“LOOK who’s talking.”

This was the reaction of Ed Malay, media adviser of former President Fidel Ramos, to the statements made by Sen. Jinggoy Estrada who called the former President “supreme hypocrite” and linked Ramos to alleged irregularities in administration.

Malay stressed that the issues related to Public Estates Authority-Amari, Centennial Expo and contracts with independent power producers have all been clarified and addressed.

“These transactions were all subjected to thorough investigations in the past and, except for a lot of conjectures, these transactions were all found to be aboveboard.”

Malay, however, said the Ramos camp expected a tirade from the Estrada family.

“The senator from San Juan certainly has all the rights to make such claims because it is the only thing they [Estrada family] can do under the circumstances—to deflect public suspicion that the former President had already entered into an alliance with the administration in exchange for his liberty.

“But Senator Estrada should not lose sight of the fact that the grant of full pardon only restores the civil rights of the convicted person, the records of the case and the conviction remain etched in the annals of the country’s judicial history.

“The grant of full pardon by the administration was not a spur-of-the-moment decision. That possibility has been there all along and it became more probable after Senator Estrada assumed the position of Senate President Pro-Tempore despite the fact that he belongs to the opposition, and we knew it was headed this way,” Malay said.

He advised Senator Estrada to focus not on taking pot shots at former President Ramos but to explain to the opposition and to the Filipino people what the real reasons behind the sudden turnaround of former President Estrada were in withdrawing his motion for reconsideration of his conviction by the Sandiganbayan and his decision to seek clemency from the administration as it is difficult to believe that the whole scenario was merely due to humanitarian reasons.

“Has Senator Estrada agreed to run for vice president in 2010 under a unity ticket that will include some of the proadministration parties?” Malay asked.

FORMER President Fidel Ramos should first “come clean” on the allegedly anomalous multibillion-peso independent power producers (IPP) contracts, the Public Estates Authority (PEA)-Amari deal and other scams allegedly perpetrated during the Ramos administration before lambasting the Palace pardon for former President Joseph Estrada, Sen. Jinggoy Estrada said yesterday.

“LOOK who’s talking.”

This was the reaction of Ed Malay, media adviser of former President Fidel Ramos, to the statements made by Sen. Jinggoy Estrada who called the former President “supreme hypocrite” and linked Ramos to alleged irregularities in administration.

RECRUITERS of Filipinos to Japan are tying that country’s immigration law to the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (Jpepa) currently under negotiation, believing that the former is the key for the country to benefit from Jpepa.

VIRAC, Catanduanes—Continuous heavy rains resulted in massive landslides that have isolated six of the 11 towns of this island province for the past seven days now.

THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) remains uncertain on what caused the alleged fishkill in the waters off Rapu-Rapu Island, Albay, but has ruled out the possibility that it was caused by a chemical spill from the mines operating in the island.

THE 26 enlisted men who were discharged from the military service last week owing to their alleged involvement in the February 2006 foiled coup attempt will ask the Army to reinstate them.