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Tuesday, June 28, 2005
Arroyo presidency under pressure after admitting tape talk (1:32 p.m.)
MANILA -- President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo came under intense pressure Tuesday after she admitted discussing last year's vote count with an election official, with opponents demanding that she resign and even supporters saying she must regain the people's trust.
A somber Arroyo broke her silence Monday in a three-week-old scandal over wiretap recordings, acknowledging in a televised speech that she talked to an election official about protecting a million-vote victory margin in May 2004 presidential polls. But she denied rigging the polls and said she won't resign, apologizing for the lapse and appealing for unity.
"I recognize that making any such call was a lapse in judgment," Arroyo said. "I am sorry ... I want to close this chapter and move on with the business of governing."
Arroyo left many questions unanswered about the recordings, and opposition politicians vowed to pursue protests and legal steps against her, maintaining she cheated her way to victory.
"I wish she would examine her conscience and look at herself in the mirror and ask herself if she can still lead the country," opposition Representative Francis Escudero told Associated Press.
Arroyo's former national security adviser, Representative Roilo Golez said, she should resign because she has lost her moral authority and because the scandal would paralyze Congress when in convenes next month.
Senate President Franklin Drillon, an Arroyo ally, said there was no basis for asking Arroyo to resign but added that: "The president should take steps to bring back the trust of her leadership."
Arroyo also has been damaged by accusations that her son and brother-in-law, both members of Congress, pocketed huge illegal gambling payoffs. The two have denied the allegations, the subject of a Senate hearing.
The battle over Arroyo's future now moves to Congress, where pro-Arroyo lawmakers, who hold a majority in both houses, want to conclude a weeklong inquiry into the wiretaps.
Escudero objected to closing the inquiry, and said the administration was pushing the opposition "outside the legal framework. They are closing legal avenues available to the people seeking the appropriate punishment for the president."
Such comments are explosive in the Philippines because they suggest a move toward the "people power" revolts that ousted late dictator Ferdinand Marcos in 1986 and Arroyo's predecessor, Joseph Estrada, in 2001.
However, almost daily street protests calling for Arroyo's resignation haven't matched those massive street rallies, and she still enjoys support of the powerful military.
Several House committees began hearings on the wiretap tapes of the conversation between Arroyo and former Election Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano, which Arroyo said occurred when the May 2004 election results already were forecast, but the final numbers had not been announced.
Escudero told DZRH radio that, "We have to examine the particular admissions of the president whether they are on the level of heinous crimes that should be the subject matter of an impeachment."
Rene Saguisag, a former senator and human rights lawyer, said Arroyo "violated her oath, her duty under the constitution ... because she asked someone to protect my votes, not to protect the integrity of the process."
"At the very least this apology is tainted," said Ronald Illamas of the left-wing Akbayan party. "This is a very calculated apology, blending the negative and positive ... it is lacking in sincerity and responsibility."
Two former presidential contenders, Eddie Villanueva and Raul Roco, said Arroyo should call a special election. Popular action film actor Fernando Poe Jr., who finished second - 1.1 million votes behind Arroyo - died from a stroke in December.
Poe's mentor, ousted President Joseph Estrada, said Arroyo's presidency was illegitimate.
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