FORTY YEARS ago, the EDSA People Power Revolution which saw the joining of forces among various sectors of Philippine society screamed one uniform line — an end to Marcos (senior’s) dictatorship.
But 40 years later, with another Marcos on the helm — two rallies staged just a few kilometers away from each other (the Trillion Peso March organized by elitists civic organizations, the descendant of “democracy icons” Cory and Ninoy Aquino and the Catholic church at the People Power Monument) and the other by left-leaning groups whose members count the poorest of the poor in the country (at the EDSA Shrine) — no longer sang the same tune because their demand priorities are vastly different to gel.
The radical left figured in clashes with the police (with 16,000 deployed to such a short strip of the main thoroughfare thereby adding to the traffic gridlock) leading to arrest of two protesters and injuries to a handful of policemen, based on PNP reports.
While police were lenient to the rallyists at the People Power Monument, they were not as forgiving to those at the EDSA Shrine because they had no permit to rally and they insisted on using the truck (with their sound system) which police claimed would disturb the peace in the area.
Speakers at the Trillion Peso March (whose participants paled significantly from the original September rally) included Cardinal Virgilio “Ambo” David, former Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Winnie Monsod, current and past politicians under former presidents Cory and Noynoy Aquino and rally organizer Kiko Aquino Dee in his capacity as lead convener of Tindig Pilipinas.
CALL TO FIND TIME
With the 40th EDSA People Power Revolution declared as a working holiday, organizers of the Trillion Peso March called on the public to find time joining activities commemorating the restoration of democracy in the Philippines. Dee in an earlier briefing stressed the importance of balancing lessons of the past and the challenges that Filipinos face at this time.
Caritas Executive Director Fr. Tito Caluag said it is the perfect time for every Filipino to reflect on what they have done to lead the country where it is now and to repent on deliberate shortcomings
“Everyone in our politics has a huge need to repent. Our call to our fellow Filipinos is that we have the power, not the Marcoses, not the Dutertes. What is happening in the country is our responsibility, Caluag said.
Some 86 Catholic Dioceses also held their own commemoration of EDSA People Power.
For Caluag, the commemoration of EDSA People Power’s 40th anniversary will only be meaningful if Filipinos observe what is happening to the country and guide the youth whom he says ‘must now own this movement.’
For Daniel Franklin Pilario, president of Adamson University, the rally was a response to “persistent poverty fueled by the misuse of public funds, with the main cause of poverty as taxes are being pocketed by corrupt politicians.”
GLARING MISMATCH
The Philippine National Police estimated the crowd at about 6,000 at the EDSA Shrine and People Power Monument (versus 16,000 deployed by PNP to these sites), according to Director of Operations General Ponce Rogelio I. Peñones, Jr.
The protesters included veteran activists, students and religious leaders, unified under the banner: We are the People Power vs. Corruption and Dynasties Then, Now, Tomorrow.
Akbayan Party President Rafaela David called for an “electoral revolution” to break the hold of the country’s most powerful families.
“We can no longer tolerate power and politics being concentrated in the hands of a few families, like the Marcoses and the Dutertes,” David said, adding that “Malacañang should no longer serve as a home for dynastic nepo-babies.”
POLITICAL DYSNASTY
Partylist Rep. Percival V. Cendaña said a genuine anti-political dynasty law would strengthen democracy and fulfill one of EDSA’s long-unrealized promises.
“The abolition of political dynasties is a long-delayed task of EDSA,” he said. “Forty years since the February People Power Revolution, it is time to end their control over our democracy and economy.”
The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) in a pastoral letter called for a moral reckoning. Gilbert A. Garcera, CBCP president, noted that corruption, poverty, criminality, lies and treachery continue to plague the nation.
“The enemies are no longer colonial rulers, but corruption, lies, injustice and indifference,” the CBCP letter said as it urged Filipinos to go beyond the walls of the Catholic Church and demand accountability from those in power.
MINIMAL TOLERANCE
The PNP meanwhile defended its arrest of two protesters following a clash with authorities, with PNP chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. saying despite his maximum tolerance order to the uniformed men, the police had to act after some protesters allegedly threw stones and disrupted traffic.
The arrests of the two individuals– Edel Parducho of the Philippine Alliance of Human Rights Advocates (PAHRA) and Three Odeña of Samahan ng Progresibong Kabataan (SPARK) by elements of the Eastern Police District, occurred Wednesday afternoon as groups assembled at the corner of southbound Edsa and Rochester Street.
“Our protocols are clear: we exercise maximum tolerance. However, when our personnel are physically assaulted or when the safety of the public is at risk, we must act to restore order,” Nartatez said in a statement.
Responding to claims that the arrests infringed on human rights, Nartatez affirmed that the PNP upholds the public’s right to free speech and peaceful assembly — “Your rights end when violence begins.”
“We are not arresting them for their beliefs. We are arresting them for specific violations of the law,” he added
The two individuals taken into custody are charged with direct assault, resisting and disobeying authority, causing public alarm, and violating the Public Assembly Act. Authorities also said that the group they belonged to reportedly did not obtain a permit for their activity.
SANLAKAS STATEMENT
In a statement, Sanlakas condemned the arrest and detention of the two protesters.
Police attempted to clear up EDSA lanes which were occupied by the protesters by shoving them into a single lane, and the sidewalk. As a consequence of the unwarranted and unjustified use of excessive force, protesters resisted by pushing back.
This happened at least twice – once during formation, and another during the march. In the ensuing melee, Parducho, who stood with his back against the police phalanx to protect a contingent of families of EJK victims, and Odeña, who was warding off the pushing and shoving by the police, were arrested.
Both were detained at the Mandaluyong Police Headquarters.
PRIOR AGREEMENT
On Feb. 24, rally organizers met with top officials of the EPD to come to an agreement as to the orderly conduct of the EDSA march to avoid clogging up EDSA.
In 2024 and 2025, anti-corruption groups have peacefully staged rallies on the same stretch of road. The National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) rejected the plan. Organizers warned that this would result in an EDSA gridlock. This was exactly what happened.
At one point, all South-bound lanes leading to the Ortigas flyover were blocked when the police stopped the march.
Protesters, however, successfully slipped through the police cordon, and occupied the EDSA-Ortigas Ave. intersection. Protesters later moved to the EDSA lanes next to EDSA Shrine when police appealed to free up the blocked intersection, the statement said.
Police again shoved protesters at one point during the program triggering a brief scuffle between the two sides.
REMINISCENT OF THE PAST
The lack of a rally permit, or the unilateral declaration of EDSA being a no rally zone does not justify the employment of brute force against helpless civilians. Forty years today, Filipinos ousted the Marcosian police state which wantonly, and with impunity, suppressed fundamental freedoms and rights.
What the police, with the blessing of Malacanang, and the local governments of Quezon City and Mandaluyong City, demonstrated today is that the ghost of the country’s Marcosian past lingers.
Protest is criminalized, as evidenced by the arrest of Parducho and Ordena, and which is reminiscent of the dark years under the Marcos dictatorship.
The group demanded the immediate and unconditional release of Parducho and Odeña and the PNP leadership to conduct an investigation into the violent handling of the NCRPO and EPD.
The group called on the Commission on Human Rights to conduct an independent investigation into police misconduct, and the use of excessive force!