More than 50,000 people are gathered at the heart of Makati’s central business district for the interfaith prayer rally, most of them demanding President Arroyo’s resignation following damning allegations of corruption over the aborted NBN-ZTE Project.
Ayala Avenue is packed with people from all walks of life and of different political persuasions. The mass began at 4:30 p.m.
Reminiscent of the pre-EDSA 1 protests here, confetti rained from buildings. When the student contingents arrived, they were wildly applauded.
I marched with concerned citizens from Bel-air through Paseo de Roxas avenue: former transportation and communications secretary Josefina Lichauco; Las Pinas Rep. Cynthia Villar; Gina de Venecia, wife of former House Speaker Jose de Venecia; her sister Marichu Maceda; Precy Psinakis, daughter of ABS-CBN and Meralco’s grand old man Eugenio Lopez; and civil society member and Assumptionista Bettina Legarda.
UPDATE (6 p.m.): Whistleblower Rodolfo “Jun” Lozada just arrived. He was greeted with thunderous applause and cheers. Fellow whistleblower, Jose “Joey” de Venecia III, got the same reception when he arrived 20 minutes earlier.
Spotted in the crowd were the wives of detained military officers: Delia Miranda, Aloy Lim, Pong Querubin and Mazenith Cordero.
Okay, I made a mistake earlier when adding the Feedburner email subscription. Missed a single line of code which screwed up the comments section. This has been fixed now. Apologies for the oversight.
Let me try to get back inafter numerous failures!
An Appeal To Mrs. President from my usual crowd at the barbershop,
On this interfaith rally of men wishing that you are gone, I appeal to your good sense that still remains to please listen very well and without second thoughts anymore to consider it.
Please, you may not stay at the palace any longer because many more people will become victims and heroes fighting your damned watch and I feel they will later go again to the Hawaiian courts to ask for emolument as true mercenaries for bringing back to us the democracy you stole not only once, but twice and always.
The power of IT has melded together also our expatriates aligning and entertaining themselves to this futile cause. Pretty soon your supposed stalwarts find themselves in the bind and of course like rats they will abandon a sinking ship or change paper boats at midstream while they can still float with the largesse they have amassed with pluses.
Regret that I cant pray for you anymore because the Lord might be too confused now with opposing prayers of varying advocacy and religious colors. Reason enough that I would insist on chacha primarily for a change in the constitution to abolish religion. Even the officers of the Lord are now tainted with corrupted indecisions.
Rest assured that there will be genuine unity among us once you agreed to my plea.
Ellen,
I heard of different numbers from a low of 10,000 to a high of 100,000. I’ll go with your numbers.
A great follow-up numbers after last week’s. When will be the next?
Hey, I got it into the comments finally. I started earlier today and it wont budge at all. This PM, it wants me to subscribe again. And I dont remember how I made it.
I missed the broadcast because I had to go to the temple in a show of unity with those who gathered for this interfaith rally. Konting tiis na lang. Iniipon pa muna ang mga ebidensiya laban sa ginagawang kawalanghiyaan ng mga Pidal at mga kakutsaba nila.
The last I heard being interviewed by DZRH before I left home for the temple was Cong. Roilo Golez. Thanks Congressman for your dedication to truth, justice and freedom. You deserve the votes of your constituents. Pagbutihin mo pa!
As a relative of Marcos, my family and I were not so keen about Cory Aquino when EDSA 1 installed her. I was never a fan of hers, but for what she is doing consistently for her country, I’ll take off my hat for her. For that short speech she delivered today, I could not help but be touched by her unfeigned patriotism. She has earned by admiration and respect. Mabuhay kayo, Ma’m!
No need to call Gloria Dorobo “president”! This woman is a power-grabber, a liar and a cheat. She should be stripped of the title that she stole! Frankly, I have never called her “president,” for a criminal does not deserve mine or anyone’s respect!!! Please stop calling her so.
That command conference at Crame must have an agenda where she would go just in case the strong 10,000 plus plus suddenly march towards the palace. I think it would be to Candaba to fly with the birds out of the country.
Mas marami sanang kasama pero hinarang bago pa makarating ng Manila. I heard that students of UPLB were stopped on the way to Makati. Natuloy ba sila?
Yup, si Boba, nagtapang-tapangan pero nang hapon na nagpunta na sa Crame para protektahan ng mga boyfriends niyang nakasahod pirming ang mga kamay!!! Mukhang ayaw naman yatang tanggapin iyan sa Tate. Balita ko tinitignan na kung sino ang mas malakas, si Obama o si Clinton at mag-aabuloy doon para siguradong may sasalo sa kaniya. Pero si Obama sabi, remember EDSA 1, no mention of EDSA 1!!! 😛
Dear LORD,
Since the first two generations of M & A had lost their souls beyond redemption, I pray to you — LORD to shield and protect their third generation, the grandchildren from their elders’ transgressions….
AMEN
It’s downright disgusting to see those “praying/meditating” disguises! A President that prays hard, robs the hardest?
Absolutely no shame, no moral and no soul left!
I was viewing the rally via You Tubes and was impressed. Walang bayad yan ha! And to add, rallyists from the nearby provinces were not allowed to march by Asspweron and Razon!
Sa takot ng pResident Bitch ay nag-holed up sa PNP headquarters from where she’d be helicoptered to a safe haven.
Ipaglaban ang Katotohanan!
Alis D’yan, Gloria!
Razon and his Panakot ni Pidal (PNP) had a ‘lapse’ of math knowledge.
Nalimutan sandali ang ‘dagdag-bawas’ dahil sa kalituhan due to the sea of humanity that confronted them.
Salamat sa lahat ng umatend. Ako ay nagkasya na lang sa text ng mga kapatid dahil ‘padlocked’ ang Pinas blogosphere while rally was ongoing. Pidal hackers worked to death that led to the meltdown of most read blogs seeking for truth and justice.
Alphonse Rivera of the Salinlahi Alliance for Children’s Concerns said “Gloria stinks!” He led about 200 kids in a march that paraded a “roleta” (roulette) showing the various means to force out Arroyo from office: oust, resign, out or impeach. – source: Malaya
These kids will be the future leaders of our country! Labs namin kayo mga kids! Mabuhay ka Alphonse Rivera!
Tinakot pa ni Malacanang Diocese Bishop Gaudencio Rosales ang mga bata ha. Kung hindi ay baka libo-libo din yan!
Chi,
Just goes to show, may it pa si Mayor Lim sa mga pulis ng Manila. Walang binatbat si Razon. Worse comes to worse, patatalsikin ng mga tunay na pulis iyong mga nagpulis-pulisang nakasayad ang mga kamay.
Pasalamat tayo kay Mayor Lim for the police cooperation in this rally. No thanks doon sa naghihintay pa ng overtime fee na pangako ni Dorobo!
Pag nandiyan si Mayor Lim, hindi manggugulo ang mga pulis lalo na kundi naman galing sa Pidal National Police (PNP) 😛
Kunti pang hagod, no more pledge of allegiance to the criminal ang mga iyan!
Next time, they should hold the interfaith rally sa Luneta. Bakit? Hindi naman pag-aari ni Gloria Pidal iyan! OK ba, Mayor Lim?
To prevent ABS-CBN to give an aerial view of the impressive rally crowd, estimated to be 50,000,the Air Transportation Office declared the Makati Business district a “No-fly zone”.
ABS-CBN has a sky patrol.Since their helicopter was disallowed, ABS-CBN instead posted their cameras on rooftops.
The “No-Fly Zone” order did not prevent the Filipino people to know that thousands converged to demand truth and justice from the government and their disdain for Gloria Arroyo’s dishonesty.
Ellen,
Text nga ng ate ko ay nangingilabot daw siya sa dami ng tao. Buti na lang daw at isang araw bago ang rally ay nasa QC na sila sa bahay ng bunso naming kapatid.
Ang dami raw jeepneys with rallyists from Bataan na hinarang sa San Fernando pa lang, report ng isang kamag-anak na ‘nakatakas’ at sumakay na lang ng bus. Kanya-kanyang deskarte na lang talaga para makilahok sa OUST the BITCH!
Kaya nga, Chi, the best thing that people in the provinces is hold their rallies, too, para nationwide. One suggestion is they should now coordinate with the groups in Manila, install radios and sound systems para iyong mga major speeches marinig nila in a kind of simultaneous broadcast. Sa dami nila, takot lang ng mga pulis at sundalong mag-run amok especially when the soldiers see that they are outnumbered. Kundi they can cause a massacre at lalong di mabuti iyan sa image ni Dorobo na talaga naman sementado ang mukha.
Can’t help comparing her with Abe na hindi naman pinapaalis ng mga tao pero inako ang mga kasalanan ng mga nasangkotsa scandal na mga cabinet members niya at sa bad showing ng mga kandidato ng partido niya. Bumaba wala pang isang taon sa upuan. Itong animal na Gloria, sukang-suka na ang mga tao, pinasabi pa doon sa mga binayaran niya, “Pangulong Gloria, we love you!” Yuck! Sukasukasukasukasuka!!!
..the best thing that people in the provinces can do….
Oh now I get it. Yon pala ang dahilan kaya nagkaroon ng barikada dito sa blog. I thought it’s something else.
I hope this big rally is the starting point of something bigger to come. Don’t let it cool down, if possible make it a continuing event, set it always in focus and keep the flame burning until the desired result is achieved. Forget the CBCP, the military and the PNP. They are fewer in numbers than the majority who wanted reforms in the government. Sooner or later, when they sense that a reversal of fortune of the evil-bitch is forthcoming, they will know what they have to do and which side is the right side.
My congratulations to all participants. Always be safe.
ay buhay ang dami ng pumunta wala pa ring nangyari. Kelan ba talga bababa si pandak????Next tym ulit pero ang tanong kung meron pa?
Re: Nalimutan sandali ang ‘dagdag-bawas’ dahil sa kalituhan due to the sea of humanity that confronted them.
Uso pa rin ang dagdag-bawas sa mga rallyista. Marami silang (PNP) hinarang sa North at South expressways papuntang Makati. Kaya nabasawan ang mga dumalo sa inter-faith rally.
Yung nasa Welcome Rotonda, close-up ang kuha para magmukhang marami, samantalang yung sa Ayala hinahanap yung mas malayong anggulo para makita ng buo yung dami ng tao.
i don’t care if it’s 15000 or 50000. the important thing is I was there.
they say that if we want things in our government to change, the change should begin in each one of us. yesterday was the first time in decades that I joined such a gathering. i can feel a change coming.
Very true, Bayonic.
Malaya columnist JB Baylon said there are three stages. 1) Moment 2)Momentum 3) Movement
He said we are in the Momentum stage.
You can feel it.
Yung mga nag rally para kay GMA, pag na interview, di alam ang sagot kung bakit sila nandon. Isang bagsak lang ng ulan takbuhan na!
Pero intindihin natin dahil mahirap kumita ng pera, doon madali, lalakad lang at uupo, may P500 na at may pakain pa!
No Filipino in his right mind would go out of his way to show his support for the Evil Bitch! Except those who benefit from her corrupt regime!
Corruption is the devil bitch of Malacanang incurable cancer that has eating into the vain stream line of the Filipino people. Pidalism government as well as those who are holding political post especially those allies tongress are stealing our public funds and using it to buy houses and expensive properties.They must be stop and Filipinos need to start setting good example for our children to follow not allowing criminal to bring their criminal mind into our society.
The existence of these organizations of corrupt politicians are manned by exceptionally straight-forward in a stumbling block to all those who have gone into politics as the easy way to make money by any means.The attempt to remove this corrupt Pidalism clan and company is either to replace them or otherwise eliminate totally these suckers so that these politicians who are morally deprave can not have free reign. As the current events and happenings in the country have shown, these corrupt politicians are very powerful and they can put immense pressure to Filipino people to try to dance to their tune.Tama na sobra na!
Ang gaganda ng mga t-shirts, buttons at tarpolenes na naglabasan sa rally! Very creative! I particularly like the t-shirts na ‘president evil’ at ‘pirates of malacanang’. Ang ganda ng quality!
Does anyone know where to purchase these items?
15,000? Ibig bang sabihin ni mamang pulis na lahat ng rallyists sa ayala kahapon ay pwedeng pagkasyahin sa loob ng araneta coliseum which has a capacity of 20,000? Either the PNP is fooling us (again!) or is just being stupid (again!). BTW a good number of rallyists (our group included) decided to leave when binay, armida and co. took centerstage.
Even when we are not there at the rally there, feel na feel namin ang vibration ng mga rallyists doon. Two times na kaming nagmamartsa sa Tokyo. More coming in the months to come.
Parang gusto kong mag-contribute ng megaphones doon sa mga student groups. Nakakaawa naman iyong nalagutan na yata ng litid sa kasisigaw hindi pa rin marinig!
The people united will never be defeated! ¡El pueblo unido jamás será vencido!
.. Or is it, ayaw pakinggan?
Ano ba solusyon talaga sa kurakutan na yan? Tanggalin si GMA? Pabalikin si ERAP? Makinig sa mga nagpapapogi sa harap ng camera na mga Senators etc..etc..etc.? Sino ba di kurakot sa kanila…? Pag ang ugat ng kurakot ang matatanggal, yun ang solusyon. Pano matataggal ang ugat ng kurakot sa pinas? Ang hirappppppppp! Kahit sino ang iluklok mo dun sa malacanang…uugatin na na di pa masusugpo ang kurakot na yan. Sila-sila gusto kumita…bakit? Dahil ang laki ng ginagastos sa eleksyon. Mababaliw na kayo sa kakaisip di pa ninyo masusulusyunan kung pano matatanggal ang UGAT ng kurakot sa Gobyerno. Kahit mabubuhay ang mga bayani natin na si Dr. J.Rizal, Anddress B. or si Ninoy…mababaliw na rin kung pano masusulusyunan ang KURAKOT na yan. Naku pano na ba talaga? Rally? People Power? Eleksyon? Di pa rin solusyon. Dapat siguro ilubog muna sa tubig ang Buong mundo….para mawala ang Kurakot na yan. Tindi di ba? Kahit batang paslit..nakakaranas ng suhol or kurakot…pano? Pag inutusan sya na bumili ng suka…may pahabol na ..anak bili ka ng suka sa iyo na sukli. Tsk! Tsk! Tsk! kahit magrali tayo ng magrali…nandyan pa rin ang kurakot sa gobyerno. PANOOOOOO..matatanggal yan??????????????
expat-pinoy,
paano nga ba?
huwag kang manggalaite diyan. kung meron kang naiisip na solusyon at paraan upang manumbalik ang kaayusan at tunay na pagsisilbing bayan ng mga ilalagay sa poder ay sabihin mo na.
kung wala naman, puwede ba, MATULOG KA NA LANG?
expat-pinoy, jerz at iba pang kampon ni Evil Bitch:
Mamatay-matay siguro kayo sa inggit dahil dinagsa ng libu-libo ang rally kontra sa demonyitang si GMA!
Sumama na lang kayo doon sa welcome Rotonda ng madagdagan naman yung 50 na binayaran para mag rally kay Evil Bitch! Pagsumama kayo, 53 na kayo!!!
Hahaha!
triggerman,
we do not need intramurals at this point. yesterday’s gathering was the broadest and biggest activity against the Evil Bitch so far. it is likewise composed of different sectors from the left most to the right, from the masa to the middle, and to the elitistas.
whether we like them or not but Binay and the other political leaders in the opposition kept the fight from 2001 up to present. They were right in continuing to fight GMA after all. Most of the civil society members like the B & W people took awhile before they were able to admit that Edsa Dos which they were a part was a big, i mean a HUGE mistake!!!
please refrain from causing intramurals at this point, you will just be making the bitch by the pasig river happy.
triggerman,
please don’t get me wrong.
i just want everyone to united until the Evil Bitch is driven out!
andres
I understand your point – we all agree that the evil bitch must go. However, I don’t believe in the politics of convenience which is exactly what many of us here are fighting against. We denounce political butterflies who habitually switch allegiance for convenience. Are we going to practice the same things we are vehemently denouncing?. Kung saan mas mapapabilis alisin si Gloria doon tayo, regardless of means? Never mind if principles take a backseat. Isn’t this exactly what we are fighting for: PRINCIPLES? If this is the case then we really didn’t learn anything from Edsa Dos. We talk of change but we are not willing to take the road that is less traveled. Instead we take the road that is convenient As the prayer goes “let me be the change I want to see”. My two cents. Peace.
Perhaps it is time for veterans of the two EDSAs and those fixated with them to realize that each major periods in our history, while there may be some parallels, have their own symbols and icons. The first EDSA was a triumph against the Marcos dictatorship. And for that, it is now etched as one of the greater periods in our history as a Filipino people. The second one was an aberration, if not hallow, as it only supplanted a corrupt regime with a more ‘evil’ one. By now, we should realize that the two EDSA uprisings failed miserably to fulfill their promises as these did not forth meaningful and drastic changes in our society. EDSA, in fact, is fast becoming a symbol of betrayal. Fault not the people who have become People Power weary. It is time for the mass movement to create another icon for their struggle to triumph, decisively.
It took awhile before the civil society which was very much part of Edsa Dos to swallow their pride and admit that it was indeed a big mistake.
There is a big difference between the two Edsas. Edsa 1 was an uprising against the Marcos dictatorship. It was in the latter years of Marcos when things started to deteriorate and those around him took advantage, which is somewhat the same with what is happening right now. The current situation is a deja’ vu of Edsa 1.
Edsa Dos was different, it was power grab period. Although Erap is not a saint, and in fact he has so many flaws, but in fairness to the guy, he is the only Philippine President of late which did not sign any contract with a sovereign guarantee. Take note, even Cory, Ramos and Arroyo all signed contracts which had sovereign guarantee.
Kahit na bobo ang tingin sa mama, at least di niya gusto pumirma sa kontrata na iluluto tayo sa sariling mantika. His bosom buddies took advantage of their closeness to Erap. Ang his personal problem of having too many families really did not sit well with the church and the self righteous civil society. But up to this point in time, the current regime has yet to produce a contract or any official document that was onerous, disadvantageous, and which is saddled with graft. I am no Erap fan, but I guess these facts should be given credit. Yun nga lang talagang babaero, lasingero, sugarol at kung ano-ano pa si Erap.
Let us not forget that during Tita Cory’s time, she had her kamag-anak incorporated who likewise took advantage of their positions. In fact, marami sa mga national treasures sa Malacanang napunta sa mga bahay-bahay nila Tingting, ang this is a fact.
During Ramos’ administration we experienced so many brownouts brought about by power shortage from the power plants. Because of this, Ramos entered into one contract after another, if i am not mistaken, it was more than 30 power plants from Independent Power Producers. All of those with sovereign guarantee, kaya hanggang ngayon pinagbabayaran pa rin ng sambayanan. If you include Ramos’ commission on PEA-AMARI, sale of National Steel Corporation, Petron, Fort Bonifacio, etc.. He is probably next to GMA in terms of corruption.
We just have to swallow are pride and accept that we were partly responsible for making Edsa Dos happen. While there is time, we have to correct the mistake that was committed during Edsa Dos.
Ang hirap kasi sa Pinoy, hirap tayo umamin ng pagkakamali.
peace…
And one more thing, we shouldn’t have believed that GMA would be a good successor in the first place.
Although she is the perfect antithesis of Erap, she looks smart, learned, with breeding, and of course, we wouldn’t be ashamed to have her as President like Erap (as what the civil society said), we forgot the fact that she never experienced hardship in life. She was born a princess, being a presidential daughter, and had a very good life. Ni hindi nya siguro alam ang pakiramdam kung paano ang magutom. At noong bumaba si Kong Dadong ng matapos talunin ni Malacanang, may sumpa si GMA na muli siyang babalik sa palasyo at hindi na lilisan pa muli! There you go! Kaya pala ganun na lang ang kapit niya sa trono! She doesn’t want to experience what they went through during the time of her father. Kaya pala may galit ang ale kaya naman ng maupo, sumobra ang kasakiman!
This is the biggest mistake of Edsa Dos, it produced a monster in the person of the Evil Bitch!
we all want to have change in our country. i dream of one day seeing the Philippines come out of its being a third world nation.
pasensya na ko bloggers sa opinion ko. iisa ang ating hangarin, magkaroon ng pagbabago.
Peace…
Everybody agrees that the evil bitch must go but there is a nagging question confronting us that needs to be answered: “What exactly do we want this time?” Is it GMA Resign? GMA and Noli Resign? A caretaker group (who?)? A revolutionary government (who?)? Snap elections? Military Junta?
Ask ten people inside and outside this forum and I’m sure we’ll get ten different opinions. – the only common denominator is that we want the evil bitch to go – but beyond that iba-ibang direksyon na. I think this is the people’s dilemma right now. For all we know this is the same issue that’s hampering our brothers in uniform from making their move.
I agree with Edwin in his assessment that it is time for the mass movement to create another icon for their struggle to triumph, decisively. In other words we need somebody who could put it all together, the anti-thesis of the trapo, the conscience of Juan dela Cruz, the new face of people power – somebody who can slay the evil bitch in her own turf. Among Ed perhaps?
Bumanat na naman itong si Barias na akala mo dysfunctional ang utak. Biruin niyo lolokuhin na naman tayo na mga 15,000 lang daw ang crowd sa Makati. Gusto sabihin, kulang pa kung papapasukin sa Araneta Coliseum. Kung ako si Razon, I will fire him for lying and ungentlemanly conduct. Sayang iyan estrella mo, Barias. You are not giving justice to your rank and uniform. You are absolutely an ass hole!!! Mahiya ka.
Puera ako diyan. I never thought even for once that Gloria Dorobo would be good substitute for Erap. I did not support EDSA 2, because I thought Filipinos deserved what they got. At least, Erap did not grab his position, nor did he win by stealing votes. Still, the Philippines was unlikely to be any better because God did not like leaders who would not abide by His Rules. Ayaw ng Diyos ang babaero or lalakero!!! 😛
Kaya ayoko rin si Kabayan!
Kahit na anong “no-fly” zone ang directive ng mga alipores ni Evil Bitch, the buildings all around Makati are the best tripods to get still and video shots of the humungos crowd!
There were rumors (could be very factual) that cameras are installed by the hundreds all over the city. Siguro ito ang ginagawa ni Evil Bitch para makita niya lahat ng activities ng mga mamamayan. Hindi ba invasion to privacy yan? Sabagay si Evil Bitch ay hindi naman sumusunod sa Constitution dahil may sarili siyang decrees and rules- MAFIA STYLE!
Everyone is a kurakot up there. And all of us contributed. Show me an expeat who never gave anything to the customs people at the airport. Whenever he arrives. I’ll be glad to make a list. Shall I put Expat Pinoy at the top?
I think the reason why we emphatize and identify with Jun Lozada is because like him, we admit to hgaving our own permissible zones – bribing a kotong cop, shelling out a few hundred to facilitate release of documents, etc. In other words JLo is one of us. Mga politicong nagmamalinis lang naman ang hindi umaamin eh. Not to justify our acts but we commit those “transgressions” for survival and not really for enormous personal gain. A daily wage earner would rather bribe a kotong cop because he cannot afford to spend an entire week going back and forth to LTO or MMDA to get back his license.
There is a big difference between a poor unemployed man who steals because he has a dying child and a rich and powerful politician who steals because he wants a bigger yatch and a larger vacation house in Tagaytay.
We have no choice but to operate within our respective permissible zones because we need to survive under our dysfunctional socio-political system. To get rid of these so-called permissible zones we need a new social order. And this is why we go to the streets.
parasabayan Says:
Siguro ito ang ginagawa ni Evil Bitch para makita niya lahat ng activities ng mga mamamayan. Hindi ba invasion to privacy yan?
—
Hija, since the rally was an activity in public, then it’s no longer considered as private. So, in this case, walang invasion of privacy.