Miriam won't run for president in 2010

MANILA, Philippines - Administration senator Miriam Defensor Santiago on Friday said she has no plans of running for the presidency or any other position in the coming elections as she intends to live another life once her term in Senate ends. In an interview with reporters, Santiago said she has two reasons not to pursue the presidency, first, her looming election to the International Court of Justice, and second, her lack of P3 billion to finance the campaign. The senator said it would be inconsistent for her to entertain political plans "where there is a prospect that I might be elected by the United Nations" in November. "This is a political process. It is not a process for the best and brightest to be chosen. It is a process where one country tries to cultivate the friendship and goodwill of another by exchanging votes in different agencies. That is basically how it is done," Santiago said. Second, the senator said she would be a snowball in hell if she would run for presidency. "I have talked to these coffee shop pundits and according to them it will take P3 billion, B as in baboy talaga, just to run for presidency and if that is so then I have absolutely the chances of snowball in hell. I'd melt immediately," Santiago said. Asked what could make her run in 2010, the senator said nothing could as she have already finished serving all the three branches of government – the executive, legislative and judiciary. "There is no fourth branch or at least, I don't know any move to create a fourth branch so I have become a redundancy in my own country," she said. She added: "I have to go live my life, my second life or I have to live another life now I've finished this one." - Amita Legaspi, GMANews.TV