Arroyo seeking House seat in 2010DAR chief: She often tells close allies of planBy Charlie Señase
Inquirer Mindanao
First Posted 00:53:00 06/13/2009
COTABATO CITY—President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will definitely step down in 2010 and run for Congress in her home province of Pampanga, a Cabinet official said Friday.
Agrarian Reform Secretary Nasser Pangandaman gave this apparently categorical statement on Ms Arroyo’s political plans when he spoke to reporters at the sidelines of the Independence Day celebrations in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), where he was a guest speaker.
“Definitely, she is running for Congress and would represent the people of Pampanga,†Pangandaman, one of Ms Arroyo’s staunch supporters, said. “She is definitely stepping down after her term.â€
Pangandaman said Ms Arroyo had always told those close to her about her plans to run in the congressional race in Pampanga.
He said Ms Arroyo made her latest statement on the matter during a meeting of the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) earlier this week.
“This should allay the fears of the opposition about the no-election scenario,†Pangandaman said.
No Cha-cha now
The opposition has warned that the Charter change (Cha-cha) being pushed by Malacañang’s allies in the House of Representatives through a constituent assembly (Con-ass) was meant to extend her term beyond 2010.
But Pangandaman said Ms Arroyo had no hand in the Cha-cha efforts and that it was the initiative of Congress, particularly Speaker Prospero Nograles. He said Ms Arroyo herself was not in favor of Cha-cha under her administration.
“She said it could come later. Let the people decide after the elections,†Pangandaman said.
He said Ms Arroyo’s decision to run in Pampanga was not dampened by recent surveys showing increasing dissatisfaction with her performance.
Part of democracy
“The President gives little attention to surveys as she continues to urge her official family to hasten the completion of Malacañang’s priority projects on infrastructure, education, health, agriculture and other social services,†Pangandaman said.
He also said Ms Arroyo wanted the people to decide if they wanted her as their representative in Congress.
Pangandaman said Ms Arroyo looked at recent protest rallies in Makati and elsewhere in the country against Cha-cha as part of a healthy democracy.
“In a democratic form of government there must be the pro and con, the administration and the opposition, provided that arguments and differences do not end up in violence and disorder,†he said.
In Manila, Undersecretary Gary Olivar, deputy presidential spokesperson on economic affairs, said “there is no reason to expect otherwise,†when asked if Ms Arroyo would step down when her term ends on June 30, 2010.
“This is something she repeatedly said directly and through the people who speak for her,†Olivar said.
Responding to another question, Olivar said: “The important point to make though is that the President has no intention of staying beyond 2010.â€
A latest Social Weather Stations survey shows 43 percent of Filipino voters do not believe Ms Arroyo intends to step down next year.
Defensor downplayed
In Tacloban City, presidential adviser Gabriel Claudio downplayed the statements made by Quezon City Rep. Matias Defensor, another staunch Malacañang ally, that Ms Arroyo should say goodbye to public office after her term expires.
Claudio said the 2010 elections would be held as scheduled and Ms Arroyo had no intention of prolonging her stay in Malacañang.
“[Defensor] has already explained … that he has the best intentions for the President and he continues to support the President and her administration. Let us not put any meaning or intrigue to what he said,†Claudio said.
Claudio was in Tacloban to lead the celebration of Independence Day at the convention center there.
No basis
Both Claudo and Leyte Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, another Arroyo ally, stressed there was no basis to fear that the recently approved House Resolution No. 1109 setting up a constituent assembly would lead to the scrapping of next year’s polls.
“House Resolution 1109 does not contemplate a single proposed amendment but rather it is just a call for Congress to convene into a constituent assembly to enter any and all proposed amendments,†Romualdez said.
Romualdez, who is the senior vice president for finance of the ruling Lakas-Kampi-CMD, said it was “very clear in black and white … that there is no term extension for the President.â€
Big irony
In Koronadal City, where Ms Arroyo led Independence Day celebrations, the militant Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) denounced what it said was a violent police dispersal of its rally Friday.
About 100 militants were dispersed while protesting against the proposed Con-ass.
“The big irony is they did it during our Independence Day celebration,†Edward Flores, the group’s spokesperson, told reporters. With reports from TJ Burgonio in Manila, Aquiles Zonio, Inquirer Mindanao, and Joey A. Gabieta, Inquirer Visayas
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