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Friday, June 17, 2005
Arroyo toughs it out, will stay till 2010
MANILA -- The clamor grows for President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to break her silence on the wiretapping scandal rocking her administration, with some members of her Cabinet, business and civic leaders joining the call.
"The whole Cabinet is solidly behind her, but some want her to address these issues personally and make an immediate public statement," a senior government official said, on condition of anonymity.
The official denied, though, rumors that some Cabinet members were considering resignation.
But quitting her post is what the President's critics want her to do.
On Thursday, a defiant President Arroyo declared she will complete her six-year term and warned opponents against trying to bring her down while she is pushing unpopular but crucial economic reforms, including new taxes.
She said "agents of destabilization" are trying to destroy the country's economic gains.
"This is their now or never," she said. "They want to take advantage of the unpopularity I had to suffer in carrying out the difficult phase of our economic reforms."
Hara-kiri
Accusations that Arroyo's family pocketed huge illegal gambling payoffs, and last week's emergence of an audio recording-allegedly of the President discussing a plan to rig the May 2004 elections-have triggered a political storm and fresh coup rumors.
"It should be hara-kiri for her because she has lost her moral ascendancy to govern," said Cebuano Sen. Sergio "Serge" Osmeña III.
His brother, Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña, said, though, that any move to overthrow the President will be counterproductive for Cebu and the rest of the country.
"If she (Arroyo) goes, we will lose. It will disrupt commerce and it will completely affect everything we're doing, from the South Reclamation Project to tourism. And for what? There's no real alternative, they just want to create a scandal," Tomas said.
Arroyo has remained silent on the accusations, which are the subjects of congressional investigations.
The House of Representatives will send a letter to President Arroyo that will only ask her for comment on the alleged wiretapped conversation between her and Elections Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano.
Comment only
House committee on public information chairman Representative Gilbert Remulla said they will not ask the President to confirm or deny if the voice on the wiretapped conversation is hers.
"The letter will simply ask her comment on the audio tape, no question about confirmation or denial. If she makes a categorical statement, it would be okay. We just want it to put on official communication so that we will have a basis when the tape is officially turned over to us," he said.
Former Senate president Jovito Salonga, in an interview with ABS-CBN, said Arroyo should heed former president Fidel Ramos' advice that she face the issue once and for all.
House Minority Floor Leader Francis Escudero, for his part, said President Arroyo has convicted herself by keeping her silence.
Following the maxim "Confessio per silentium" or admission by silence, Escudero said, "If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear."
Confront it
Escudero said breaking her silence is necessary for "our nation to calmly and rationally overcome this crisis in governance."
Senate President Franklin Drilon, an ally of Arroyo, also said the President should take the initiative and address the issue directly.
"Difficult as it is, the President must confront this issue. There are no two ways about it," said Drilon, chairman of the Liberal Party.
The government has been saying that the allegations are part of an opposition plot to destabilize Arroyo's administration.
Malacañang spokesman Ignacio Bunye reiterated that President Arroyo will not publicly say if it is really her voice in the recording, said to be from an illegal wiretap by military agents.
Church officials and business groups have also urged Arroyo to break her silence on the alleged wiretaps.
'Damaged'
But the President decried Thursday how she had to endure verbal attacks from segments of the opposition who are desperate to grab power through extra-legal means.
"For four long years, the agents of destabilization have been trying to take down the economic edifice we have been building, but thank God, to no avail," she said in a speech at the launching of the Second Philippines Progress Report on the Millennium Development Goals at the Manila Hotel.
But Francisco Nemenzo, a former president of the University of the Philippines, said Arroyo's credibility has been damaged. (AP/PNA/With LCR of Sun.Star Cebu/Sunnex) |
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