MANILA Tens of thousands of people chanted, sang and prayed at a church-sponsored rally in the Philippine capital on Saturday, demanding President Joseph Estrada resign over a gambling pay-offs scandal.
Vice President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and other opposition leaders said in a statement the administration was "politically dead and can never again effectively govern".
One more senator defected from government ranks, leaving Estrada precariously placed in impeachment proceedings which are likely to be brought before the Senate later this month.
"The presidency is not good for you because you are not capable to run this country ... resignation will be good for your soul," cardinal Jaime Sin, the most influential clergyman in the Roman Catholic nation, said at the protest, the largest so far in the anti-Estrada campaign.
The rally was held in a peaceful, fiesta-like atmosphere as Senator Robert Jaworski, a former basketball star idolized in the sports-obsessed country, said he was withdrawing from the administration camp and would vote as an independent.
Senate President Franklin Drilon said 13 of the 22 senators were of the view that Estrada should resign. For him to be removed from office through impeachment, at least 15 senators will have to vote in favor, but analysts say Estrada cannot count on more than five senators for support while the rest could go either way.
"Mr Estrada is now extremely isolated," the opposition statement said. "We call on Mr. Estrada to do the right thing to the country resign immediately." (Reuter)