Miriam raises coup alarm next month

The opposition is hatching a plan to launch a coup d’etat in December, its deadline set for overthrowing the Arroyo administration, Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago warned yesterday.

"The buzz on the political grapevine is that the President will be removed from Malacañang by December. So it will be a make or break month. They will either be able to embed themselves in the Palace or kick Mrs. Arroyo out of the Palace," Santiago said.

"The influence of the radical left is negligible. It is the people with guns who will decide the winner," she added, stressing that the "fulcrum of power" lies in the Armed Forces.

Santiago said both pro- and anti-Arroyo forces active in the Armed Forces are now trying to "count noses."

The Armed Forces of the Philippines, however, shrugged off Santiago’s claims, saying that a coup is never announced.

"I respect the sources of the good senator but as far as the Armed Forces is concerned, there is no such thing as recruitment within the ranks," AFP Public Information Office chief Col. Tristan Kison told a news conference at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City.

Malacañang also dismissed the rumors and said it is confident of the loyalty of the military and the police.

In separate interviews, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita and Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said any attempt to overthrow the government will not succeed because of lack of support from the people.

Santiago’s warning came as The STAR obtained a confidential security briefing showing the "unstable stalemate" caused by the three-month old wiretapping controversy, as well as the jueteng probe and the LLP Venable issue.

The probe on the controversial "Hello, Garci" tapes was described in the political security situationer as having "brought about a delicate and complicated security picture."

"Shadowy groups have emerged, convinced that the only solution to the crisis lies outside the system they had condemned as a failure," the report said.

The Palace briefing report also said that should these groups succeed in forcing an extra-constitutional closure to the controversy, the country will have a shaky transition government.

Santiago did not identify the possible leaders of the alleged coup attempt. It was not also established if Santiago had seen the Palace situationer report before issuing the warning yesterday.

She hinted that personalities involved are "frequently seen in the media."

When asked if former President Ramos is one of the leaders who wish to replace Mrs. Arroyo, Santiago said: "Politics is a demi-monde, a shadowy world where appearances are almost always misleading. In other words, in politics, allies are not always dependable."

According to Santiago, the opposition’s plan to overthrow the Arroyo administration by December was proven by the recent spate of activities by the opposition.

She was referring to the "prayer rally" near Malacañang, the planned "trial" of Mrs. Arroyo by the so-called "people’s court" and the attempt by protesters last Tuesday to picket the Loyola Memorial Park in Marikina City.

She also said that the opposition has decided that December will be the "make or break" month because it is the only window of opportunity left after failing to impeach the President.

"The oust-Arroyo movement is losing steam, meaning it is running out of funds. That is why the coup has to be in December, before the anti-Arroyo sentiment fizzles out," Santiago said. — With reports from Paolo Romero, Jaime Laude