Ananova:

Hundreds of thousands of Filipinos have joined a government-organised prayer rally to show support for President Joseph Estrada who is facing impeachment on corruption charges.

A helicopter circled overhead with a sign reading "Uphold the law," a reference to Estrada's insistence that the corruption allegations be resolved through an impeachment trial, not through street protests demanding his resignation.

Many in the predominantly low-income crowd were members of several large charismatic Christian groups which have supported Estrada since his election in 1998.

Although the administration said the rally was apolitical, it was widely viewed as an effort to show that the president continues to enjoy popular support and can attract larger crowds than the tens of thousands of protesters who demonstrated a week ago in Manila's business district for his resignation.

"The reason we are here is we want to show support for our president," said Pedro Hermanos, a village council member from Pasay City. "We do not believe all these charges against him."

Estrada has been accused by a provincial governor of having accepted more than £7.7 million from illegal gambling operators and tobacco taxes. He has acknowledged having been offered a 200 million peso (£2.8 million) bribe by the governor but says he refused it.

Estrada acknowledged the money went into a bank account controlled by his brother-in-law, but said it was without his knowledge. He said he failed to report the bribery attempt because "a president has so much work to do. That is the duty of our national police".

Under Philippine law, public officials who "maliciously" fail to report a crime such as bribery are subject to up to six years' imprisonment.

Critics say Estrada should step down now without waiting for an impeachment trial to prevent more damage to the ailing economy from the political crisis. Estrada, in his weekly television program, has accused the opposition groups of damaging the economy by inflaming political uncertainty.

The House of Representatives is scheduled to begin preparing articles of impeachment against Estrada on Monday. Ilocos Sur Gov. Luis Singson, Estrada's former gambling and drinking partner, testified in early October that the president had asked him to coordinate the collection of millions of dollars in payoffs from illegal gambling operators for the president.

Estrada has also denied new allegations by the former head of the Securities and Exchange Commission that he received a £14 million kickback from the sale of the country's largest telephone company and pocketed more than £11.2 million from a controversial stock sale.