Thursday, June 30, 2005
Poe widow to Arroyo: Resign!
MANILA -- Fernado Poe Jr.'s widow accused President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo of stealing the presidency, as she called for Arroyo's immediate resignation and rejected a public apology from the President.
Susan Roces, however, said she will not lead the opposition, although she will join mass actions that will press for the ouster of Arroyo.
"The gravest thing you have done is that you stole the presidency, not once but twice," said Roces, referring to the popular revolt in 2001 that catapulted Arroyo to power and the alleged cheating in the 2004 polls that was said to have prevented Poe from becoming president.
Malacañang promptly rejected the demand and appealed for sobriety, as administration officials denied that Arroyo cheated in last year's elections.
A highly emotional Roces said in a press conference held at the Club Filipino in San Juan, Metro Manila that Arroyo put the country to shame because of her improper act.
She also called Arroyo "arogante, manhid (arrogant, unfeeling)."
Senate President Franklin Drilon said Roces' call for Arroyo to resign immediately "is a wake-up call for the President."
Drilon said Roces' sentiments reflect the anger and frustration of the opposition.
Former Cebu City mayor Alvin Garcia said Arroyo's admission affirmed their earlier claim that they were cheated in last year's elections.
"If there was no cheating, I'm sure Joel Garganera and Carmen Piramide would have won (City Council seats) instead of Jun Pe and Edwin Jagmoc," he said.
'Wrong move'
However, Garcia said the opposition party in Cebu will just wait for developments from Manila whether to take to the streets to call for Arroyo's resignation.
For Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña, President Arroyo made a wrong move when she apologized for making the calls to an elections official that were allegedly wiretapped.
Not only did Arroyo set the tone for potential wiretappers, she also made herself vulnerable to more attacks from the opposition, Osmeña said.
"She should not step down. She should not have even apologized. I already gave that warning because after this, you think this will be the end? No," Osmeña told a news conference Wednesday.
The President, he said, has fallen into a trap and is being asked to do penance while the wiretappers remain scot-free.
"These people are allowed to wiretap the President and no one is running after them. No one is calling to investigate them. These people can wiretap the Cebu City mayor and everyone here in Cebu, that's why I want to shoot them," he said.
Stalled
The tape recordings of the President's phone conversations are the subject of a joint House inquiry, but the committees suspended Wednesday's hearing earlier than scheduled, after administration and opposition legislators argued endlessly on whether the audiotapes would be played.
Legal experts see no hindrance to public playing of the tape.
Party-list group Bayan Muna held a rally in downtown Cebu City Wednesday to show their indignation against the President, even as her local political allies remain steadfast in their support for Arroyo.
However, Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said, "I see no basis in calling for the President's resignation. She committed an error and lapse in judgment, she asked for forgiveness and an error in judgment can be committed by anyone whether you are a congressman, President, mayor, barangay captain."
Rep. Clavel Asas-Martinez, for her part, said in a radio interview Wednesday night that Roces was only expressing her feelings because she is convinced that her late husband was cheated in the presidential elections.
In a forum after the press conference, Roces said resignation would be the most honorable thing for Arroyo to do.
Citizen
Unlike her previous press conferences, Wednesday's media briefing was bereft of the usual political personalities who had rallied behind Poe. Only her legal counsel, Harriet Demetriou and a handful of supporters were by Roces' side.
"I'm just an ordinary citizen. It is our countrymen who can decide her (Ms. Arroyo's) fate," she said.
Roces rejected calls for a military junta to replace the Arroyo administration and the holding of a snap election, as she pointed out that the polls last year was "dirty" so there would be doubts over the credibility of those who will run and how it will be conducted.
Press Secretary and presidential spokesman Ignacio Bunye said in radio interviews that while the administration understands the anger expressed by Roces, the rule of law should prevail.
'No fanatic'
President Arroyo gained 220,060 votes in Cebu City last year, while Fernando Poe Jr. got 58,591. In the rest of Cebu Province, the President won 965,630 votes, against 125,099 for Poe.
Mayor Osmeña said last year's elections were not comparable to the 1969 election when his father, Sergio Osmeña Jr., ran for president against Ferdinand Marcos.
"I will go very far in supporting her because it's good for us. Let's be practical. Don't think I'm a GMA fanatic, I'm not. I'm saying there are even people around her whom I consider enemies, but to change her? Worse," said the mayor. (Sun.Star Cebu/Manila Standard Today/Sunnex)
Click here for a chronology of the crisis.
Click here for the transcript of Arroyo's confession.
(June 30, 2005 issue)
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