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Saturday, June 25, 2005
Nalzaro: Now Arroyo knows who are with her
By Bobby Nalzaro
The expose on the taped conversation allegedly between President Arroyo and former Comelec commissioner Virgilio Garcillano can be considered a blessing in disguise as it is testing the strength of the foundation of her administration. Now, the President knows who are loyal to her.
It can be said that the Arroyo administration is politically stable and that the military and police establishments are solidly behind the President and loyal to the duly constituted government. This loyalty was manifested not only in the tape controversy but also in the jueteng scandal—both used by the opposition to attempt to oust the President.
Had the Arroyo administration been weak, many people, perhaps including those in the military and police organizations, would have rallied behind former NBI deputy director Samuel Ong, who claimed to have in his possession the “mother of all tapes.” Ong’s move did not trigger another uprising.
The “Garci tape” also exposed the loyalties of the President’s allies.
Some politicians played sipsip to her before and professed their support. But after the tapes of the wiretapped conversation surfaced, they did not give Arroyo the benefit of the doubt.
One of these politicians is Rep. Clavel Asas Martinez. The feisty congresswoman expressed regrets at having supported Arroyo in last year's polls. Her withdrawal of support was made when she announced she has a copy of a tape that could prove there was cheating in the 2004 elections in Cebu.
Clavel’s turnaround shows that personal interest prevails over political considerations. Gov. Gwen Garcia defeated Clavel’s husband, Celestino Martinez Jr., in the elections. In fact, the Martinez camp has a pending electoral protest.
So, in order to sustain their claim that they were cheated, the Martinezes are on the verge of withdrawing their support for Arroyo and siding with the political opposition, which accused Arroyo of electoral fraud.
The Martinezes will be placed in a very awkward situation if they will not withdraw their support from Arroyo. They will be inconsistent with their stand if they accuse the Garcia's camp of cheating and spare the President.
Both the Martinez and Garcia camps supported Arroyo. So for the Martinezes to make their claims credible, they should declare that massive cheating was committed in Cebu, both by the Garcia camp and Arroyo.
Anyway, the Martinezes don't really need the President’s support. They can launch their own campaign in Cebu, especially in their district, without banking on the support of a national party.
So again, Arroyo now knows who her real friends are.
(bobby@sunstar.com.ph/0919-3181404)
(June 25, 2005 issue)
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