Monuments and memory

Butch Bagabuyo

“Those only who deserve a monument who do not need one.” – Hazlitt

THE People Power monument at Edsa remains the one and only reminder of the bloodless revolution in the world to this day. Like it or not, the People Power of 1986 was a miracle. Nobody planned nor prepared for it. It happened without a single shot fired not because of any power or leader on earth. Undoubtedly, People Power came to be only because of nobody else but God.

Imelda Marcos and/or General Fabian Ver could have easily ordered the bombing of Edsa and would have ended the whole affair as it happened in the Tianamen Square or something in China.  Instead, the world witnessed with awe the power of warm bodies over guns and bullets.

Sadly, in the last 30 years, the teeming millions who braved the artillery of Ferdinand E. Marcos, his army, and his unconscionable cronies have only been made even poorer by Imperial Manila, the trapos and the filthy rich, who immediately took over Malacanang and all the built-in powers of the graft and corruptidden centralized government in the archipelago.

To our chagrin, debilitating greed is now the order of day. Senseless killings perpetrated by the mercenaries and ruthless agents of the drug-lords and queens are a daily occurrence. Not only that, journalists, human right lawyers, prosecutors and judges are gunned down daily like stray dogs and other animals in broad daylight in busy streets all over our country. What is worst is that PNoy, his cabinet men, women and LGBTs as well as the officers and members of the Liberal Party are becoming above the law and beyond the reach of our prosecutorial and judicial system.

What is appalling is that the ruthless assassins of our 44 brave SAF Commandos, the MILF-BIFF conjoined twins have the gall to walk freely and arrogantly in our streets, knowing full well that the national government will always protect them as if they are our national treasures.

It is for this and more abuses that the selected few members of the Barog Pederal Mindanao are preparing for any eventuality. But always within the laws of our land in a non-violent uprising. Otherwise stated, the Barog Pederal Mindanao, who are all non-politicians but ordinary citizens endowed with love of country, who are in the process of perfecting the People Power of 1986.

Starting last Monday, the Barog Pederal Mindanao using their own limited resources are finding and implementing the innovative ways and means to fully and legally implement the hand-to-mouth generosity just like the ants do for their own survival. However, ours is not only for survival but for the no-nonsense preparation of Mindanaoans and their families, relatives, friends and supporters elsewhere in our country against any and all forms of cheating by the powers-that-be, especially the officers, men, women and the LGBTs of the Liberal Party in unholy alliance of a few scalawags at the Comelec and the financiers of their alternate candidates for the May 9, 2016 national and local elections.

Right now, we are confident that we can easily duplicate, if not multiply many times over what we have successfully done since the opening salvo last 09 February and during the first-ever presidential symposium mistakenly called a debate last Sunday, 21 February 2016.

As you very well know by now, practically all of the “hakots”–those paid at least P200 per person plus t-shirts, packed-food and juice by the handlers of the VP Binay/Grace Poe/ Mar Roxas– for the un-event last Sunday were the warm bodies of the Barong Pederal Mindanao and the many other volunteers of the Duterte-Cayetano team. In fact, most, if not all those warm bodies were wearing our most-sought after ballers of red and blue, Duterte-Cayetano. They did not go inside the Capitol University compound. Instead they all changed their printed t-shirts given them for free and used their Sunday’s best before proceeding to our well-attended rally at the Plaza Divisoria where they willingly stood the whole night to listen to the speeches of Senators Koko Pimentel and Alan Peter Cayetano as well as that of the next president of our country, Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Roa Duterte, from 7:30 up to all the way to midnight of that same evening.

Mind you, all the other presidential candidates spent huge that night. But they were unable to hold a rally for their own. On the other hand, without “hakot” and funding by our presidential and vice presidential candidate, the two were able to explain fully to the satisfaction of the people of the City of Cagayan de Oro, the provinces of Misamis Oriental and the Bukidnon as well as the rest of the country their platform of government.

The reason why we were confident we could mount a well-attended rally in spite of the fact that we had very limited resources was because our candidate for the presidency, Duterte, is the one and only candidate who did not want to run but the people of Mindanao practically forced him to run for the presidency. In short of all the five “presidentiables,” only Duterte is the clamor of the people.

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“Deeds, not stones, are the true monuments of the great.” – Motley

Inspired by the immortal words left behind by Indira Gandhi when she said: “My grandfather taught me that there are only two kinds of people – those who worked hard and those who grab the credit – choose the first, you have less computation,” we dared to look for and found the few who are unafraid to work hard and remain nameless even faceless in the crowd. Consequently, by the grace of God, we were able to recruit the few men and the LGBTs to form the nucleus of what is now known as the brave and strong followers of the Barog Pederal Mindanao. Happily, by the grace of God, so far our humble deeds have worked wonders, unthought of by the trapos and the filthy rich.

Because our group was – still is – unafraid to expose the anomaly of having a so-called debate but having almost unlimited commercials, we have been informed that the next presidential symposium, hopefully a debate, in Cebu City this March, will be without any commercial. This assurance comes from the majority owner of the TV-5, Manny V. Pangilinan. Hence, this early, we are extending our most profound congratulations and gratitude to the management and staff of the emerging TV-5 and radio network.

Without any fear of contradiction, we repeat: political advertisements during any presidential symposium/debate is a big no-no. It is out of place even as it smacks of unconscionable greed. And what is sad and lamentable is that the giant GMA TV and radio network has celebrated for four long hours only recently the teleserye “Juan for All” in a huge arena, touted as the biggest of its kind in the world, without any interruption by any commercial. Therefore, are we made to understand and believe that as far as the executives of the GMA TV and radio network, in collaboration with the Inquirer.net, the teleserye is more compelling than their own social responsibility to the teeming millions of the poor Pinoys, who are their real money-makers?

Wa mo kyapi?

Sobra ka, GMA, sa TV 5 na ta ang higanting network nga may konsensya!

Tsada, di ba?