MANILA, Philippines -- Pardoned former president Joseph Estrada on Friday sought to quash orders by the Sandiganbayan for him to hand over more than P700 million and a real estate property he previously owned to the government.

The Sandiganbayan issued writs of execution on October 30 and then on November 5 directing the sheriff to forfeit P545,291,000 deposited in the account of the Erap Muslim Foundation and P189,700,000 deposited in the Jose Velarde account.

Also ordered forfeited is the house and lot property in New Manila, Quezon City, called “Boracay mansion. ”

The sheriff served the writs on Estrada last Tuesday, with the court warning that it would be compelled to put his residence in San Juan and estate in Tanay, Rizal on the auction block if he failed to produce the cash in five days.

In a motion filed by his counsel, Estrada argued that the writs went beyond the dispositive portion of the Sandiganbayan’s October 12 decision convicting him for plunder.

In the writs, the court said it could seize Estrada’s pieces of property that were disposable and not covered by the execution if he could not pay all or part of his obligation.

Estrada has the option to choose which property may be levied. If he does not exercise this option, the sheriff could impose the levy first on personal property, and then real property, if necessary, according to the writs.

“The portions added in said writs of execution pertain to money awards provided for in Sec. 9 of Rule 39, Rules of Court, which is not applicable to forfeiture proceedings,” Estrada’s lawyers argued.

The additional portions also imposed another penalty on Estrada, they added.

“While the decision of the court includes forfeiture of a specific sum, the Plunder Law limits this only to property derived or traceable to the instruments or proceeds of the crime,” they said.

The inclusion of any or all personal or real property of the accused in the writs without any qualification “imposes an additional penalty, and is therefore void,” the lawyers said.

The writ was meant to satisfy a September 12 judgment by the Sandiganbayan, which convicted the 70-year-old Estrada for plunder in September and ordered the forfeiture of the accounts and the property.

The judgment was not covered by the executive clemency granted by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to Estrada, the anti-graft court said.

The President granted Estrada pardon on October 26 in what both camps claimed was a step toward national reconciliation, six weeks after the ousted leader was convicted for plunder by the Sandiganbayan.