MANILA -- These days the political class in the Philippines is preoccupied with other things besides governing. Attention is focused on what one commentator has termed "the worst crisis any administration" has ever experienced. The opposition is orchestrating turmoil and openly calling for the ouster of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.
To achieve this goal, the president's foes have discharged various poisonous attacks. Following allegations that her husband, son and brother-in-law are entangled in corrupt practices involving illegal gambling, audio recordings surfaced that, according to the opposition, substantiate claims the president cheated her way to power in the May 2004 elections.
As the opposition is not inclined to wait for the next presidential elections in five years, three alternative scenarios of bringing the Arroyo presidency to a premature end are debated: resignation, impeachment by Congress, or a popular uprising supported by the military.