Friends and foes join the politicking on the anniversary of the 'Edsa II' revolt
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo yesterday played down the third anniversary of the bloodless revolt that swept her to power, as former allies accused her of betraying the very ideals behind 'Edsa II'.
Mrs Arroyo scheduled her brief visit to the Edsa shrine at 6.30am, just as the capital was rushing to work and school. The thin crowd that joined her amid heavy security was a marked contrast to the hundreds of thousands that converged along Edsa highway on January 20, 2001 to force Joseph Estrada out of office and install Mrs Arroyo as president.
Raul Roco, a key player in Estrada's removal and now Mrs Arroyo's rival in the May presidential elections, claimed Mrs Arroyo went to Edsa so early because she was too embarrassed to face the people after having failed to keep the promises she made three years ago.
Her spokesman, Ignacio Bunye, said she was 'very preoccupied' with yesterday's first state visit of Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and added she would rather celebrate Edsa II through deeds, not words.
Newspapers that hailed her move to power in 2001 had unkind words to say yesterday. Top-selling Philippine Daily Inquirer called her three-year presidency a 'wasted opportunity'. It accused her of 'violating' the spirit of Edsa II by 'making all sorts of accommodations' to Estrada.