Gloria Macapagal Arroyo

Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal-Arroyo (2001-present) (born April 5, 1947), better known as Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, and also by her initials G.M.A., is the 14th and current president of the Republic of the Philippines. She is the country's second female president after Corazon Aquino. She is the daughter of former President Diosdado Macapagal. Prior to becoming president, Arroyo was the country's first female vice president. She was launched into the presidency in 2001 by EDSA II that ousted Joseph Ejercito-Estrada from power amid accusations of widespread corruption. Arroyo was elected to a six-year term in a widely-contested and greatly-tainted 2004 election, defeating the popular presidential candidate Fernando Poe, Jr.. In 2005, Arroyo was selected as the fourth most powerful woman in the world by Forbes magazine. She is ranked as number 45 on Forbes magazine's list of The World's 100 Most Powerful Women in 2006, and 51st in 2007. Gloria Arroyo is one of the most powerful politicians in the Philippines today, but many of her policies have resulted in severe opposition from other groups in Filipino government and society.

Arroyo, a practicing economist, has made the economy the focus of her presidency. Early in her presidency, Arroyo implemented a controversial policy of holiday economics, adjusting holidays to form longer weekends with the purpose of boosting domestic tourism and allowing Filipinos more time with their families. Economic growth in terms of gross domestic product has averaged 4.6% during the Arroyo presidency from 2001 up to the end of 2005. This is higher than previous recent presidents when compared to the 3.8% average of Aquino, the 3.7% average of Ramos, and the 2.8% average of Joseph Estrada. Inflation during the Arroyo presidency has been the lowest since 1986, averaging 2.5%. Recently in 2nd quarter of 2007, the economy expanded at 7.5%, the fastest in 20 years.

Arroyo's handling of the economy has earned praise from observers including former US President Bill Clinton, who praised Arroyo for making "tough decisions" that put the Philippine economy back in shape. The opposition, however, claims that much of this growth should be attributed to former president Estrada. Dr. Benjamin Diokno, Estrada's former Budget Secretary, claims that Estrada could not be blamed for economic performance in 1998 since his policy changes in July of 1998 would only have taken effect in 1999, and thus, Arroyo should only receive credit for economic performance from 2001 onwards.

Further, more and more Filipinos seek work abroad as the domestic economy slowly declined during 2001 and 2005. Their remittances have increased to 13.5 percent of GDP.

According to a Pulse Asia survey (2007) most Filipinos consider Mrs. Arroyo as "the most corrupt president in Philippine history"