MANILA - House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez said plunder has been dropped as a crime punishable with the death in their proposed law reimposing the death penalty.

In a press conference after a supermajority caucus Wednesday, Alvarez confirmed plunder has been dropped.

"Napagkasunduan na hindi na natin gagalawin 'yung Plunder Law kasi, as it is, capital punishment na 'yun. Oo, tanggal na s'ya. Hanggang dun lang unless the opposition will include it in the bill," Alvarez said.

(We have decided not to alter the Plunder Law because, as it is, it's capital punishment. Yes, it has been dropped.)

Republic Act 7080 defines plunder and imposes the following penalty this way: "Any public officer who, by himself or in connivance with members of his family, relatives by affinity or consanguinity, business associates, subordinates or other persons, amasses, accumulates or acquires ill-gotten wealth through a combination or series of overt or criminal acts as described in Section 1(d) hereof, in the aggregate amount or total value of at least Seventy-five million pesos (P75,000,000.00), shall be guilty of the crime of plunder and shall be punished by life imprisonment with perpetual absolute disqualification from holding any public office."