Bear Stearns report boosts GMA morale.

(From Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Byline: Christine O. Avendao and Michael Lim Ubac

FOR EMBATTLED President Macapagal-Arroyo and her allies, the good news came when they were most needed.

After she was named by Forbes magazine as the fourth most powerful woman in the world, a US-based investment bank predicted that Ms Arroyo would likely survive the current political crisis and even manage to finish her term in 2010.

For Malacaang, these favorable developments provided a morale boost and the much-needed respite from the scandals and incessant attacks on the beleaguered President.

"It should have a sobering effect on everyone and encourage more sectors to repudiate divisive politics and help President Arroyo bring the country into a condition of greater political and economic stability and national unity,'' said President Arroyo's political adviser Gabriel Claudio.

In a July 22 report, US investment bank Bear Stearns & Co., Inc. predicted that there was a 50-60 percent probability that Ms Arroyo would last until her term ends in 2010 and that this likelihood was stronger than the two other alternative scenarios of a graceful exit via Charter change and impeachment by Congress.