PRESIDENT Arroyo was fighting for political survival in the Philippines last night after ministers, businessmen and political figures called for her to quit over election-rigging claims.

The country’s senior military officer warned his men to resist calls for a military coup and America cautioned against “unconstitutional” measures.

Mrs Arroyo, however, gave a radio address in which she refused to go. “I was duly elected to uphold the constitution and ensure that the institutions of the nation were strengthened, not weakened,” she said.

Calls for her resignation were led by Cory Aquino, who saw off Ferdinand Marcos, the former dictator, to become the Philippines’ first democratically elected president in 1986. “I ask the President . . . to make this supreme sacrifice to spare our country from the violence that threatens it,” she said.

Mrs Aquino, who stood alongside Mrs Arroyo when she took over from the disgraced Joseph Estrada four years ago, was the most prominent of those who deserted her. Ten members of her Cabinet resigned yesterday — a third of her ministers — and called on Mrs Arroyo to hand over power to Noli de Castro, her Vice-President.

A coalition of activist groups, which helped to organise the enormous “People Power” demonstrations that brought Mrs Arroyo to power, also withdrew their support, along with the Makati Business Club and the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines, two business groups.

The Liberal Party, part of the parliamentary coalition backing Mrs Arroyo, said that it would support impeachment proceedings if she refused to resign.

Much now depends on the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, which meets in Manila this weekend. If it withdraws its support, it is hard to see how Mrs Arroyo can continue.

Her troubles began with a tape recording of a telephone call she made to the national election commissioner during the presidential election last year in which she defeated a challenge from Ferdinand Poe, an actor. She appeared to encourage the election official to ensure that she won a large majority. A fortnight ago she apologised on television, but said that the recording had been doctored and that she had not intended to influence the election result.

Last month the President sent her husband, “Big Mike” Arroyo, into exile after persistent allegations that he had taken bribes from illegal gambling syndicates.

Yesterday Joseph Mussomeli, the US charge d’affaires in Manila, said that America opposed “a military coup, the imposition of martial law, people power in the streets”. He added: “We support the rule of law. Within that context, we believe the President is still the President. Anything that goes beyond the constitution, the US Government will firmly oppose.”

General Efren Abu, chief of staff of the armed forces, said that retired military officers were “busy enticing some of our personnel to use their units, their office . . . to express a political preference or meddle in the realm that belongs to politicians. The soldier has the duty to protect this political exercise. He is not expected to intervene in it.”

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