RP on high alert due to coup rumors

MANILA Â? The United States has expressed its Â?unequivocalÂ? support for embattled President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo as the armed forces and police were placed on a high state of red alert amid persistent coup rumors.

The US government however would oppose Â?any extra-constitutional or extra-legal efforts to any way undermine" ArroyoÂ?s government, US embassy charge dÂ?affaires Joseph Mussomeli said. Arroyo has placed the entire military and police forces on full alert as rumors swirl of a plot against her fueled by corruption charges against the Arroyo family and opposition allegations that she rigged last yearÂ?s election.

Local media aired what the government described as an illegally tapped and doctored telephone conversation that purported to show Arroyo urging an independent election commissioner to ensure she won the vote by more than one million votes. To add to the turmoil, witnesses at an ongoing Senate hearing have identified her husband, First Gentleman Juan Miguel “Mike” Arroyo, her son, Pampanga Rep. Juan Miguel “Mikey” Arroyo and her brother-in-law, Negros Occidental Rep. Ignacio “Iggy” Arroyo as among top officials who received illegal gambling (jueteng) payola. The witness, Sandra Cam, also revealed that the “Jose Pidal” in the Senate probe of jueteng bribes last year was actually First Gentleman Mike Arroyo. Mussomeli said the US embassy had known about the alleged recordings as early as April, but “we didn’t take it that seriously.” “We are not concerned that this administration is at risk,” he said. “We want to take it seriously, we just don’t think it’s credible,” he said. The US support for Arroyo “is unequivocal,” Mussomeli said. But while there was no real danger, he said the political scandal was eating away at the Philippines’ stability. “We believe this has really grown out of proportion from what we know. Just as accurately, this is very serious because it distracts people from the real problems that we should be dealing with," the diplomat said. He said the US embassy had not issued any alerts for Americans in the Philippines and the consulate is not taking “any special precautions” in terms of security. Earlier, the President declared that she will not resign, adding that she will fight the plotters who she said are trying to bring down her government over claims of rigged elections and corruption charges. Rumors of a coup hit financial markets hard the past several days. Mrs. Arroyo denied opposition allegations that she rigged the 2004 presidential elections and claimed she had the full support of the military. The President also ordered her department of justice to investigate corruption charges against her son, Pampanga Rep. Juan Miguel “Mikey” Arroyo and brother-in-law Occidental Negros Rep. Iggy Arroyo who allegedly received P1 million a month as jueteng (gambling) payola. Later she said the probe should be handled by the independent Office of the Ombudsman. Replying to Sen. Aquilino Pimentel’s call for her to resign, the President said: “I won’t be stopped from doing my job to revive the economy. I am saddened that while I am doing my job, there are people who want to bring me down or undermine my capability to govern the country.” Mrs. Arroyo said she had “full confidence in our soldiers, as well as the cooler heads of our citizenry, that they will defend our democracy and exert the maximum effort toward its protection." She rejected opposition allegations that she cheated in the May 2004 elections. “I won nearly 40% of the vote with a margin of one million votes. That size of margin cannot be achieved by cheating,” she said. Electoral fraud allegations have resurfaced after the local media aired what the government described as an illegally tapped and doctored telephone conversation that purported to show Mrs. Arroyo urging an independent election commissioner to ensure she won the vote. Sen. Pimentel called for the resignations of President Arroyo and Vice President Noli de Castro “out of respect for the interest of the nation” and to pave the way for another election. Arroyo has “no credibility left in her whole body from head to toe and has exhausted whatever moral ascendancy she had since she replaced Erap [former president Joseph Estrada’s nickname], and her EDSA allies have left or are leaving her," said Pimentel in a statement. He said De Castro should step down because he and Arroyo were elected “under questionable circumstances.” He said the numerous issues hounding Arroyo had indicated that “her days are numbered," referring not only to “jueteng” but to a wiretapped conversation linking her to cheating in last year’s presidential election. Pimentel rejected another People Power revolution since resorting to them too frequently “diminishes their moral force and suasion.” The political turbulence has wiped 7% off the value of companies listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange over the last three days. Opinion polls have put Mrs. Arroyo’s popularity at an all-time low. Gloom over the economy has been compounded by the charges of election fraud and the alleged involvement of her husband, son and brother-in-law in illegal lottery payoffs. The latest turbulence comes two days after Armed Forces chief of staff General Efren Abu warned that retired military officers were plotting against the President. Retired Army general Fortunato Abat, a former defense secretary, has also publicly called on Mrs. Arroyo to go. Military units in Metro Manila have been placed on high alert. The Philippine National Police, meanwhile, kept its “full alert” status that started during the opening of classes last Monday. “This is in relation with internal security threats in connection with the 107th Independence day celebration [on June 12]," said Army spokesman Captain Ramon Zagala. “Red alert was declared effective from 10pm last night." “Our intelligence information revealed that there will be rallies and demonstrations," he told reporters. “Our concern is to protect the seat of government. We are just preparing in case people will resort to harsh means. We will stick to the chain of command and will respect the duly-constituted elected officials," he added. He said the military had put on standby a “battalion-size civil disturbance management unit" but stressed that street protesters would be allowed to assemble and could “say anything” as long as they would be peaceful."