GMA's plan to stay beyond 2010 bared

The Daily Tribune
By Ninez Cacho-Olivares
Editor-in-chief

Two meetings were held between President Arroyo and her allies among local government units (LGUs) last Friday and Sunday to fine-tune the move for a People's Initiative (PI), intended to ensure her stay in Malacañang beyond 2010.

Both meetings were held in the home of an Aboitiz known as a close confidante of Mrs. Arroyo who lives in Makati City.

This was disclosed to the Tribune yesterday by a highly reliable Palace source who is privy to the plans of Mrs. Arroyo to extend her stay in power and position.

For some reason, the plan for her extended stay through the PI is being kept from her allies in the House of Representatives at this time.

"They (congressmen) are not needed at this time," the source said, because "it will be the local executives' move to get the People's Initiative going. Besides, it is still a 'hush-hush' affair. "

He added: "Forget about the memorandum of agreement (MoA) with the MILF (Moro Islamic Liberation Front). That's a red herring thrown by Malacañang. That is being used as a cover to get the Charter change going," he said, adding that the "plan is all laid out for the People's Initiative to get things going."

The source also said that Mrs. Arroyo offered as "sweetener" to the LGU executives the lifting of term extensions which "delighted" the LGU allies present during the meetings.

The President also promised to fund, in the tens of millions, the PI, to ensure that this would get the required percentage of voters.

Reminded that the PI was twice proved unsuccessful despite the all-out funding from both presidents, Fidel Ramos in 1997 and Mrs. Arroyo a few years back, the source said: "Not this time, because the PI will seek only one simple amendment" which will not even mention term extensions but one that will lead to it.

The source also stressed that Mrs. Arroyo told the LGUs that the PI will definitely be upheld by the Supreme Court, as she now has control over the majority of SC justices.

The source explained that the PI will succeed this time around since the amendment to be sought through the PI will only cover one item in the Constitution, which is a change in a proviso which will require the Senate to vote jointly with the House of Representatives as one body on the issue of Congress calling for a constituent assembly in amending or revising the Constitution.

"It is a simple amendment. This will pass scrutiny of the Supreme Court and it is not seeking to change the form of government or even to lift term extensions," the source explained further.

"It's a very simple plan to extend her (Mrs. Arroyo's) term. It is not the People's Initiative but the Senate and the House voting jointly as one body that will be revising the Constitution to fit her needs," he said while explaining that once the simple amendment in the PI is approved, the ball now is tossed to the Congress.

"Once approved, the Senate vote will be minimal, compared to the House vote and whatever her allies in the House majority votes on, will be carried, as the Senate vote will only count for 22 to over 150 or more," the source pointed out.

"There will be nothing that the Senate can do, once this amendment is passed. The Senate can no longer argue that constituent assembly cannot be created without the Senate's say so.

The MILF agreement on ancestral domain, it was also bared by the source, is just being used as a cover for Mrs. Arroyo's plan to stay beyond 2010. "All she wants is to stay on after 2010," the source stressed, and she and her aides will do everything to ensure that she stays on as the political power after 2010, explaining that there is no fool-proof exit plan for the President in avoiding charges once she loses her immunity.

"All attention is now focused on the MILF's agreement on the ancestral domain, which is not even an important aspect in the plans of President Arroyo to stay in power beyond her term. It is the people's initiative that she and her allies in the local governments plan that is their hidden agenda.

"There is no question about it," the source told the Tribune. "She can't afford to be out of power after 2010 without her having any safety nets guaranteed," he stressed.

Press Secretary Jesus Dureza, along with other presidential aides, also have been talking about the need to introduce constitutional amendments to bring about the establishment of the MILF juridical entity.

It has been noted that Dureza tried to allay fears of the public that the constitutional amendment being sought is intended to extend the term of Mrs. Arroyo beyond 2010, stating that the amendment will cover only one topic.

Dureza also said yesterday that the government would have to eventually yield to Congress for approval and seek the passage of an enabling law had it not been for the Supreme Court's temporary restraining oder (TRO) issued yesterday.

He said the output would have been brought to Congress for final consolidation of all the issues, saying the government "will not shortcut legal and constitutional processes".

Dureza also said Congress would have been the venue for public debate for the passage of an enabling law that could end in the holding of a plebiscite or referendum.

"In the end, people will make their own decision," he said.

On the allegation that the peace agreement is being used as a ploy to push Charter change, Dureza said a shift to federal form of government is speculative at this point, although he said the "trajectory" of the talks could be leading toward that direction.

The source also told the Tribune that he wasn't surprised that the Palace is now taking this line of getting Congress to come up with an enabling law.

"Of course it will be Congress that has to do all this—but a Congress where the Senate no longer has a voice—in almost anything." he said.