Gloria, resign; CJ Puno credible replacement – KMU

Militant labor center Kilusang Mayo Uno today called on the Filipino workers and people to force Mrs. Arroyo to resign from the presidency, in view of her candidacy for Congress in the 2010 elections, saying Chief Justice Reynato Puno may replace her until the presidency is handed over next year to her successor. 

Mrs. Arroyo has filed her candidacy to be the next representative of the 2nd district of Pampanga, prompting calls from various groups and personalities, including long-time ally former Pres. Fidel V. Ramos, to call on her to resign.

“Mrs. Arroyo should resign. Surely, she will further use her presidency to her advantage in the elections – she has already done that. She has gone to Pampanga for more than 50 times, distributing goods and doing other things to earn ‘pogi points’ from the electorate there,” said Elmer “Bong” Labog, KMU chairperson.

“The biggest controversy that rocked her presidency stemmed from her use of her position to make her win an election. She should be prevented from doing a Hello Garci 2 with an all-star Kapampangan cast,” added Labog.

KMU also responded to Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita’s statement that Mrs. Arroyo’s resignation from the presidency would be an abandonment of her “sworn constitutional duty,” calling this “hypocritical.”

“There are offenses to the Constitution that are infinitely worse than the president giving up her constitutional mandate. These include large-scale electoral fraud, massive corruption and wanton human rights violations. What’s worse than giving up one’s constitutional mandate? Using it to commit crimes against the Constitution – which Mrs. Arroyo has repeatedly done,” Labog said.   

Temporary replacement

The labor leader also criticized Quezon Rep. Danilo Suarez for saying that Vice President Noli de Castro cannot replace Mrs. Arroyo, especially in these times of economic hardships for the country. 

“This congressman has been feeding the country with a lot of bullshit lately. He started out with the claim that he paid for the million-peso dinner in Le Cirque. Now, he wants people to think that Noli is the only option we have,” said Labog.

“We don’t like Noli either. He has proven himself to be a silent accomplice of Mrs. Arroyo in implementing her criminal, corrupt, anti-people and anti-worker policies. He is also a benefactor of the 2004 Hello Garci fraud,” Labog added.

The labor leader pointed to Chief Justice Puno as a credible, if temporary, replacement to Mrs. Arroyo. 

“CJ Puno is a credible replacement to Mrs. Arroyo. He is perceived as a man of selfless integrity. Many people will agree to him replacing, even if temporarily, this woman of selfish debauchery,” said Labog.  #