A respected former Philippine leader yesterday repeated calls for President Gloria Arroyo to resign over a political scandal but a defiant Arroyo was determined to ride out the crisis, according to aides.
Former president Corazon Aquino, once one of Arroyo's closest allies, has urged her to "make the supreme sacrifice" and hand over power to Vice-President Noli de Castro for the sake of the country.
Aquino said there were only two constitutional options to end the political crisis: a handover of power to the vice president or impeachment.
"I ask the president to spare our country and herself from this second option," she said.
Aides said Arroyo would not quit despite the resignation of 10 senior cabinet members last Friday. Some influential business leaders, former political allies and many academics have also urged her to step down.
Breathing space
Arroyo won some breathing space when the influential Catholic church refused late Sunday to join mounting calls for her resignation over allegations she stole last year's presidential vote.
The president's "resolve to stay in office is high because she obtained the mandate of the Filipino people through an election," said her executive secretary Eduardo Ermita.
The decision by the bishops "will somehow douse the prevailing political tension and help enlighten all of us," said presidential spokesman Ignacio Bunye.
Bishops declared they would not join calls for Arroyo's resignation, while censuring her for her supposed role in eroding public trust. Another ex-president, Fidel Ramos, has rallied to Arroyo. He offered a third way out that would see her stay on as a caretaker leader while the country transforms from a presidential to a parliamentary system of government next year.
The heightened political uncertainty hit the economy yesterday as Fitch Ratings and Standard and Poor's cut their credit rating outlook on the Philippines to negative from stable.
Share prices fell 1.25 percent with investors fearing "that the ongoing political unrest will likely continue" after Arroyo refused to resign, said Jose Vistan of AB Capital Securities.
Heightened alert
Arroyo's opponents are pinning their hopes on a planned demonstration in the capital's Makati business district tomorrow. They hope to attract at least 50,000 people even though public protests have been muted so far.
National police chief Arturo Lomibao said the capital's entire police force has been placed on heightened alert to prevent possible attacks, including from communist guerrillas who vowed to take advantage of the political turmoil.
The president is under fire over wiretapped conversations in which a woman sounding like her appears to conspire with a man alleged to be senior election official Virgilio Garcillano to fix the result of the presidential vote last year.
Arroyo has apologized for impropriety in phoning an unidentified independent election official but denied trying to cheat.
Aquino, who took over when an army-backed popular revolt toppled dictator Ferdinand Marcos in 1986 and who faced down several army coup attempts, said democracy is again under threat.
Arroyo herself came to power in 2001 after her predecessor Joseph Estrada was ousted in an army-backed "people power" revolt.
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