Press Secretary Ignacio R. Bunye said that the Arroyo administration has extended its sincere petition for the immediate recovery of the former President.

"We wish the former President a full and speedy recovery," Bunye said in a statement.

The government also assured that the former President would get the medical attention he needs as provided for by the court, said Bunye, also the presidential spokesman.

"The best medical attention is available to him under the conditions set forth by the court," he said.

He reiterated that the court’s decision to send Mr. Estrada, who suffered from high fever and difficulty in breathing due to pneumonia last Sunday, to a private hospital is a normal response to a medical emergency.

Former President Joseph Estrada was airlifted last Tuesday from his resthouse in Tanay, Rizal to the Cardinal Santos Hospital on Wilson St., Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila after suffering from fever, flu, and body pains. (Charissa M. Luci)

Detained former President Joseph Estrada may have to stay until over the weekend or even spend Valentine’s Day at the Cardinal Santos Hospital in San Juan, Metro Manila, where is being treated for slight pneumonia.

His personal physician, Dr. Lorenzo Hocson, estimated that the healing process might take three to five days, which may extend to February 14.

In a medical bulletin he issued at 2 p.m. yesterday, Hocson said X-ray and laboratory tests confirmed that Mr. Estrada is afflicted with pneumonia in the lower right lobe of his lungs.

Hocson, however, reported that the deposed leader "is responding well to medication."

"His fever was controlled as of last night and his temperature has returned to normal. His coughing is not as severe, compared to two days ago," Hocson said in his medical bulletin.

He said Mr. Estrada would undergo another series of X-ray and laboratory tests on Friday to check the condition of his lungs and blood clots.

Special Prosecutor Dennis Villa-Ignacio posed no objection to the extended stay as he renewed his suggestion that Mr. Estrada be returned to the Veterans Memorial Medical Center (VMMC) in Quezon City.

Mr. Estrada stayed at the VMMC for two years before he was transferred to Camp Capinpin in Tanay, Rizal in October 2003 and later to his Tanay resthouse across the Army camp.

Villa-Ignacio said a hospital like the VMMC is the most appropriate detention place for the former President considering his age, which makes him prone to illnesses.

"It’s just the defense lawyers who wanted the former President in the mountains. We have long wanted that he stay at Veterans. That hospital is fully equipped and will be safe everytime an emergency arises," Villa-Ignacio said.

"The important thing is a checkup has been done. And I think there is a medical bulletin saying that his health is improving. That’s okay with us. That’s fine," the head of the prosecution panel said, referring to Mr. Estrada’s extended stay at Cardinal Santos. (Edmer F. Panesa)

Senator Luisa "Loi" Ejercito Estrada said yesterday that former President Joseph Estrada’s pneumonia is not related to his bilateral knee replacement surgery, adding that their family physician receives direct medical supervision from Dr. Christopher Mow, her husband’s bone surgeon in the United States.

"My husband’s illness is not related whatsoever to his knee surgery and initial medical tests show that the pneumonia is due to a bacterial infection that is the direct cause of his high fever and chills," said Mrs. Estrada, a doctor by profession.

She issued the statement amid fears aired by relatives and supporters that Mr. Estrada’s illness could be remotely due to complications arising from his knee surgery, a major hospital procedure.

"Thanks God, it is nothing of that sort," Mrs. Estrada said.

The detained leader was rushed and flown by helicopter Tuesday from Tanay, Rizal to the Cardinal Santos Memorial Hospital in Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila due to high fever and difficulty in breathing. (Brenda Piquero Tuazon)