Arroyo to control Senate: Philippine vice president

0 Comments | Asian Political News, May 21, 2001

KUALA LUMPUR, May 18 Kyodo

(EDS: ADDING QUOTES, DETAILS)

Philippine Vice President Teofisto Guingona was confident Friday that the ruling party will attain a majority in the hotly contested Senate elections pitting President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's candidates against those of her predecessor Joseph Estrada.

Guingona said that besides the eight Arroyo-backed candidates expected to win seats in the 24-member Senate, four of the 11 senators sitting in uncontested seats are aligned to her party and two independents have voiced full support for the president.

''So that would constitute a majority,'' he told reporters after meeting Malaysia's Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar.

Unofficial results from the May 14 elections indicate that members of the Arroyo camp will get eight of the 13 contested seats in the Senate. The opposition is expected to gain four, and an independent one. Vote counting continues.

Guingona said the exit polls have been ''proven accurate'' in the past.

With the bitter election over and the specter of 78 people dead and allegations of fraud in its wake, Guingona said it should be time for reconciliation.

''The senators who win, (from) the opposition, should be responsible enough to support, in a bipartisan manner, the reforms that are needed by the nation,'' he said. ''The election is over. It's time to set aside partisan feelings.''

Guingona said former President Estrada will be judiciously tried in court for plunder.

''The wheel of justice must go on. We owe it to the people to mete out justice,'' he said.

In November, Estrada was impeached by the House of Representatives for alleged corruption. A popular revolt removed him from office on Jan. 20 and he was arrested on April 25. He is to stand trial for plunder, a capital offense, next month.

The elections have scuttled the proposed peace talks between the government and Muslim separatists in southern Philippines.

''Right now, the Philippines is holding an election. We are not too (much) in a hurry,'' Guingona said, adding that there are also unresolved technical issues that need to be ironed out.

He said the venue for the talks has not been decided yet and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) is yet to form a negotiating team.

Malaysia is one of the ''neutral'' countries being considered to host the talks. The others are Indonesia and Libya.

The MILF rebels and the Philippine government signed a cease-fire agreement in March in Kuala Lumpur that paves the way for talks to resolve the decades-long conflict that has seen more than 120,000 people killed.

The southern Philippines is home to the country's Muslim minority while other parts are dominated by Christians.

Guingona, who is also the foreign affairs secretary, is on a one-day visit to Kuala Lumpur, his first since assuming the vice president's post in February.

Besides Syed Hamid, he has also met with Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi

His visit will pave the way for the first visit by Arroyo to Malaysia. The Star newspaper, quoting unidentified sources, reported that Arroyo may visit Malaysia as early as November.

Syed Hamid, however, would only say that ''details are being worked out.''

After Malaysia, Guingona will visit Singapore and Brunei.