MANILA - Former President Joseph Estrada is also banking on luck and a strong legal team to be able to retake the presidency in 2010, an adviser to the former president disclosed Wednesday.

Former Ambassador Ernesto Maceda, close adviser of Estrada, said the former president will be filing his certificate of candidacy (COC) on November 27 "before 4 o'clock in the afternoon" as advised by a feng shui expert.

"The luckiest date for him to file is November 27," Maceda said, adding that Estrada's earlier announcement that he would file his COC right before the December 1 deadline had to be changed because of the recommendation by the feng shui expert.

The recommended date is reportedly also strategic as Maceda said they are expecting political opponents to file disqualification cases against the former president before the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and the Supreme Court (SC) right after he files his COC.

He said they are expecting Comelec to rush the decision on the disqualification case as it is working on an automated elections timeline.

"Because of the automated system of voting and printing of ballot, they have to decide this case and other disqualification cases early. On that basis, the Comelec can decide less than one month," he said, adding that they confident of a favorable decision from the poll body.

Maceda also predicted that SC justices have already asked their researchers to study the legality of Estrada's re-election bid.

Estrada said his camp has formed a formidable legal team and he is confident that both bodies will decide in his favor.

He said the team is composed of deans from at least three reputable law schools and retired SC justices.

"I'm very much confident with our legal team," the former president said.

Maceda said they are expecting Estrada's ratings in election survey to shoot up as soon as the Comelec and the SC have favorably settled the disqualification case.

He is confident that Estrada's survey ratings will improve by 20% to 35% after the disqualification case is favorably settled by the Comelec and the High Court.

“LP spreading withdrawal rumor”

Maceda said their allies in the House of Representatives have told them that Liberal Party (LP) congressmen and political leaders have been spreading news that Estrada is not serious about his re-election bid and is expected to withdraw from the race at the last minute.

"Our congressmen friends have told us that it is the Liberal [Party] congressmen in the House [are spreading rumors] that he is going to withdraw and he is going to endorse Noynoy," he said.

Maceda denied the rumors. He said that the preparations of propaganda materials for Estrada's presidential bid have been going non-stop.

He said Estrada has also been actively administering the oath of membership of several local leaders to the Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (PMP).

"We are continuously, on a daily basis, inducting and proclaiming people from 10 provinces a day. In all fairness to all candidates, we would not do that. A presidential candidate cannot just withdraw and leave them hanging," he stressed.

Maceda said the LP congressmen and leaders are spreading the rumor to entice their allies into moving to the camp of Sen. Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III.

He said the LP leaders' move is an indication that they are not fully convinced about Aquino's winnability and that they are still threatened by Estrada's popularity.

"If they are strong as they think they are, why are they trying to move in the direction to convincing Erap to withdraw in their favor? Kung talagang 44 percent ang rating, wala na silang dapat dapat isama pa. Sobrang lakas na nila," he said.

Maceda believes that Aquino's ratings in future election surveys will fall as soon as the "Cory burial euphoria" settles.

Aquino led the latest presidential survey of Pulse Asia getting 44% preference in October 2009. Estrada's was way below with only 11%. With a report from Sheryll Mundo, ABS-CBN News