US embassy cable - 05MANILA1452

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MANILA 001452 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EAP/PMBS, INR/EAP 
NSC FOR GREEN 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/30/2015 
TAGS: PGOV, RP 
SUBJECT: SUPREME COURT REJECTS WIDOW'S EFFORT TO TAKE OVER 
FPJ'S ELECTORAL CHALLENGE 
 
REF: A. MANILA 570 
 
     B. 04 MANILA 6096 
     C. 04 MANILA 5959 
 
Classified By: Political Officer Andrew McClearn for 
reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
1.  (C) Summary:  The Supreme Court, sitting as the 
"Presidential Electoral Tribunal," ruled on March 29 that 
Susan Roces, the widow of Fernando Poe, Jr., could not take 
over Poe's challenge to the May 2004 election of President 
Arroyo.  There has been little reaction from Malacanang or 
the opposition to the ruling.  The ruling did not affect the 
electoral challenge case of Loren Legarda, the defeated vice 
presidential candidate, against Vice President Noli de 
Castro; that case continues.  The opposition might try to use 
the ruling to energize its supporters to go to the streets, 
but there are no signs yet of increased political tensions or 
of a new more overtly political role for Roces.  End Summary. 
 
-------------- 
No to Mrs. Poe 
-------------- 
 
2.  (U) The Supreme Court, sitting as the Presidential 
Electoral Tribunal (PET), unanimously ruled on March 29 that 
Susan Roces, the widow of Fernando Poe, Jr. (FPJ), could not 
take over as petitioner in Poe's challenge to the May 2004 
election of President Arroyo.  Both Poe and opposition vice 
presidential candidate Loren Legarda (see below) had filed 
electoral protest petitions with the PET on July 23, 2004, 
after President Arroyo and Vice President de Castro were 
proclaimed the winners in the election last June 24.  In 
their petitions, Poe and Legarda charged that both President 
Arroyo and Vice President Noli de Castro had won the election 
by fraudulent means.  Shortly after Poe's death in December 
2004, his widow Jesusa Sonora Poe -- better known by her 
screen name Susan Roces -- filed a motion requesting that she 
substitute for FPJ and that the court continue to pursue the 
protest motion. 
 
3.  (U) In its 14-page ruling, the court explained that, 
after many years of similar electoral protests, the PET had 
"consistently rejected substitution by the widow or the heirs 
in election contests where the protestant dies during the 
pendency of the protest."  Justice Leonardo Quisumbing, who 
wrote the opinion, added that Roces was not the "real party 
in interest," according to existing PET rules that 
specifically allow for electoral protests by second or 
third-place finishers in both the presidential and 
vice-presidential elections.  (Note:  In the May 10, 2004 
contest, Arroyo won with 12,905,808 votes, Poe finished a 
close second place, and challenger Panfilo Lacson finished 
third.  Lacson did not protest the election results. end 
note)  Roces now has 15 days to file a motion for 
reconsideration, but there seems little to no possibility of 
the success of such a motion. 
 
------------------------------------ 
No Official Reaction from Malacanang 
------------------------------------ 
 
4.  (U) Malacanang has so far not issued an official reaction 
to the ruling.  According to press reports, however, 
President Arroyo was relieved with the decision.  Romulo 
Macalintal, Arroyo's main electoral attorney, publicly 
applauded the decision.  He urged the opposition to accept 
that the case is over. 
 
--------------------- 
Opposition almost mum 
--------------------- 
 
5.  (C) There has been little reaction, so far, from the 
opposition to the ruling.  Minority House leader Francis 
Escudero, after a discussion with Roces, said that Roces and 
Poe supporters were "shocked that in one sweep, (the PET) 
junked the two petitions."  He added Roces was disappointed 
to learn of the decision first through the media, and that 
many FPJ supporters would continue to doubt the results of 
last year's election.  Senate Minority leader Aquilino 
Pimentel told reporters that opposition forces should unite 
to accept the decision and agree not to continue the protest 
and "destroy FPJ's name as a man of peace."  Other opposition 
sources told poloff that the opposition had no single unified 
position regarding the ruling as of yet.  One contact said 
that many in the opposition were not surprised by the result, 
as most expected that the protest would fail "because the 
court is packed with supporters of Arroyo."  (Note:  Arroyo 
has nominated 8 of the 15 justices. end note) 
 
----------------------- 
Roces' future undecided 
----------------------- 
 
6.  (C) Roces, personal lawyer Harriet Demetriou told poloff 
on March 30 that Roces and her legal team would most likely 
file a motion for reconsideration.  Queried about widespread 
reports that Roces might be tempted to become involved in 
politics, Demetriou replied that Roces was still in mourning 
over the sudden death of her husband last December.  She 
added that  "in the Filipino context, it is too soon for 
Susan to be seen taking up the political legacy of FPJ" and 
that that it would be "unseemly" for Roces to capitalize on 
FPJ's fame without additional grieving.  She also highlighted 
that, in recent discussions, Roces had not made any decision 
on whether to enter the tumultuous world of Filipino 
politics.  Without naming personalities, Demetriou claimed 
that many leaders in the opposition had privately told Roces 
that she should  assume the leadership of the anti-Arroyo 
camp.  She said several opposition leaders hoped that Roces 
could assume a "Cory Aquino-like role in the national 
political arena," but predicted that Roces would only enter 
the political game "on her own terms," if at all. 
 
----------------- 
VP Case Continues 
----------------- 
 
7.  (C) The ruling did not concern Legarda's electoral 
challenge case, which will continue.  Legarda had run under 
the same coalition banner as FPJ in the 2004 election, and 
lost the race for vice president to Noli de Castro by a 
slightly larger margin than FPJ lost to Arroyo.  Evelyn 
Dumdum, Director of the Supreme Court's Program Management 
Office, told poloff on March 30 that Legarda's case was 
ongoing, although "the sense among the justices indicated a 
desire to get past this case by June or July of this year." 
Dumdum added that Legarda's legal team was still struggling 
to come up with sufficient funds to press forward with the 
expensive protest case, and she speculated that it would be 
difficult for Legarda to continue her case given the recent 
unanimous decision in the similar FPJ protest.  Legarda has 
yet to issue any public comment on the Poe/Roces suit. 
 
------- 
Comment 
------- 
 
8.  (C) The ruling should bring some relief for President 
Arroyo and enable her team finally to put this electoral 
challenge behind them.  The opposition might still try to use 
the ruling to energize its supporters to go to the streets, 
but there are no signs of increased political tensions so 
far, or improved prospects for intra-opposition coordination 
and organization.  If the ruling somehow energizes Susan 
Roces to get involved in politics, however, she could prove 
to be a considerable boon to the weak, fragmented opposition. 
 
 
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You can also access this site through the State Department's 
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http://www.state.sgov.gov/ 
Ricciardone