GMA on political detractors: I will never surrender

President Arroyo remained steadfast yesterday in her refusal to comment on alleged taped conversations purportedly between her and Elections Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano, and seemed equally determined not to back away from the fight instigated by her detractors.

Mrs. Arroyo said she is anticipating many more attacks from her political opponents.

In a speech in Agusan del Sur, the President said those wishing to bring down her administration would not stop until they succeeded in driving her out of office.

"I assure you, I will never surrender," she said.

In Cagayan de Oro City Thursday night, Mrs. Arroyo reiterated her stand not to comment on what she referred to as the opposition’s "politics of destabilization," particularly allegations on the wiretapping scandal.

"I will not comment on the authenticity of the material that the accusers admit was illegally derived," the President said in an interview for a local cable station in Cagayan de Oro.

Mrs. Arroyo said that right from the start, her opponents had questioned her victory in the 2004 presidential elections, but the people who voted for her believed she won "fair and square."

Mrs. Arroyo added her opponents’ drive to remove her from office was "now or never," as her economic reforms begin to take off and improve conditions for the country.

She said her detractors had tried many times to take advantage of her many unpopular reforms — such as new tax measures — to stir up public discontent, but had failed to unseat her.

The President said they would never succeed but would keep up the attacks nevertheless.

She thanked those who continued to support her, saying they were the ones giving her the courage and resolve to strengthen her governance.

"Kung hindi magtatagumpay na patalsikin ako ngayon, ang susunod na gagawin nila ay pitik nang pitik, pitik nang pitik para pilit nang pilit na pati ako gusto nilang ma-entrap na tumulong sa kanilang mga efforts para ang gusto nila pag pitik nang pitik, pitik nang pitik, balik nang balik (If they would not succeed in ousting me now, their next move is to hit, then hit again, to press and press again. They would also like to entrap me to help in their efforts so they could then hit and hit, again and again)," the President said.

But despite the strong resolve, Mrs. Arroyo reiterated in Cagayan de Oro City that she had been "saddened" by the allegations and their consequences, including the decision of her son, Pampanga Rep. Juan Miguel "Mikey" Arroyo, to take a leave of absence from the House to pave the way for investigations she had ordered into jueteng.

Aside from the alleged wiretapped conversations that could possibly incriminate her and Garcillano in poll fraud in the May 2004 elections, the President’s son, husband and brother-in-law had been accused of benefiting from jueteng payoffs.

Still, the President said she would continue to focus on her job and that her priorities remain God, country and family.

Mrs. Arroyo added her government was already implementing phase two of her economic reform agenda aimed at bringing the benefits of the new tax measures to the people.

The tax measures recently passed by Congress, the first phase of her economic reform plan, include the expanded value-added tax.

The new law is expected to generate an additional P80 billion in much needed revenues.

With the additional revenues, Mrs. Arroyo said the country would no longer rely so much on foreign borrowings to fund infrastructure and pro-poor projects but could instead become more self-reliant.

The President also called on all Filipinos to unite with her so that the benefits to be derived from her economic reforms would not be wasted.

Mrs. Arroyo also said she would not answer questions by lawmakers, set to convene a hearing into the alleged wiretapped tapes on Tuesday, despite mounting pressure from politicians, the business sector and academics for her to publicly state if the voice on the recording is hers.

‘Disappointed’

Meanwhile, Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr. expressed disappointment yesterday that Mrs. Arroyo appeared unfazed by calls for her to address the audiotape controversy.

"It is quite clear that the President is at a loss on how to confront in a credible manner the revelations on the tape that she and Commission on Elections (Comelec) Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano connived in rigging the 2004 presidential elections," he said.

Pimentel said the longer Mrs. Arroyo resisted giving a credible explanation for the recordings, the more difficult it would be for her to govern the nation.

"That is why I called for her to resign," he said in a statement.

Pimentel hoped that Mrs. Arroyo’s trip to Hong Kong this Monday would enable her to reexamine her decision in handling the wiretap controversy.

"While the announced purpose of her Hong Kong trip is to encourage foreign investors to come to the Philippines, the journey should enable her to look at the situation from a distance and to take correct steps to get herself and the nation out of this crisis," he said.

Pimentel reiterated his position that Mrs. Arroyo should resign and snap elections be held in accordance with the Constitution, saying the President’s brief absence from the country might induce restive elements to take drastic steps.

"My position has always been: let us do things according to the Constitution, not by extra-legal methods," he said.

Authorities have meanwhile charged former National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) intelligence chief Samuel Ong with inciting to sedition.

Last week, Ong claimed he received the wiretapped recording from military intelligence agents. On the recording, a voice sounding like Mrs. Arroyo is heard talking with an alleged election commissioner about how to ensure a million-vote victory margin.

Philippine National Police chief Director General Arturo Lomibao said military intelligence agent T/Sgt. Vidal Doble told investigators that Ong paid him P2 million to claim he was the source of the wiretap.

Doble was taken into police custody shortly after he was identified by Ong.

Doble also claimed that Ong - who has gone into hiding - told him the money came from a mistress of ousted President Joseph Estrada.

Doble earlier said the group behind the recordings wanted to oust Mrs. Arroyo and set up a revolutionary government in which he would be offered a post.

Ong’s lawyer, former internal revenue commissioner Liwayway Vinzons-Chato, has dismissed Doble’s claims as lies.

Last Thursday Estrada told The STAR he did not support moves to destabilize Mrs. Arroyo’s government, but that he would be willing to serve in any transitional government if she is forced to step down.

"Our country needs a radical change," he said. "That’s the only solution."

Estrada had urged people last week to hit the streets to protest against Mrs. Arroyo.

Meanwhile, the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (ULAP) has initiated a five-million signature campaign to inform the nation that a majority of Filipinos support Mrs. Arroyo.

Bohol Gov. Erico Aumentado, ULAP president, said the signature drive was meant to counter the destabilization effort being raised by opponents of the Arroyo administration.

"This is our way of telling anti-government forces and the opposition that the people are against any extra-constitutional attempt to force Mrs. Arroyo out of power and any or all forms of destabilization," he said. "The moment to unite is now. The right moment to stand together and be counted is today."

Aumentado exhorted his fellow local officials to defend the Constitution and serve the people by informing them of current events, programs and projects that directly affect them.

He added that Metro Manila is being used as the springboard for destabilization.

"But millions more in the provinces and remote towns and villages want to live in peace and quiet," he said. "They know violence will not get us anywhere nearer the goals of economic prosperity."

He said the majority that campaigned hard and voted for Mrs. Arroyo in 2004 are solidly supporting her continued stay in office.

Binaloan, Pangasinan Mayor Ramon Guico Jr., League of Municipalities president, said the signature campaign would prove that Mrs. Arroyo indeed had the backing of the people in the countryside, especially those who voted for her in the last elections.

"Filipinos should stay calm," he said. "We should never act with haste because the political stability and the economic growth of the country and the future of the people are on the line."

He said Filipinos should avoid the reckless paths taken in South America and Africa where upheavals in government are cheap and plentiful.

"There won’t be any democracy left for future generations to cherish," he said. — With reports from Christina Mendez, Paolo Romero, Cecille Suerte Felipe, AP