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In this photo uploaded on Facebook on March 3, 2026, Sen. Jinggoy Ejercito Estrada, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Local Government, urges Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) officials to exercise due diligence in issuing a mining exploration permit in Dupax del Norte, Nueva Vizcaya.
Senate PRIB / Ariel Sadagac
MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Jinggoy Estrada has asked the Sandiganbayan for travel clearance while the 11 graft cases against him remain pending in the anti-graft court.
Estrada filed a request on March 10, asking the court to permit him to travel to Hong Kong, Macau and Japan despite the ongoing graft cases related to the alleged misuse of his Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) during his previous term as senator.
He is scheduled to be abroad from March 31 to April 5.
Estrada appeared in court on Tuesday for his trial on 11 graft charges, along with 20 others.
Since graft charges are bailable, he remains out on bail.
This follows a similar court appearance in January, where he informed the court of his return to the Philippines after traveling to Austria, Norway and Japan.
Last year, the Sandiganbayan acquitted Estrada and businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles of plunder in connection with the P200 million PDAF scandal.
However, the court denied Estrada's motion to dismiss the related graft cases, leaving him to face 11 pending charges.
Notably, his prior convictions for direct and indirect bribery, stemming from P6.7 million in alleged payoffs, were officially reversed by the anti-graft court in August.
Meanwhile, Department of Justice (DOJ) spokesperson Polo Martinez said the DOJ would oppose any of Estrada’s attempts to leave the country.
Martinez stated that the court will decide whether Estrada’s motion has merit, but the DOJ maintains its stance that the senator should be considered a flight risk and should not be permitted to leave the country.
“The DOJ maintains that he is a flight risk and must not leave the country,” Martinez said in a message to reporters.
Estrada is also facing plunder complaints before the DOJ over alleged anomalous flood control projects.
On February 10, the Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 52 issued a precautionary hold departure order against Estrada and several former Public Works officials in connection with the alleged flood control project anomalies.
