Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 29)— Former senator Jinggoy Estrada on Wednesday officially announced he will be seeking a return to the Senate in the 2022 polls.

“Buong puso kong inihahayag ang aking hangaring makibahagi sa isang malinis at malayang halalan upang maging senador muli ng ating pinakamamahal na bansa,” Estrada said in a video posted on his social media page.

[Translation: I wholeheartedly declare my intention to be part of a clean and free election to be a senator again of our beloved country.]

Estrada served two terms as senator from 2004 to 2016, the last two years of which were spent in jail due to plunder charges in connection with the pork barrel scam. He was released on bail in 2017 but his plunder case remains pending.

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Jinggoy’s half-brother, former senator JV Ejercito, also earlier confirmed he would be running for senator again next year.

Both vied for a seat in the upper chamber in the 2019 midterm polls but failed to make the top 12.