Palace sees junta if polls collapse
Sunday, March 21st, 2010By Paolo Romero
The Philippine Star; March 20, 2010
MANILA, Philippines – Malacañang yesterday assured the public there would be no failure of elections this May but warned of a possible military takeover in the ensuing chaos arising from such an event.
Deputy presidential spokesperson Charito Planas said President Arroyo is definitely stepping down on June 30 and arrangements were already laid out for a peaceful turnover to the next chief executive.
Planas made the statement amid talks of a possible failure of the country’s first nationwide automated elections allegedly being orchestrated by the administration to prolong Mrs. Arroyo’s stay in power, starting with the appointment of her trusted generals to top posts in the military.
Planas noted that Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile issued a similar warning of a possible military junta taking over in the event of political turmoil arising from a failure to install a new president by June 30.
“It’s possible that the military would take over. That’s possible as military juntas have taken over in several countries in Southeast Asia,” Planas told a news briefing.
When asked whether the President is prepared to remain in office while waiting for the new president to be proclaimed, Planas said: “Let’s look at the Constitution.”
“It’s not the President who will say: ‘I want to remain here.’ It’s the situation and the Constitution that will dictate what will happen,” Planas said but did not elaborate.
Planas, however, stressed the possibility of a failure of elections occurring is extremely remote.
She said the public should not confuse delays or failures in the transmission or canvassing of voting results as failure of elections.
Once the votes are cast, the elections have successfully occurred, Planas said.
Even in past elections where votes were counted manually, Planas said the declaration of failure of elections was only limited to certain areas or polling precincts.
Presidential spokesman Ricardo Saludo, for his part, said there has never been a general declaration of a failure of elections in the country’s political history.
“Even with the manual counting of votes. Now there will be automated counting in most precincts, with no more than 30 percent manual count in a worst case scenario, Hence, there is nil chance of failure,” Saludo said, citing the argument of election lawyer Romulo Macalintal.
Even in the face of ceaseless arguments that the May 10 elections is likely to fail, Saludo assured this would not happen.
“Our elections have never failed. Neither will the 2010 polls, even if all our votes are counted by hand,” Saludo said.
Malacañang earlier called on the public to support the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to ensure the successful holding of peaceful and honest polls on May 10.
Critics had warned the power crisis in Mindanao is only the dry run of the plan to stage a failure of elections.
The opposition Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (PMP) of former President Joseph Estrada said Malacañang is exerting all efforts to allow Mrs. Arroyo to stay in power.
“And now that its end is near, the whole country is witnessing how this administration appears to be using every trick in the book to extend its hold on power even when our people are clearly eager to replace it through the ballot,” PMP spokesman Ralph Calinisan said.
Opposition Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez said Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief Gen. Delfin Bangit would be forced to retain Mrs. Arroyo in power if a failure of election is declared on May 10 where no president and vice president are proclaimed.
Rodriguez said no one among her constitutional successors could serve as head of state since the terms of Vice President Noli de Castro, Senate President Enrile and Speaker Prospero Nograles will all lapse on June 30 along with Mrs. Arroyo.
For his part, Bangit said he would not go beyond his oath of providing security in case a failure of election occurs in May.
Bangit also appealed to critics to spare the military from political intrigues.
“I already made my statement. I won’t repeat it anymore. I have my oath and it will be to protect and to support the Constitution, nothing more, nothing less…I will not go beyond my oath,” he said.
AFP spokesman Lt. Col. Romeo Brawner, Jr. said the military has no intention of taking over the government in the event that no president is proclaimed or to lengthen President Arroyo’s stay in power.
“Our mandate is to provide security. In case there is a failure of elections, our mandate is very clear. We will come in to maintain peace and order. That’s all,” Brawner said.
Brawner said the AFP would only come in to help the Philippine National Police (PNP) restore order if a failure of elections is declared.
Brawner said such intervention by the military would ensure the constitutional provisions on succession would be upheld. – With Alexis Romero, Jose Rodel Clapano
This was the prevailing sentiment among a group of soldiers who had called for President Arroyo’s resignation during a mutiny in 2003 as they filed for the accreditation yesterday of Magdalo Para sa Pagbabago (Magdalo) as a political party based in the National Capital Region.
