MANILA, Philippines—Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero has accused President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo of “hiding behind the skirt” of her allies in the House of Representatives as she remained silent about her position on the revived campaign to amend the Charter.

Escudero, chairman of the Senate committee on constitutional amendments, reiterated his call Friday for President Arroyo to break her silence on the issue, which critics say was meant to extend her term beyond 2010.

“I challenge the President to make known her position. Let’s not allow squabbling among our countrymen. Christmas is coming and the country is facing big problems,” he said.

“I hope she’ll make her position clear and tell her party-mates and allies to do what is right and in accordance with the Constitution,” Escudero said in an interview over ANC.

“She (Arroyo) has made it quite clear that she’s hiding behind the skirt of her allies,” he said. “I think the President, at this point in time, still has deniability in so far as her position on Cha-Cha (Charter change) is concerned,” he said.

Escudero is among the senators set to Friday’s anti-Charter change protests in Makati.

Senator Pia Cayetano also joined calls for Arroyo to stop moves to amend the Constitution.

"Mrs. Arroyo can choose to put a stop to this madness if she wants to,” Cayetano said in a statement.

“How can she support such an obviously ill-conceived, ill-timed and illegal scheme, unless she herself is aspiring to benefit from it?" she asked.

Cayetano believes that those pushing for Charter change were simply afraid of losing their hold on power after the 2010 national elections.

"Have you heard them cite any studies or show scholarly proof that would justify the urgency of revising the economic provisions of the Charter before 2010? In fact, I have yet to see any of them boldly come out in the public to explain which economic provisions they specifically want to amend,” she said. “And why the rush?”

If the people truly have something to gain from constituent assembly, Cayetano said, then Malacañang and the proponents in the House should be taking pains to explain what benefits are to be expected, and how come they cannot achieve these without Cha-cha.”

"Otherwise, they might as well admit their real selfish motives,” she said.