because my opponents are very wealthy.?

Maceda said Estrada would be lucky to raise P350 million for the whole campaign. ?There?s no way you can match Villar,? he said.

Estrada said campaign contributions had come few and far between partly because of legal questions on whether he could seek the presidency again.

He also blamed what he called black propaganda, which claimed that he was about to withdraw from the race and back Villar instead.

?I am confident [of winning] because everywhere I go?Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao?the reception is overwhelming,? he said.

?Bionic? knees

Estrada was not amused that some people doubted whether his aging body could survive another national campaign, especially after his knee surgery.

?If you want, let?s go jogging tomorrow so you?ll see,? he challenged the Inquirer.

?My knees are now bionic. I had knee replacement. [They?re] now titanium. Now, if you don?t believe it, you go to Cardinal Santos [Medical Center]. Just three months ago, I had my general checkup there. It?s perfect,? he said.

Estrada once described his fresh run for the presidency as the last act in his storied show biz and political career.

The nation is waiting to see how it goes.