Former President Joseph Estrada said Friday that while he has the highest respect and trust in the Aquino family, he cannot bestow his trust to the hidden agenda of big business interests and civil society in tandem with some alleged Catholic church leaders, pushing Sen. Benigno “Noynoy”Aquino III to run for president, “and therefore will not withdraw, change nor alter any of my political plans for next year’s May elections.”

“I will always treasure the public apology extended to me by the late President Cory for her participation in the EDSA II power grab, but I cannot, in conscience, give in to the whims and hidden agenda of those who did everything in 2001 to turn the Philippines into a wounded nation and forced the Filipino people to where we are today,” Estrada said.

The popular opposition leader made it clear that his decision transcends personal relationships with the Aquino family, adding that the selfish business interests of those behind the Aquino candidacy will remain the centerpiece of any political decisions he has to take.

Estrada was instrumental in helping then Congressman Noynoy Aquino to be elected senator on the request of his mother, ensuring his victory by including his name in the senatorial line-up under the opposition banner in 2007.

“The handwriting on the wall is there for everybody to see what big business is doing, including a huge television network, from creating euphoria and exit polls to falsely generating a sense of groundswell of public support for their chosen candidate,” Estrada noted.

In addition, public announcements in billions of financial support from some of Makati’s big business should further raise public skepticism and vigilance as to their real motive in rapidly setting into motion their roadmap of vested interests “to once again thwart the will of the sovereign people like what they did in 2001.”

Civil society’s uncalled for political intervention in 2001, along with so-called Catholic church leaders, according to Estrada, without doubt sharply caused the political divide that continues to rock the country until today, driving millions of families falling lower and lower below the poverty line.

“In that sense, the late spiritual giant Ka “Erdy” Manalo of the Iglesia ni Cristo, would be sorely missed for highly respecting the principle of separation of Church and State,” Estrada said.

Estrada also noted that while the rich are drum-beating the strength of Aquino’s candidacy, they are using some political mouthpieces asking him to “withdraw.”

“The amusing part is that those allegedly asking me to withdraw are the very same people who were in the forefront of EDSA II, and turned against the Arroyo government whom they installed,” Estrada stated.

Among those who asked him to withdraw were Sen. Francis Pangilinan and former Sen. Frank Drilon of the fractious Liberal Party, “for the sake of opposition unity.”

“What opposition harmony are Pangilinan and Drilon talking about when they cannot even unify their own party, not to mention the dwindling number of their LP wing as compared to that of Department of Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Lito Atienza,” Estrada observed.

Estrada expressed confidence that Pangilinan’s very lean government achievement and his only claim to fame by pounding on the gavel in the proceedings of the National Board of Canvassers for the 2004 presidential election declaring “NOTED” on every question from opposition lawyers “will be long remembered by the public.”

“But look at Pangilinan now. He has abandoned the candidate he fiercely supported against strong public opinion on electoral fraud in 2004 that could have averted the outcome of the presidential elections and electoral results in favor of my best friend, the late Fernando Poe, Jr.,” Estrada said.

He observed that the family of President Arroyo must be feeling betrayed by Pangilinan whom they helped to be elected senator, “a character trait that does not come as a surprise, especially to Sen. Mar Roxas.”