Former president Joseph Estrada is proclaimed mayor of Manila by the city’s Board of Canvassers after he defeats incumbent Alfredo Lim. With Estrada are members of his family, his wife Dr. Loi Ejercito and Sen. Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada, among others. ERIKA SAULER/INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA—Insisting Manila is in a mess, former President Joseph Estrada has assembled a powerhouse lineup of former Cabinet members to help him find ways of generating revenues for the supposedly cash-strapped city government.
Estrada, who defeated Mayor Alfredo Lim in the last election, sat down with members of his old economic team over lunch at the Mandarin Hotel in Makati City Wednesday.
With him were his former Finance Secretary Jose Pardo, former Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno, former Socio-Economic Planning Secretary Felipe Medalla, and former National Treasurer Leonor Briones.
“I decided to consult my old team to help me out in Manila,” he told the INQUIRER in Filipino. “They are people of competence and unquestionable integrity.”
Estrada said he was not about to appoint any of them to any official post. He said they would just provide suggestions on how Manila could generate more revenues within the next three years, the duration of his term.
“So much is expected of me, but it’s difficult to start a project without funds,” he said. “So I need their ideas too.”
Throughout the campaign, he insisted that Manila was in dire financial straits, claiming a deficit of more than P3 billion. Lim’s camp denied the allegation.
Among Estrada’s plans to raise funds was to reassess real property values and expedite the issuance of business permits.
“I want permits to be released within 72 hours so that investors would feel more welcome in Manila,” he said.
Estrada said he would also roll out a comprehensive urban renewal plan for Manila, a project that would address problems regarding sanitation, environment, and crime.
Estrada said he was still in the process of forming his “transition team” that would coordinate with Lim’s outgoing administration.
Asked if he would bring his trusted aides in San Juan to Manila, he said: “Very few, very few.”