Plan to unseat Arroyo doomed to fail, says presidential aide

Manila: The Presidential Palace is confident that the political opposition's plan to unseat President Gloria Arroyo from power will fail even if the country shifts to a parliamentary form of government.

"It's typical of the opposition to be blaming institutional procedures for their failures. With or without charter change, it is possible for the opposition to impeach the incumbent president if they had a righteous cause, a solid case against her, an alternative leader and programme of government, the real interest of the nation at heart and the active sympathy and support of the people," said Presidential political adviser Gabriel Claudio.

"The opposition has none of these ingredients and that's why impeachment did not work last year and will not work again this year, charter change or no charter change," Claudio added.

Claudio said the consistent campaign of the opposition to boot out Arroyo over allegations of electoral fraud in the 2004 presidential election has made it more determined for the President to overhaul the country's political system described by some observers as chaotic and full of obstructions.

"This is one of the main points behind the charter change and the proposed shift to parliamentary system, where the head of government will be the prime minister who can be removed by the parliament's withdrawal of its vote of confidence and not by a nationally debilitating impeachment process," said Claudio in an interview with the Philippine Star.

House Minority Leader Francis Escudero pointed out that the Arroyo administration is serious about implementing the shift to prevent the opposition to pursue another potentially gruelling impeachment case against Arroyo. With a shift to parliamentary form, Escudero said Arroyo can now dissolve the Senate to ensure there will be smaller opposition.

"They want to abolish the Senate, which at the rate Mrs. Arroyo has been flouting the Constitution, will most likely convict her if an impeachment complaint reaches the Senate," said Escudero.

He said there is a bigger chance in ejecting an inappropriate leader through impeachment under the present system. Under the parliamentary form, the complaint must pass first through an impeachment panel to be established by the members of parliament.

Since the administration will dominate the unicameral legislature, Escudero said it is impossible for the opposition to muster the required two-thirds votes of all members of parliament.