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Estrada asks for support, raps coup talk

MANILA: Philippine President Joseph Estrada said on Sunday people spreading rumours that he would be ousted in a weekend coup should seek psychiatric help, and appealed to Filipinos to continue supporting him.

"We have full control of everything," Estrada told a news conference in Cebu city as he wound up a four-day tour of the central Visayas region and rumours swept the country of a supposedly brewing coup against him by a right-wing army faction.

Despite the rumours, the country was calm and there were no unusual military movements.

Estrada said talk about a coup was being spread by political foes he defeated in the 1998 presidential election.

"I think they need to be examined by psychiatrists ... It's all imaginary, a figment of the imagination of those who lost in the last election," Estrada added.

Questioned about a newspaper report that some presidential palace aides had advised him against making an extended foreign trip because of the rumoured coup, Estrada testily answered:

"Who are these Malacanang (presidential palace) officials? I am the highest in Malacanang, and nobody dictates to me."

Officials have said Estrada plans to visit China, Britain and France in a series of foreign trips starting next month.

Estrada, a former movie star, dismissed a suggestion that his dwindling popularity was scaring foreign investments away.

"I am not much worried about popularity," he said. "I have been very popular for 30 years so I am concentrating on doing what we can do for our people."

Speaking to peasants in Cebu, Estrada said: "My appeal to you is to give me a little more time... and to continue to support my administration."

"I have only 1,501 days left in office and I am counting the days (and) trying to speed up the projects that will benefit you," he added.

Estrada told reporters on Saturday he planned to announce another partial revamp of his cabinet this week, continuing a reshuffle he started in January.

"Some would want to retire, some want to lead private lives," he said, explaining why there would be a reorganisation.

Estrada's agriculture and defence ministers have denied they are quitting the cabinet.

The coup rumours coincided with perceptions of a lack of coherence in economic policy, cronysm in government and a huge drop in Estrada's popularity rating, which had fallen to negative levels, according to a February poll of Manila residents.

In June last year, his nationwide popularity rating was in the high 70s.

Coup rumours flew after the Philippine Daily Inquirer reported on Friday that former military and police officers had been approaching intelligence agents "to verify information that military rebels would attempt to stage a coup" this weekend.

Military generals dismissed the report as baseless.

But opposition to Estrada appeared to be spreading.

Last week, a group of former government officials began distributing around Manila black stickers with white exclamation point signs denoting, they said, that Filipinos were fed up with Estrada and he should step down.

"Coup rumours may just be coffee-shop talk at this time, but it's better to put out a small blaze before it turns into a conflagration," the Philippine Star newspaper said in an editorial on Sunday._Reuters