notes and breaking news on the eve of luneta the rally

some people still think it’s an all-white rally.  in fact peachy rallonza has listened to reason, mabuhay siya: let it be a colorful and inclusive event, where every sector, every group, every individual, of all ideological leanings, and their colors and banners, as long as they’re for scrapping the pork barrel, are welcome.  yes, including the left, why ever not.

epic failure of communications.  very weird how the core group that’s been helping peachy deal with issues like this have not been communicating disseminating such decisions via social media.  almost as though they welcome the inadequately informed news reports, the incessant arguing over small stuff.  almost like trojan horses?   they also refused to be named, which makes you wonder why.  because affiliated too with the yellow admin?  because they’re not really for abolition of pork barrel, reform lang, but the movement has grown so huge they can’t bear to not be part of it, integrity, and rally, be damned?

and, talaga naman, the anti-left campaign, you wonder where it’s coming from.  black ops, obviously, when in fact the militant orgs have been invited to and attending meetings with peachy’s group and engaging in positive discussions with other orgs and unaffiliated individuals about the rally.

the latest “news” via facebook is that paaalisin daw ng citizens ang left?  ganoon?  here’s an exchange between katrina and peque gallaga:

katrina : i personally think that this is feeding on the public’s perception against the Left, and whoever’s doing it is actually taking a stand against the rally itself. it is still smoke and mirrors, and we know who’s really good at THAT.

peque: … they’re trying to frighten the conservative sector of society who are planning to go to Luneta by making it look that the militants are planning to go into violence mode. But apparently, these same militants are talking with all the organizers of the rally and are agreeing on ground rules so that we can have a united stand against all these abuses. It’s Marcos psy-war tricks all over again. It’s ironic that it’s being played now by the Aquino administration. But we’re not surprised, are we?

… there comes a time where you have to put differences aside and work together for the greater good. If we don’t, then all those corrupt politicos deserve everything they steal from us because we’re simply narrow-minded, parochial, selfish, petty and can’t come together as a nation.

on other fb threads, i’ve said this again and again:  being so anti-left on this, when they are as much against the pork barrel as we are, is playing right into the government’s divide-and-rule tactics.

i truly wonder why we aren’t more concerned about the promised police presence, and what about the guardians, a military fraternity said to be associated with senators honasan and trillanes, who got a permit for the place ahead of the group, i hear.  true or false?  what’s going on?  we’re so wary and disapproving of unarmed leftists. we should be more worried and unhappy about armed rightists.

breaking news: Luneta anti-‘pork’ protesters advised by the police: Don’t bring backpacks, valuables, children!  no bags?  saan namin ilalagay ang baong tubig at pagkain, kapote at payong atbp.?   searches?  playing the terrorism card?  takutan blues?  suddenly injecting an element of danger?  but that didn’t stop us from going to EDSA and stopping tanks in ’86.  it won’t stop us now.

MAKIBAKA! HUWAG MATAKOT!

SCRAP ALL PORK BARREL IN ALL ITS INCARNATIONS!

marching

the last time i marched was on the day after ninoy’s funeral, to liwasang bonifacio for an anti-marcos rally. it was the first gathering of leftists and yellow peeps since the assassination and, if memory serves, marcos’s metrocom was nowhere to be seen. just the same, medyo mahigpit ang security, every group marshalling its own ranks, for fear, i supposed, of infiltrators who might make trouble.  gigi duenas (de beaupre), an old friend from u.p. basement days, and i found each other early on, neither of us with any particular group, and so we mostly moved around as speeches were made.  we squatted (literally) by the leftists for a while — i remember nelia sancho, seated on the ground, may baong lata ng skyflakes.  but the yellow brigades, there was no joining them, no getting past their marshals, even if i was wearing a yellow top, and that was disappointing.

when it was over gigi and i walked all the way back to metromag (central bank bldg) where we found marita manuel, ishmael bernal, marilou diaz-abaya, and jorge arago hanging around the backdoor steps of the met museum watching marchers walk by.  heto na ang mga aktibista, sey nila in welcome.

i don’t know that i’m still up to a march in these my lola days (daze), but see you on august 26.  scrap all pork barrel in all its incarnations!

 

spinning the pork

the chismis is, aapir si presidente sa aug 26 rally.  sana hindi totoo.  but i wouldn’t be surprised if he’s truly considering it.  after that abolition kuno of the pork barrel, it’s clear he is engaged in high spin: doing kuno what we asked for, and so we’re really all KKK, as in … kakampi, kakapit-bisig, kuno, and so he’s with us on this, yey, join siya sa rally, LOL!

‘It’s Still Pork’

Million People March still on as critics mock PDAF ‘abolition’

MANILA, Philippines — Critics of President Benigno Aquino III on Friday mocked his statement ordering the abolition of the Priority Development Assistance Fund, saying it did not change the loathed pork barrel system a growing number of Filipinos blame for perpetuating corruption and patronage politics.

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