By Manny Mogato MANILA, Sept 21 (Reuters) - About 1,000 soldiers were brought to the Philippine capital on Friday amid reports of a plot to destabilise the government of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo due to a brewing political scandal, the military chief said. General Hermogenes Esperon said six junior officers were under inquiry for allegedly recruiting troops to help a group of ex-soldiers seize political power. "We needed these extra troops just in case," Esperon told reporters. "As we have said, there are attempts, we want to be on the safe side. We want to have the forces available here with us." The Philippine military has been instrumental in the overthrow of two presidents since 1986 and Arroyo, who was propelled to power after an army-backed uprising in 2001, survived a coup attempt in 2003. The military has said allegations of kickbacks in a state deal with a Chinese telecommunications company have encouraged anti-Arroyo groups to stir up trouble among troops. But analysts cautioned that the government could be heightening the alleged risk to divert attention from the kickbacks scandal and keep the opposition in check. "There might be a group of rogue soldiers but they don't have the capability to topple the government. Besides, most of their leaders are under detention," said Earl Parreno, a political analyst at the Institute for Political and Electoral Reforms. "There's a propaganda war going on." Arroyo said political stability was needed to improve economic growth and competitiveness. "That is why we must stop political noise and sustain the momentum of our efforts," she told a ceremony at the palace to mark national crime prevention week. Esperon said six junior officers caught spreading mobile phone text messages urging soldiers to join a plot to destabilise the government had been removed from their units and faced inquiries. He declined to give further details. The convoy of troops from two army camps and an air force base in the northern part of the main Luzon island will beef up about 3,000 soldiers based in the capital. Esperon said the movement of the additional forces was also part of the military's operational exercises, testing how fast soldiers could be moved around in times of crisis. "We want to make sure that we can do what we want to do when there are contingencies that we have to address," he said, adding the extra troops would be returned to their bases as soon as the situation normalises.
