Metro Manila, Philippines – The Sandiganbayan second division has preventively suspended Jinggoy Estrada as senator for 90 days, in connection with his graft case in the multibillion-peso flood control scandal.
“This court hereby orders the suspension pendente lite of accused Senator Jose Jinggoy P. Ejercito Estrada from his present position as Senator of the Republic of the Philippines, and from any other public office which he may now or hereafter be holding for a period of ninety days from receipt of this resolution,” a portion of the resolution dated June 16 read.
In a statement, Estrada said he is open to avail of legal remedies.
He pointed out that ahead of the suspension order, he already told the Senate secretary to hold his salary as a matter of principle.
“Even prior to the issuance of the Sandiganbayan’s order today, I have already taken clear and deliberate steps to demonstrate that I will not, and will never, use the powers and privileges of my office to shield myself from the allegations being hurled against me,” the lawmaker said.
Estrada’s suspension would cover the trial of Vice President Sara Duterte where senators will sit as judges. The Impeachment Court has set the beginning of proceedings for July 6.
In a post on X, Sen. Ping Lacson said the Sandiganbayan order made it clear that Estrada cannot participate in the trial.
The senator has been detained since May over a non-bailable plunder charge at the Sandigabayan fifth division. It is his third plunder case in less than three decades, securing acquittals from separate charges.
On June 4, the court entered a not guilty plea for Estrada on his graft case after he refused to enter a plea.
The ombudsman filed the charges against the senator and four other public works officials for what it called an “intricate mechanism involving illegal budgetary insertions and project allocations within the DPWH (Department of Public Works and Highways) infrastructure portfolio” in 2025.
The agency said Estrada alone pocketed a total of over ₱573 million in supposed kickbacks from infrastructure projects.
