By Rey Anthony Chiu
Philippine Information Agency
Sobriety was how Boholanos took the guilty charge the Sandiganbayan handed upon former President Joseph Estrada.
While the authorities deployed some 6000 policemen in Manila over fears that the verdict would be met with violence, in Bohol, it was business day as usual with slightly a pause in the throb.
And while some vocal Boholanos aired opinions over the local airlanes hours before the Sandiganbayan was to read its verdict, more Boholanos took to their own positions and assumed a wait and see attitude on the verdict.
"It's good our prayers were heard," said one Roman Catholic priest who has been openly asking his parishioners to learn to accept whatever comes out of the verdict.
Here, even militant Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) through chairman John Ruiz, said they accept the decision to convict. None of their allied groups came out of the streets to join the few Erap supporters who gathered near the Sandiganbayan.
"The verdict offers a small measure of justice and is acceptable insofar as it points out the wrongdoings of the former president," Bayan website declared.
The case, which took up the better part of six years to resolve started when the Ombudsman filed a P4.097B plunder case against the former president in April of 2001.
The plunder case was the made up of four charges: acceptance of P545 million in protection money from "jueteng", misappropriation of P130 million in tobacco excise taxes, collection of a P189.7-million commission from the sale of real estate firm Belle Corp. shares, and depositing P3,233,104,173.17 in a bank account under the name Jose Velarde.
Also named co-accused were Jose "Jinggoy" Estrada, Charlie "Atong" Ang, Edward Serapio, Yolanda Ricaforte, Alma Alfaro, Eleuterio Tan (a.k.a. Eleuterio Ramas Tan or Mr. Uy) and Jane Doe (a.k.a. Delia Rajas).
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Topic: Bohol did not react on Erap's verdict, in other words "deadma" (Read 2047 times)