Arroyos will try to leave anew today

MANILA, Philippines - Former President and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo called off another attempt to leave the country yesterday after her blood pressure went up, her legal spokesman said.

Raul Lambino said Arroyo had to take a rest following the “stress” caused by the standoff at the airport late Tuesday.

Arroyo’s spokesperson Elena Bautista-Horn told ANC that they would try to leave today.

Lambino said Arroyo is confined at the St. Luke’s Medical Center in Taguig City where her health condition is closely being monitored. 

Lambino described Arroyo as “mahina (frail)” and “tired” because of what happened at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) last Tuesday.

“She felt bad and her blood pressure went up. She may have to postpone (her travel plans) and will take a rest,” Lambino said.

Arroyo, who is being investigated for corruption, was stopped at the airport from leaving the country late Tuesday.

The former president went by ambulance to the NAIA Terminal 1 and she and her husband Jose Miguel Arroyo tried to board a flight to Hong Kong hours after the Supreme Court imposed a temporary restraining order (TRO) on a government ban on them traveling overseas.

Immigration officials, acting on the orders of Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, stopped the Arroyos from boarding their flight and after the standoff, the former president was taken back to hospital.

Horn said Arroyo would be taking the day off after the traumatic experience she went through at the airport late Tuesday.

According to Horn, Arroyo’s blood pressure shot up, prompting doctors to order the insertion of an IV tube on the former leader.

She said Arroyo suffered frequent numbness in certain parts of her upper body.

Mr. Arroyo, for his part, said his wife has been quiet after they returned to the hospital following the incident at the NAIA.

“God forbid, if anything happens to my wife, I’ll blame De Lima and P-Noy (President Aquino),” Mr. Arroyo told The STAR in a telephone interview.

“She’s already lost a lot of weight. She’s already pitiful and fragile. But I can clearly see that she’s pained even as she rarely talks,” he said.

Mr. Arroyo also slammed Malacañang’s spokespersons for branding their attempt to leave as “high drama” to gain sympathy from the public.

He said they were exercising their right to travel that was effectively upheld by the SC.

“It seems these people are power mad. They’re the ones supposed to uphold the law but now they’re the ones breaking the law. How tragic,” Mr. Arroyo said.

Horn added immigration officials at the airport did not release the passports of the Arroyos in time for their scheduled 9:30 p.m. flight for Singapore via Hong Kong.

Horn said the Arroyos cancelled their planned trip to Singapore yesterday afternoon via Singapore Airlines flight SQ919 that was scheduled to leave at 5:10 p.m.

Horn said she had requested for another 20 access passes for the sendoff parties of the couple that include nine vehicles and the use of the dignitaries’ lounge.

Horn said she hopes that the Department of Justice (DOJ) will finally follow the SC order and allow the Arroyos to leave.

She also debunked claims that airport officials did not try to hold off the Arroyos.

Bureau of Immigration (BI) Commissioner Ricardo David Jr. said immigration officers at the NAIA had no choice but to follow De Lima’s directive to implement the watchlist order against the Arroyos.

“Until such time that the watchlist order against them is lifted by the DOJ, we cannot allow them to leave,” David stressed.

Cagayan de Oro Archbishop Antonio Ledesma said that the Aquino administration should respect the SC’s decision that issued the TRO on the travel ban against the Arroyos.

“Well, we should really follow the process here in the country. If that is what the SC said, we have to bow to that also,” Ledesma said.

SC spokesman Midas Marquez said the Arroyos were free to travel. He said failing to heed the SC ruling could be contempt of court.

Marquez warned the government was in clear breach of an order from the highest judicial authority in the country.

“Of course, it’s not a good message that the public is getting from two coequal branches of government, one defying the legitimate order of the other,” Marquez told ABS-CBN television.

“They have no other option but to comply with the order.”

Marquez said those who refused to enforce the SC ruling risked being charged with contempt, punishable by six months in prison.

But De Lima said that was not the case.

“I will look at the TRO and then file a motion for reconsideration with the high court,” De Lima told dzBB radio, referring to the TRO issued by the SC.

“Our position is that since there is a motion for reconsideration, the high court’s TRO should not yet be implemented,” she said.

De Lima said Arroyo’s medical condition was not life threatening, and insisted the travel ban on the former president would remain because the government believed she wanted to flee into exile.

“We will not allow her to leave unless there is a medical emergency. That is clear,” De Lima told reporters yesterday.

The Arroyo camp said the former president needs medical treatment overseas for a spinal problem.

But the government, which is investigating allegations against Arroyo of electoral fraud and corruption, is worried the couple could travel to a country which does not have an extradition treaty with the Philippines.

The government has not charged Arroyo with any offense but President Aquino has said authorities intended to file charges before yearend.

The DOJ has been investigating the Arroyos for their role in suspected election rigging in 2004 and 2007. They were also facing corruption inquiries in connection with several government contracts.

Arroyo was president for nine years from 2001 until 2010.

The SC said Arroyo could travel abroad on three conditions: a cash bond of P2 million, the appointment of a legal representative, and for her to appear before a Philippine embassy or consulate official abroad. –With Aie Balagtas See, Rudy Santos, Evelyn Macairan