MANILA - President Arroyo's announcement Monday that she would run for a seat in the House of Representatives next year triggered immediate outrage from opponents who said she was making a brazen bid to stay in power.

Citing her desire to continue in public service and the clamor of her supporters, Arroyo said she wanted to represent her home province of Pampanga in Congress after her term as president ends.

However, opponents said Arroyo, who is mandated by the Constitution to step down as president next year, intended to enter the House of Representatives so she could retain immunity against potential corruption charges.

They said it may also give Arroyo a platform to change the Constitution so she could continue ruling the country as prime minister under a parliamentary system of government, rather than the current US-style presidential model.

"If this was out of a desire to serve the people, it would be admirable," said former president Joseph Estrada, who is seeking a second term as president in the May elections.

"But it is a brazen attempt to stay in power forever. This should be considered as a warning that the scheming by this regime will not end with this president's term in 2010."

In the government radio interview, Arroyo sidestepped a question about whether she wanted to change the constitution and become the first prime minister of the Philippines in a similar move to Russia's Vladimir Putin.

"That situation is so hypothetical I won't even bother to speculate about it," she responded.

Arroyo would be able to change the Constitution only if her Lakas-Kampi-CMD coalition gained enough seats in both houses of Congress in the May elections.

Not for immunity? Critics think otherwise

Arroyo gave a more direct denial of accusations that she wanted to enter parliament to retain immunity against graft charges that opponents have said they plan to file against her for alleged corrupt activities while president.

"Congressional immunity is only from libel suits for utterances made in Congressional sessions. That is not what I am after. This will reflect my own level of commitment to public service," she said.

However, with the legal situation extremely murky, critics insisted Arroyo was hoping to dodge graft charges.

"Perhaps that's her exit plan to ensure protection," said high-profile opposition Senator Francis Escudero.

"While it's her right to do so (run for Congress), it surely leaves a bad taste in the mouth. What else does she need to prove and accomplish?"

The Philippines' constitution states that Philippine presidents are not allowed to seek re-election after their 6-year term ends.

"I am not surprised. She is still motivated by political survival at all costs," Senator Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan said.

"I recall Senator Joker Arroyo saying that her running for Congress would be demeaning. But to PGMA, nothing is demeaning when it comes to political survival," Pangilinan said in a statement.

"For GMA, it is better to be in office than out of it, because the office and powers that come with it will be used as a vehicle to protect herself. This has little to do with public service and has more to do with protecting one’s back from the threat of criminal prosecution," Pangilinan said.

"She is desperately looking for a soft landing after 2010. She will win, yes, and she will try her best to use the office to protect herself. I doubt it very much though if she will succeed in finding a way out, in achieving the soft landing she desires," he added.

Bad precedent

Arroyo has actually served 8 years as president after rising to power in the wake of a bloodless military-backed uprising against Estrada in 2001.

Arroyo had been vice president under Estrada, then went on to win her own 6-year term in 2004 in an election tainted by allegations that she sought to rig votes.

Regardless of her long-term ambitions, Arroyo's opponents said she would have an unfair advantage while campaigning for Congress because of her presidential powers.

"She's setting a bad precedent (by) hanging on to a presidential post and using presidential power and funds to crush any Congressional opponent," said opposition Senator Aquilino Pimentel. (Read: 

"She's making the political playing field uneven versus all democratic demands for fairness."

Militants' reactions

The most vocal criticisms came from militant groups, who are calling Arroyo's move as a decision to avoid accountability for the irregularities being attached to her administration.

In a statement, activist group Bayan said Arroyo is "no longer morally qualified to hold any public office."

"Her attempt to get a congressional seat is not borne out of a desire to serve but by a desire to get political leverage and avoid accountability for the many crimes committed by her regime," a statement from the group said.

"In a time when she’s supposed to be prioritizing Maguindanao, she busy prioritizing Pampanga. In a time when she ought to be prioritizing the victims of the massacre, she’s prioritizing her political ambitions," it stated.

"This is a dark day for the Philippines. Her running for Congress is a slap on the face of the many victims of her administration. Her running for Congress is proof that she wants to somehow prolong her reign of terror," the group added.

Meanwhile, Kadamay said that even if the decision was 'not surprising,' they called for her disqualification.

"Legal basis [ng disqualification]? Eh kung moral basis kaya? Sa gitna ng pinakamalagim na masaker sa kasaysayan ng bansa, kung saan naghuhumiyaw ang taumbayan sa hustisya, magagawa mo pang tumakbo? Kung wala man sa batas ng tao na dapat siyang pigilan, palagay namin ay simpleng kunsensya na lamang, at panimbang natin sa tama at mali ang dapat masunod dito," Leona Zarsuela, Kadamay president, was quoted in a statement from the group.

Kadamay is planning a protest at the Commission on Elections (Comelec) main office in Intramuros, Manila, to raise their concern over Arroyo's plan.

Presidential aspirants' reactions

The presidential aspirants also weighed in on Arroyo's decision.

"Mas maganda sana hindi na lamang sya tatakbo. Mas maganda siyempre pag naging pangulo ka na. Iyon na ang pinakamataaas na pwesto. Sana magbitiw na lang siya ng maayos. Ngunit wala tayong magagawa... kundi iiwan 'yan sa mga maghahalal sa kanya at i-evaluate ang gagawin na iyon," Senator Manuel "Manny" Villar said.

"Baka pwede pang paki usapan na huwag na siyang humabol sa kongreso dahil may usap usapan na baka magkaroon ng failure of elections," Senator Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino said.

His running mate, Senator Manuel "Mar" Roxas II, said that her decision is "intriguing."

"It’s very intriguing how, after nine years as President, she claims that she has not done everything. I bet she has a motive for running for Congress, but this is not to continue to serve," Roxas said in a statement.

Roxas, howver, said he is confident the voters of Pampanga seek genuine reforms after the wrongs of the Arroyo administration.

"Now we see that Gloria’s supposed bailiwick is also a bailiwick of hope. Here and in other parts of the country, we can hear the resounding call of all Filipinos for real change," Roxas said, after Monday's swearing in of 63 local officials and prospective candidates with the Liberal Party.

Former defence secretary Gilberto Teodoro, however, said that it is Arroyo's plan, and he is not concerned over it.

"Thats her plan. I have my own plan. There is a presidential campaign that I am focused on," he said in a phone interview. With reports from the Agence France-Presse; Julis Babao, ABS-CBN News; and the ABS-CBN Regional Network Group