Saying he shares company with Nelson Mandela of South Africa and Aung San Suu Kyi of Myanmar, Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada told the city after taking his oath of office on Sunday that like them, he is a “man of conviction.”
He said that like Mandela and Suu Kyi, he was imprisoned for his principles. Estrada also compared himself to the late senator Benigno Aquino Jr., who was assassinated in Manila in 1983 after a self-imposed exile in Boston. Aquino, the President’s father, was imprisoned for years for opposing then President Ferdinand Marcos.
Estrada was convicted for plunder in 2007 by what he still says was a kangaroo court. He was immediately pardoned by then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
In contrast, Mandela spent 27 years in prison for opposing racial segregation in South Africa. Aung San Suu Kyi spent 15 years under house arrest as an opposition leader in Myanmar.
Estrada promised he would clean up Manila and that a campaign against corruption will be the centerpiece of his administration. He said the clean up will include making sure the city police force will be “Manila’s Finest, not Manila’s Worst.”
“Corrupt cops and hoodlums in uniform: Your days are numbered here in Manila. Your days are over in this city,” he said.
Aside from cleaning up the police force, Estrada said his administration will also get rid of corruption at City Hall. He said he will begin carrying around a broom as a symbol of his plan for sweeping reforms in the city.
“Manila is the gateway to the Philippines. It is the face of the Philippines. We will make sure it is honorable and deserving of our respect,” he said.
