Word: arroyo
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...Arroyo was supposed to be a refreshing change from Estrada, a former movie actor. A U.S.-educated economist, and the daughter of a former Philippine President, Arroyo presented the image of a competent, if comparatively uncharismatic, technocrat. Indeed, the Philippines has made considerable economic strides under her stewardship, posting 7.5% GDP growth last quarter - the highest in 20 years - and paying down a massive government deficit. Arroyo's government has attracted millions of dollars in foreign investment - no small beer for a country where political instability and a crushing debt load have often made investors wary. Arroyo has also made...
...decision to stay or go may not be Arroyo's. Almost since she came to power, her administration has been buffeted by allegations of corruption every bit as audacious as Estrada's. During the 2004 election, Arroyo was recorded talking on the phone to Election Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano. Her political enemies charged that the oddly oblique conversation concerned the massaging of voting returns - a charge Arroyo has denied. The resulting impeachment attempt in the country's lower house of Congress was blocked by Arroyo's political allies. Her courting of foreign investment has also drawn fire. In early October, Arroyo...
...concurrent scandal allegedly involving payouts to lawmakers. On Oct. 15, a provincial governor - and former parish priest - said that he and other lawmakers had been handed paper bags full of cash during an Oct. 11 breakfast meeting at the presidential palace. The administration has denied the money came from Arroyo. Two weeks after the alleged handouts, the country's League of Provinces, a lobbying group of governors, admitted giving the cash for what they described as development initiatives. Arroyo's critics, however, claim the money was intended to win support among lawmakers for an intentionally defanged impeachment complaint that would...
...Arroyo's woes may stem in part from the typical sound and fury of Filipino politics - a blood sport traditionally contested among entrenched dynasties. Yet the accretion of scandal also appears to be eroding support for the President among some in the business community, one of her power bases. "We're really distressed about the way she lurches from one fiasco to another," says Alberto Lim, director of the Makati Business Club, an influential lobbying group that has previously called for Arroyo's resignation...
...Even if the allegations against her administration do stand up, Quezon says that apathy may allow Arroyo to stagger on to the end of her term - while Filipinos continue to cynically believe the worst of their politicians. That would also be business as usual...