Arroyo's husband 'to move abroad'

Mrs Arroyo called her husband's move a "sacrifice"

Philippines President Gloria Arroyo has said her husband, accused of influence-peddling, is to move abroad.

The move is seen as an attempt to silence calls for Mrs Arroyo, who also faces accusations of election fraud, to step down.

Mrs Arroyo did not say how long Jose Miguel, widely known as Mike, would remain abroad, or where he would go.

Opposition lawmakers have accused him of taking bribes from gamblingsyndicates. He denies the charges.

"My husband has volunteered to go abroad to remove himself from any situation which will cast doubts on my presidency," Mrs Arroyo told a business forum in Manila.

She said her husband had been "the object ofpillory, especially by my political enemies, who have been trying to distract me from fulfilling my reform agenda as president."

She added: "I'm grateful to my husband for his sacrifice. My family will miss him terribly."

Her husband has been accused, along with their son and Mrs Arroyo's brother-in-law, of taking kickbacks from operators of illegal lottery.

The son, Juan Miguel Arroyo, recently took leave from his parliamentary seat amid the pay-offs allegations, which are the subject of a Senate inquiry.

Mrs Arroyo is facing growing pressure to resign after she admitted telephoning an election official during last year's presidential election.

On Monday, she apologised to the nation for what she called a "lapse of judgement" but denied trying to influence the vote.

Her presidency has also lost popularity due to the poorly performing Philippine economy, and proposed budget reforms.

Opposition groups are calling for her impeachment although analysts say that will be difficult as she enjoys majority support in both chambers of Congress.

In the 2004 election, Mrs Arroyo beat the now-deceased film star Fernando Poe by more than a million votes.

Mr Poe's widow Susan Roces called on Mrs Arroyo to resign.

"The gravest thing that you have done is that you [Arroyo] have stolen the presidency, not once, but twice," she told a news conference.

(BBC)

syndicate: an association of companies for some definite purpose（企业联合，集团）

pillory: a wooden instrument of punishment on a post with holes for the neck and hands; offenders were locked in and so exposed to public scorn（颈手枷，示众）