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Tuesday, June 28, 2005
Opposition accepts apology, disputes poll victory
MANILA -- The opposition was dissatisfied with the admission President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo made on the wiretapped calls that suggested the May 2004 elections were rigged in her favor, saying it did not go far enough.
House Minority Leader Francis Escudero said in a television interview that although they can forgive Arroyo, she still has to face the legal consequences for the act.
"I call on her to analyze what she did, and whether she can still lead the nation effectively and seriously, despite her admission," Escudero said.
Defeated vice presidential candidate and former senator Loren Legarda, on the other hand, said: "The people accept her apology. But she has to face the legal process. There are consequences to be faced by the President, the people and the opposition."
Opposition leaders are calling on Arroyo to resign following her apology and admission that she talked to an election official about hopes for a million-vote margin in last year's ballot.
Opposition Senator Panfilo Lacson said the President's admission "confirmed" her involvement in cheating and insisted that then election commissioner Virgilio Garcillano proposed the rigging of last year's ballot and Arroyo condoned it.
"Now that she authenticates, she should vacate," said Lacson.
Senator Jinggoy Estrada also called on Arroyo to resign "not tomorrow, not next month but now...she does not deserve that office because of what she did."
Estrada is also skeptical about Arroyo's apology, pointing out that she called Garcillano not once but several times.
With Arroyo's admission, Escudero also said government should now allow the tape to be played in its entirety and let the people judge if she indeed cheated in last year's elections.
Support for the President, however, especially from Cebu political and business leaders, remains strong.
"I salute her for her candidness. Now, let's get on with our lives and concentrate on working for our nation," Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia said.
Environment Secretary Michael Defensor, for his part, said they expect the opposition would not stop although the President acknowledged her mistake.
Defensor, whose services as political spokesman in the 2004 elections have been tapped once again exclusively on the wiretapping issue, insisted that the President had no intent to cheat in last year's elections.
The allegations sprang from tape recordings of a woman sounding like Arroyo talking to a man believed to be former Commission on Elections (Comelec) Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano, apparently about vote rigging.
"I was anxious to protect my votes and during that time had conversations with many people, including a Comelec official," Arroyo said in a televised nationwide broadcast, breaking weeks of silence on the issue.
"My intent was not to influence the outcome of the election and it did not," she said, adding that making the call was a "lapse in judgment."
"I'm sorry. I also regret taking so long to speak before you on this matter," the President said.
Senate President Franklin Drilon said Arroyo showed the mettle of a true leader when she admitted her mistake and asked for forgiveness. He added the President should continue her work and that she should appoint a replacement to Garcillano.
However, leftist groups calling for Arroyo's resignation branded her statement as "the mother of all fantaserye (television fantasy shows)."
"It is treating people to an endless guessing game, cheap thrill, and bouncy roller coaster rides," said Gerry Albert Corpuz of the Pambansang Lakas ng Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas.
"The removal of President Arroyo is non-negotiable and we will not allow her and her political hooligans to bring the issue to the gutter," he added.
Bayan Muna Representative Teodoro Casiño, for his part, said: "We commend the {resident for admitting the truth. We accept her apology but we don't accept the statement that this was only a lapse in judgment."
"After an apology, what is needed is rectification and the penance in this case is to step down, resign," he said.
Representative Roilo Golez, an Arroyo ally, said he was "deeply saddened" by the admission, which he said would surely batter the country's image abroad. He said he needed time to think whether he would support any move legally to oust the President. (Sun.Star Cebu/Sunnex)
Click here for a chronology of the crisis.
Click here for the transcript of Arroyo's confession.
(June 28, 2005 issue)
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Arroyo owns tape voice: 'I'm sorry'