Oreta suggests snap election

Opposition Sen. Teresa Aquino Oreta urged President Arroyo yesterday to call for a snap presidential election to lift the country from its present chaotic state.

But she said Mrs. Arroyo should stick to her December 2002 promise not to run so she can focus on realizing her commitment to leave a legacy of clean, orderly and honest balloting.

In an interview, Oreta said the Arroyo administration "has already lost its moral ascendancy to govern following a confluence of events culminating in the state-sanctioned abduction of Eugenio Mahusay Jr., a key witness in the money laundering charges Sen. Panfilo Lacson has leveled against First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo."

"The questionable actions of Malacañang puncture the state of normalcy and stability that it has been trying to protect before the public. After its squeeze jobs on members of the mainstream opposition and attempts to muzzle the media, it has now resorted to dubious steps to muddle the truth behind allegations of impropriety and corruption against the President’s husband," she said.

She said an administration that disregards constitutional principles and suppresses the truth has no right to stay a minute longer in power.

"Under a democracy, power lies in the people, not in a few individuals who can choose to twist the truth to suit their ends," she stressed.

Oreta pointed out that "amid this chilling environment, a snap election is the only option that is left to give the country a fresh start and bring a fledgling economy burdened by Malacañang’s political maneuvers back on track."

Reacting to Oreta’s proposal, Senate President Franklin Drilon said he doubted whether a snap presidential election is constitutionally feasible.

He said the more feasible constitutional option is for the nation to just await the next elections, which are just seven months away, to choose a new president.

In the meantime, Drilon proposed the convening of a political summit among the various political parties and leaders to defuse the tense political atmosphere.