RP's Arroyo seeks unity as impeachment bid dropped<\/p>\n
Cecil Morella, Agence France-Presse\/Manila<\/p>\n
A relieved President Gloria Arroyo urged the Philippine people on
\nTuesday to rally behind her as the legislature killed off an
\nopposition attempt to impeach her for election fraud, ending a
\nthree-month crisis which has paralyzed her government.<\/p>\n
After a marathon overnight session, 158 lawmakers in the 236-
\nseat House of Representatives voted to ratify the House justice
\ncommittee's decision last week to reject three separate
\nimpeachment complaints.<\/p>\n
However the opposition, which mustered just 51 votes,
\nimmediately warned they may challenge the legality of the House
\nvote in the Supreme Court.<\/p>\n
\"We are very sad. The impeachment move in Congress is dead and
\nburied. Taking the case to the Supreme Court is an option, but
\npressure should be kept up on Arroyo,\" opposition legislator
\nTeodoro Casino told AFP.<\/p>\n
\"But whether or not it goes there, the public must be
\ninvolved,\" he said, adding that street protests would continue
\nagainst the government.<\/p>\n
Arroyo hailed the Filipino people's \"grand display of maturity
\nthat seals our stability and resilience as a nation.\"<\/p>\n
To the opposition she offered \"my hand in reconciliation for
\nthe national interest.\"<\/p>\n
The defeat of the impeachment moves marked a \"glorious day in
\nhistory,\" she said.<\/p>\n
A crowd of around 5,000 demonstrators led by former president
\nCorazon Aquino and two defeated candidates from last year's
\ndisputed presidential election marched on parliament, chanting
\nslogans for Arroyo to step down and denouncing what they called
\nthe \"railroading of the impeachment move.\"<\/p>\n
Around 1,000 riot police, backed by soldiers, blocked the road
\nto parliament to prevent violence. There have been clashes
\nbetween protesters and police in recent days as lawmakers debated
\nArroyo's fate.<\/p>\n
Allegations that Arroyo rigged her re-election have dogged her
\ngovernment since June and led around a dozen close allies to
\nresign from her cabinet and demand that she step down.<\/p>\n
The crisis began with the leak of an audiotape on which a
\nwoman sounding like Arroyo told a man thought to be a senior
\nelection official to fix the outcome of the polls.<\/p>\n
Arroyo has strongly denied any wrongdoing and has repeatedly
\nrebuffed calls to resign. However she has said she made a mistake
\nby calling an electoral official before the result of the voting
\nhad been announced.<\/p>\n
House Speaker Jose de Venecia, a key Arroyo ally, urged his
\ncolleagues to draw a line under the crisis following the vote and
\ncalled on the people to rally behind the president.<\/p>\n
\"While our own President Arroyo has many faults,\" de Venecia
\nsaid, \"the fact remains that she is still our best option in the
\ncountry.\"<\/p>\n
He said sending the impeachment case to the upper house of
\nparliament, the Senate, for a full trial would have been a
\n\"terrible mistake\" which would have brought the legislature to a
\nstandstill and further divided the country.<\/p>\n
The justice committee, which was dominated by Arroyo allies,
\nhad rejected the impeachment complaints mainly because of
\ntechnicalities.<\/p>\n
Opposition leaders insisted a full Senate trial was vital so
\nthat all the evidence of electoral fraud could be clearly laid
\nout before the people.<\/p>\n
The impeachment motions also alleged Arroyo's family was
\ninvolved in illegal gambling and that human rights have been
\nviolated since she has been in office.<\/p>",
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