"[6] The International Herald Tribune reports that the "opportunist coalition of church, business elite and left... orchestrated the 'People Power II movement.

Her agenda consists of building up a strong bureaucracy, lowering crime rates, increasing tax collection, improving economic growth, and intensifying counter-terrorism efforts.

[14] Ten months later, however, she reversed her position and declared her intention to seek a direct mandate from the people, saying "there is a higher cause to change society... in a way that nourishes our future".

Her campaign platform centered on a shift to a parliamentary and federal form of government, job creation, universal health insurance, anti-illegal drugs, and anti-terrorism.

[16] As predicted by pre-election surveys and exit polls, she won the election by a margin of over a million votes against her closest rival, Fernando Poe, Jr.[17] Arroyo took her oath of office on June 30, 2004.

1017 (PP 1017) gave Arroyo the power to issue warrantless (and until then unconstitutional) arrests and to take over private institutions that run public utilities.

By virtue of PP 1017, she declared a State of Emergency for the whole country in an attempt to quell rebellion as her grip on power began to slip, to stop lawless violence and promote peace and stability.

Six leftist representatives - Satur Ocampo, Teodoro Casiño, and Joel Virador of Bayan Muna, Liza Maza of GABRIELA, and Crispin Beltran and Rafael Mariano of Anakpawis - were charged with rebellion.

After the raid, an issuance of Journalism Guideline followed, authored by the government in order to cope with the "present abnormal situation", according to then Chief of Staff Michael Defensor.

[citation needed] A rebellion occurred on November 29, 2007, when detained Senator Antonio Trillanes IV, General Danilo Lim, and other Magdalo officials walked out of their trial and marched through the streets of Makati, called for the ouster of Arroyo, and seized the second floor of The Peninsula Manila Hotel along Ayala Avenue.

After decades of surveys, consultations, and studies starting with the Monroe Survey in 1925 during the American period, the 9-year implementation process of K–12 curriculum finally began on May 20, 2008 during the Arroyo administration when Senator Mar Roxas filed the Omnibus Education Reform Act of 2008 (Senate Bill 2294) to strengthen the Philippine education system through timely interventions on the quality of teachers, the medium of instruction used and the evaluation of students' aptitude, among other aspects.

[21] On January 7, 2010, senator and presidential candidate Benigno Aquino III adopted the position of SB 2294; he said this will "give everyone an equal chance to succeed" and "have quality education and profitable jobs.

The opposition complainants were Edita Burgos, Iloilo Vice Governor Rolex Suplico, Jose de Venecia III, Harry Roque, Armando Albarillo, a human rights victim, Roneo Clamor, Karapatan deputy secretary general, Josefina Lichauco, and representatives from civil society - Renato Constantino, Jr., Henri Kahn, Francisco Alcuaz, Rez Cortez, Virgilio Eustaquio, Jose Luis Alcuaz, Leah Navarro, Danilo Ramos, Concepcion Empeño, Elmer Labog, Armando Albarillo, Roneo Clamor, and Bebu Bulchand.

[24][25][26][27][28] On October 25, 2007, supposedly based on the recommendation by the Department of Justice (DOJ), Arroyo granted a pardon to Joseph Estrada, who was convicted by the Sandiganbayan of plunder and imposed a penalty of reclusion perpetua.

Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye noted that Estrada committed in his application not to seek public office, and he would be free from his Tanay resthouse on October 26, noon.

Her proclamation constituted the first declaration of martial law in the Philippines since 1972, when then-president Ferdinand Marcos imposed military rule over the entire country.

[42] A controversial expanded value added tax (e-VAT) law, considered the centerpiece of the Arroyo administration's economic reform agenda,[43] was implemented in November 2005, aiming to complement revenue-raising efforts that could plug the country's large budget deficit.

The tax measure boosted confidence in the government's fiscal capacity and helped to strengthen the Philippine peso, making it East Asia's best performing currency in 2005–06.

[44] The peso strengthened by nearly 20% in 2007, making it by far Asia's best performing currency for the year, a fact attributed to a combination of increased remittances from overseas Filipino workers and a strong domestic economy.

[56] A May 2006 Amnesty International report expressed concern over the sharp rise in vigilante killings of militant activists and community workers in the Philippines.

On the other hand, the report "linked state security forces to the murder of militants and recommended that military officials, notably retired major general Jovito Palparan, be held liable under the principle of command responsibility for killings in their areas of assignment.

"[58] Palparan, who retired on September 11, 2006, has been appointed by Arroyo to be part of the Security Council; this has alarmed left-leaning political parties about the potential for human rights violations.

[64][better source needed] In her 2007 State of the Nation Address, Arroyo has set out her agenda for her last three years in office, and called for legislation to deal with a spate of political killings that have brought international criticism to her presidency.

In the middle of 2005, Samuel Ong, a former deputy director of the country's National Bureau of Investigation, claimed to have audio tapes of wiretapped conversations between Arroyo and an official of the Commission on Elections.

On June 27, Arroyo admitted to inappropriately speaking to a Comelec official, claiming it was a "lapse in judgement", but denied influencing the outcome of the election.

Two witnesses, Antonio Rasalan and Clinton Colcol, stepped forward in August 2006, claiming involvement in an alleged plot to alter the results for the May 2004 elections.

[77][78] On January 25, 2008, Pulse Asia survey (commissioned by Genuine Opposition per former Senator Sergio Osmeña III) stated that 58% percent of Filipinos in Mindanao believed that Arroyo cheated in the 2004 Philippine general election.

It has also taken an interesting turn of events, including the resignation of Abalos as COMELEC chairman, the alleged bribery of congressmen and provincial governors (dubbed as "Bribery in the Palace"), the unseating of Jose de Venecia, Jr. as House Speaker, and the alleged "kidnapping" of designated National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) consultant-turned-NBN/ZTE witness Rodolfo Noel "Jun" Lozada, Jr.[citation needed] In late July 2009, Arroyo went to New York City to dine with her friends at a lush Le Cirque restaurant and was highly criticized for her supposed outlandish dinner there with the Philippine delegation during her visit to the United States.

In 2004, Arroyo signed a Memorandum of agreement with Sinomach and other contractors to construct a rail line from Caloocan to Clark Special Economic Zone to be completed in 2010.

[82] After receiving final military honors at the inauguration ceremony of incoming President Benigno Aquino III, she headed straight to Pampanga for her own oath-taking as congresswoman.