Aquino Reacts to Charges of Weakness, Orders Crackdowns, Garbage Cleanup

Amid the cheers of the Philippines’ most powerful businessmen, President Corazon Aquino ordered far-reaching action Tuesday, ranging from a military crackdown on labor unrest and the Communist rebellion to repairing streets and collecting garbage in the nation’s capital.

In what Aquino later described as the longest and strongest speech she has ever delivered, she held more than 1,000 foreign and Philippine corporate leaders spellbound as she responded point-by-point to criticism that she is too weak and indecisive to steer the Philippines out of its crisis.

“The honeymoon is over, isn’t it?” she told the businessmen, who have been increasingly critical of Aquino since Aug. 28, when mutinous soldiers nearly succeeded in overthrowing her government.

‘Can She Hack It?’

“The question you all really want to ask, ‘Can she hack it? Isn’t she weak?’ These are the questions that were asked by all those who have openly challenged my power, authority and resolve, and who have suffered for it. Well, they can forget it. Although I am a woman and physically small, I have blocked all doors to power except elections in 1992.”

In rapid-fire fashion, Aquino then ordered the mayor of Manila to clear the streets of garbage within a week; gave public-works officials a week to fill in every pot hole in the city’s First District; ordered the state-run telephone company to respond to all complaints within 48 hours; demanded an immediate investigation of the Manila Electric Co. to determine the cause of almost daily brownouts, and ordered an acceleration of government efforts to privatize dozens of businesses, possibly including the government’s monopoly domestic airline.

Aquino flatly rejected suggestions that she reopen negotiations with leaders of the Communist insurgency, which has intensified since the August coup attempt.

“The truce ended last February, when I ordered the armed forces to resume operations against the Communist insurgents,” she said. “Talk hadn’t worked, so it was time to fight. And it is still fighting time.”

In a move that signals another shift to the right, she ordered the police and military “to remove all illegal blockades at factory gates.”

The businessmen cheered the loudest when Aquino announced that a special new armed forces unit had been created to enforce back-to-work orders and to crack down generally on labor unrest. In recent weeks, several political leaders have described the labor situation as “chaotic.”

The applause continued when Aquino restated her government’s commitment to privatization.

“I want government to get out of business,” she said. “I want it to cash in all the investments it should never have made.”

She promised to address squarely charges of corruption within her government by appointed officials and members of her family.

“No funny deals,” Aquino said, “No clever schemes. No fears, no favors.”

To critics who have said that she has no clear strategy to end the insurgency, Aquino replied: “I have said clearly all that needs to be said. Am I also expected to take up (a rifle) and do it?”

The businessmen who crowded into the Manila Hotel ballroom to hear the speech had formed the bedrock of Aquino’s support when she challenged Ferdinand E. Marcos in last year’s presidential election. But their support began to erode after the August coup attempt, which was carried out by many of the same officers who led the 1986 revolt that overthrew Marcos.

Despite rumors that another coup attempt is imminent--and reports that another plot had been foiled Tuesday--the president vowed that she will never resign in the face of an armed challenge. And she reiterated that the armed forces are strong enough to repel any internal threat.

“The facts speak for themselves,” she said. “With the military, we have crushed every challenge to the supremacy of civilian authority. They fought me, I fought back. Surrender would have been neater, but it is not in me to yield.”

Aquino’s audience gave her a one-minute standing ovation, and many praised her, but one prominent corporation president commented:

“Nice words. Let’s see some implementation. Let’s see if the pot holes really are filled next week. Let’s see if the garbage really is gone. And let’s see if my phone is working when I get back to the office.”