ow that President Arroyo has managed to successfully deflect all the accusations that her opponents have thrown her way, it is time for her and the country to roll-up their sleeves and take these opposition leaders to task. Her administration's goals as well as the hopes and aspirations of the Filipino people will be continually frustrated unless those behind this destabilization plot are completely defanged once and for all.

From the perspective of overseas Filipinos, it would seem somewhat comical were it not so unfortunate, but if you look at who the leaders of the movement to topple the Arroyo administration are, you see the names and faces of despicably corrupt, treacherous and even dangerous individuals. In fact many Filipinos now living abroad fled the Philippines when those individuals were in positions of power.

These destabilizers now portray themselves as aggrieved nationalists who seek only truth and justice. But it should come as no surprise that they are certainly not nationalists for many lined their pockets and those of their friends and relatives with ill-gotten wealth at the expense of the starving masses. Neither are they for truth as they have, for decades, continually distorted the truth to hide their nefarious deeds. Nor are they for justice; the thousands of victims who suffered under their hands have yet to see justice served.

The Filipino people should not allow themselves to be mislead by those who seek to overthrow this government. From an economic perspective alone it is clear that the country can ill afford another EDSA revolution...People Power III is definitely out of the question! The whole world will lose whatever confidence it still has left in the Philippines if Filipinos continually remove their governments through extra-judicial means. An orderly transition of power through elections must be the norm from here on.

So here is what overseas Filipinos would like to see happen next. We'd like to see President Arroyo get tough with those who seek to overthrow her government. For starters, we'd like to see illegal wiretapping charges filed immediately against those involved in that unlawful act. We'd also like to see those accused of paying bribes immediately prosecuted.

Last--and most important--we'd like to see harsher penalties imposed on those who intentionally defame a public official in order to further their own political agenda. We Filipinos need to stop knocking each other down or we may soon reach a point where there will be none of us left standing.