MANILA, 10 May 2004 — In a rare but timely show of unity, the country's five presidential candidates yesterday put aside politics and prayed together for peaceful elections amid fears of massive cheating and possible terror attacks.

Under the baroque stone arches of San Agustin Church in Manila’s Intramuros, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo joined hands with her rivals — actor Fernando Poe Jr., former Education Secretary Raul Roco, Sen. Panfilo Lacson and evangelist Eddie Villanueva — in reciting a prayer for nonviolent and fair elections today.

“Grant us, O Lord, the perfect expression of the people’s will in this election,” they said. “Give me the humility to accept the true outcome, whether it goes for or against me so that defeat be glorified by grace and victory be tempered with modesty.”

Manila Archbishop Guadencio Rosales said the threat of unrest was “a veil to cover up an insatiable appetite for power.”

“Spare the poor of more suffering,” he said in his sermon, listing martial law, coup attempts, graft and dirty elections as “tragic mistakes” in Philippine history. “Let us no longer postpone, for any reason, our national recovery and development.”

The elections are largely seen as a showdown between Arroyo, a US-trained economist, and Poe, one of the country’s most popular film stars. The hotly contested race comes against a backdrop of rampant poverty, corruption, long-running communist and Muslim insurgencies, and worries that terrorists are training in the restive Muslim south.

In recent polls, Arroyo was leading Poe, but surveys also indicated many of the 43 million voters haven’t made up their minds.

In a televised address to the nation later in the day, Arroyo stressed that “the power is in the ballot, not in violence, sowing disorder and intimidation in the pecincts.”

“As the first democracy in Asia, we were the first to set an example in the region of a vibrant democracy and a growing economy,” she said.

“Through a peaceful, credible election, we will bring dignity to our democracy and dignity to all citizens who fulfill their duty to vote for the country they want.”

Poe issued a statement appealing to voters not to sell their ballots to anyone offering payoffs and “guard the integrity of our ballots so that the true will of the people shall be reflected in the results of the election.”

Let the Cheating Begin

Underlining the archbishop’s concern, voters and campaigners said vote-buying was already in full swing, with some candidates for thousands of government posts offering local kingpins four to five pesos (about eight US cents) for every vote they can deliver.

Arroyo is the clear favorite to win a fresh six-year term after extending her lead over Poe to six or seven points in final surveys. But the film star’s supporters are pinning their hopes on a happy ending.

The prospect of widespread cheating and the 12 percent of voters who say they are undecided means nothing is certain.

The military says 92 people, including 29 candidates, have been killed so far — more than the 87 in the 1998 election but still less than the nearly 150 who died in local polls in 1988.

Among the most pressing issues facing the Philippines is a debt burden that eats up a third of government spending, leaving little to elevate some 30 million Filipinos from dire poverty.

Entrenched corruption, a high crime rate and insurgencies are also on the minds of voters.

“The priest told us not to sell our votes,” said Virginia Lagdan, a housewife in the northern town of Solana.

“He said if you sell your votes, these politicians will no longer serve you because they’ve already been paid.”

Such advice is likely to go unheeded in much of the country when local leaders are able to command large blocs of support.

The threat of potential violence hangs heavy over today’s elections.

Yesterday, security at the historic stone church was tight, with checkpoints set up on roads leading to the church and police dogs brought in.

Presiding over the hour-long Mass, Archbishop Gaudencio Rosales told his congregation that elections are “a democratic practice that must be kept free, honest and peaceful.”

Former President Corazon Aquino, who helped organize the mass, said “It’s good for people to see all the five candidates praying together.”

Police carrying automatic rifles stood guard around the church’s perimeter and inside the cobblestone courtyard.

“The fact that they are all gathering here, we have to be extra vigilant as far as security is concerned,” said police Chief Supt. Pedro Bulaong.

Bulaong said police officers have been mobilized throughout the country. “We are very much ready for everything,” he said.

“There would be scattered incidents,” former President Fidel Ramos said. “I’m quite optimistic though that with today’s events, after the unity Mass, everybody will try to avoid poll violence.

Polls open at 7 a.m. (2300 GMT) and close at 3 p.m. (0700 GMT). Voters will also be casting ballots for vice president, 12 Senate seats, 200 in the House of Representatives and 17,000 local posts such as regional governor and town mayor.

Official results won’t be confirmed for a month, but independent exit polls and a “quick count” of the ballots by an officially sanctioned activist group with access to the ballots could provide credible results within 24 hours.