MANILA, July 12 (Xinhuanet) -- Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Tuesday asked political and civil groups to support her for carrying out political reform, in particular the change from the present presidential system to a parliamentary government.

    In a broadcast speech, Arroyo said she wanted to focus on fundamental reform and give her new cabinet a "free hand" to govern the country.

    The Philippines is experiencing a political crisis due to opposition calls for Arroyo's resignation over alleged election fraud.

    The "fundamental law of the land" needed to be changed to confront issues such as federalism, a parliamentary form of government, campaign finance reform and "modernizing the economic provisions of the Constitution", said Arroyo without elaborating.

    "We are collectively to blame for the degeneration of the system. We must collectively be the solution," she said.

    Arroyo appointed her finance secretary on Tuesday as the first step to rebuild her economic team, which resigned en masse last Friday.

    She named former president of state-owned Land Bank of the Philippines and former congressman Margarito Teves as the country's new finance secretary.

    Presidential palace said Arroyo was considering a plan by former president Fidel Ramos to stay on as caretaker to oversee a shift to a parliamentary system, which would be followed by a referendum on a new constitution and elections in 2006.

    Most of the political parties of the country Tuesday expressed their support to a constitutional reform to change the 1987 Constitution drafted under former president Cory Aquino. Enditem