MANILA, 8 March 2006 — President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo yesterday shrugged off suggestions that she was drifting toward strongman rule and warned that said she would not hesitate to use her emergency powers again to quell any attempt to unseat her.

“I am monitoring events and I will not hesitate to do what needs to be done to uphold the law,” Arroyo said in a radio interview less than a week after she lifted the state of national emergency she imposed on the country.

The petite US-trained economist had been struggling to keep her credibility intact since the opposition exposed wiretapped recordings showing her alleged interference in the May 2004 presidential elections.

As her political foes prepared for mass protest rallies to mark the 20th anniversary of the “Edsa People Power” revolt that ousted dictator Ferdinand Marcos last month, Arroyo exercised her emergency powers on Feb.24, claiming the government needed to put down a coup plot involving communist rebels, “misguided” soldiers, opposition politicians, and businessmen.

Police arrested a number of personalities perceived to be critical aainst the president, among them Rep. Crispin Beltran, sociology professor and newspaper columnist Randy David, and retired Gen. Ramon Montaño.

The commander of the army’s elite Scout Rangers, the chief of the police Special Action Force, and the commandant of the Philippine Marines were relieved of their posts on suspicion that they were involved in the plot.

Police also raided the opposition newspaper Daily Tribune and deployed troops to watch the premises of key television stations ABS-CBN and GMA-7.

Sworn Duty

As the Supreme Court yesterday began hearing petitions questioning the constitutionality of Arroyo’s Proclamation 1017, the basis for the police crackdown, Arroyo denied opposition allegations that her act violated civil liberties enshrined in the Philippine Constitution.

Government lawyers asked the court to dismiss the petitions. A ruling was not expected this week.

“We showed how strong and stable our government was,” she said. “We moved swiftly and we averted violence.”

“I am not withdrawing my call for unity, but I will not use up all my time and energy for that because I need to also pay attention to the economy,” she said.

A handful of militant students gathered outside the Supreme Court, demanding Arroyo’s resignation and shouting, “Never again to martial rule.”

Along one of Manila’s major roads, a small group of left-wing protesters unfurled a banner at an overpass, reading “Resist Arroyo’s tyrannical rule.”

Leftist groups have also vowed to continue protests and call for Arroyo’s ouster over corruption and vote-rigging allegations.

Arroyo said her “swift action headed off potential violence.”

“I am a strong believer in democratic principles. But I also believe that we should stop people who abuse their freedoms and install groups that will one day destroy those very freedoms — the communists who conspire with the extreme right,” she said in an interview aired by GMA7 television network.

Divisiveness

Arroyo rejected charges by her critics that she was to blame for the divisiveness in the country.

“Who are the critics or who are those calling for my ouster? Who is politicking? Who’s getting personal?” she said in Filipino when asked in an interview on GMA Network’s radio station DZBB to comment on observations that she was the cause of division among Filipinos.

Arroyo said she no longer paid attention to what her detractors were saying so that she could focus on the economy.

But she reiterated that she remained open to forging peace with those who would accept her offer. In a speech before the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines last month, Arroyo said the divisiveness in the country had not been resolved, adding that this is why the country continues to have “rogue elements.”

She said she hoped the country would have a new system of government, saying the present system is “very conducive to division.” Arroyo has been pushing Congress to act on the measure that will amend the Constitution to effect a shift to a parliamentary system from the presidential form of government.

Lawmakers

Police, meanwhile, urged the Department of Justice to demand that the House of Representatives hand over five other lawmakers who have sought sanctuary in Congress to avoid arrest.

Chief Superintendent Jesus Verzosa said the five lawmakers violated an agreement between Congress and the Justice Department when one of them left the Congress building on Monday night to meet with senators, taunting police to arrest her.

Versoza referred to Rep. Liza Maza of the Gabriela party-list group, who left the House of Representatives to attend a joint Senate and House meeting on Monday.

Along with Maza are Satur Ocampo (Bayan Muna), Teodoro Casiño (Bayan Muna), Liza Maza (Gabriela), Joel Virador (Bayan Muna), and Rafael Mariano (Anakpawis).

The five had managed to evade arrest after they were warned that police had seized their colleague, Crisipin Beltran, on Feb. 24.

“The House incident necessitates that the courtesy extended to the House of Representatives to take custody of the five should now be reconsidered,” Verzosa told reporters, saying the lawmakers could easily flee from justice. “As members of Congress, they are not above the law.”

Security officials said the government had a “very solid and strong” case against six leftist members of the lower house of Congress of conspiring with rogue soldiers and political foes of Arroyo to remove her from power.

The latest to be detained is Maj. Jason Aquino, the former operations chief of the Scout Ranger regiment.

Sacked from his post in July for pamphleteering against Arroyo, the officer was detained Monday for “recruiting even senior officers” to destabilization plots against Arroyo, said army spokesman Maj. Bartolome Bacarro.

She said the security situation was now “quiet and peaceful” but the government remained watchful against another attempt at destabilization.

Some of the detained officers have complained about the military’s role in the alleged rigging of the May 2004 presidential election, in which Arroyo defeated the country’s top movie star, the since-deceased Fernando Poe.

Arroyo, who survived an impeachment complaint in the legislature last year over alleged election fraud, has denied stealing the vote and rejected opposition calls to stand down. (With input from agencies)