BY ASHZEL HACHERO

PRESIDENT Arroyo should resign as she has lost the moral authority to govern the country, the United Opposition yesterday said as it announced plans for a nationwide mass action to pressure her to follow the "constitutional way out" of the impasse.

UNO reiterated its call for Arroyo’s ouster following a meeting attended by opposition personalities and militant groups in Makati City, where the group also expressed their support for Rodolfo Noel "Jun" Lozada, star witness in the Senate’s investigation in the anomalous $329 billion national broadband deal between government and the Chinese firm ZTE Corp.

The group’s spokesman, Adel Tamano, said the NBN-ZTE controversy and other anomalies hounding the Arroyo administration are enough reason for Arroyo to resign.

"Majority of Filipinos want change and this is clearly expressed by he broadening of voices we heard in the past few days against graft and corruption in this administration. We heard it not only from the opposition but also from the religious sector, the business community and the various civic and people’s organizations so we reiterate our position: Mrs. Arroyo should resign now," Tamano said.

He said although Lozada is far from being perfect as he admitted to taking part in some questionable policies while he was still in the government service, Tamano said they are supporting him "for the fact that he is telling the truth."

Bayan Muna party list Rep. Satur Ocampo said: "Definitely the present situation is ripe for the people to let their voices be heard against corruption in the administration."

The opposition’s call for Arroyo’s resignation followed the call of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines last Sunday for "communal action" after Lozada’s testimony at the Senate Friday.

On the series of nationwide mass actions, Tamano said the first will be held this Friday in Makati City.

"We are inviting everyone, people of every stripe whether they be with us or not, who believe in change, to step forward and have their voices heard. This is the right time for our voices to be heard. Miracles can and do happen we just have to take the first step," he said.

Tamano and San Juan Mayor JV Ejercito said the protest actions will be different from those staged by the opposition in 2005 amid allegations that the Arroyo camp cheated in the 2004 presidential elections as shown in the "Hello Garci" wiretapped recordings.

"This time it is the people who will take the initiative and we will be there just to support them," Ejercito said.

Tamano said former Presidents Corazon Aquino and Joseph Estrada have been invited to the rally. Former President Fidel Ramos, an Arroyo ally, is welcome to join the rally, he said.

Tamano said the current situation is different from the "Hello Garci" days when the opposition-initiated rallies in Metro Manila and other areas in the country eventually fizzled out despite the public’s outrage over the cheating allegation. He said this time, there is a "broader effort and people at large are slowly making their voices heard."

"If we are talking about political dynamics here, the present situation is much more precarious right now than compared to 2005 when Hello Garci surfaced. Then, the fight is seen by many as between the opposition and the administration, but now there is infighting within the ranks of the administration. The crack is growing day by day," he said.

PEACEFUL MASS ACTIONS

Ocampo said the planned mass actions would be peaceful and within the constitutional guarantees of freedom of expression.

Ocampo is one of the party list representatives arrested in February 2006 and charged with rebellion amid allegations of a plot to oust Arroyo.

Also present during the "expanded" UNO meeting were Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay, UNO president; Representatives Roilo Golez, Teofisto Guingona Jr., Crispin Beltran, and Liza Maza; former senators Ernesto Maceda, Ernesto Herrera, and Leticia Ramos-Shahani; Muntinlupa Mayor Aldrin San Pedro, and actor Rez Cortez.

OPEN-ENDED CALL

Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz said the CBCP’s call for "communal action" is "open-ended."

"One thing clear is that it will be an act against the present administration. But as to how and who will answer to it, bahala na ang tao doon," Cruz said.

He said the bishops will be "waiting in the wings and observing" what would transpire in the call to action. He said they any action that is constitutional and without bloodshed.

But Cruz said it is wrong to expect the CBCP to spearhead actions against government as it would only repeat government’s mistake.

"The Church in the Philippines is surely not the sovereign Filipino people. Hence, it would be a big mistake to expect the Church to make or unmake a government. The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines is definitely neither the sovereign Filipino people. Wherefore, it would be a gross blunder to ask the CBCP to seat or unseat a ruling administration," he said.

Cruz, former CBCP president, said that in previous anti-government mass actions, the CBCP was not responsible for unseating Ferdinand Marcos and Joseph Estrada but the public "along with one Cardinal, a handful of bishops, some priests and sisters." – With Gerard Naval