WHAT impressed me about that pro-Duterte rally the other Saturday at the Plaza Independencia was the sight of several thousands of ordinary folks unfazed by the rain. The last time I saw such kind of commitment to a rally’s cause was more than 30 years ago during my cause-oriented days.
When Doris (she is the KP Visayas lead convenor) told me Kilusang Pagbabago will push through with the Lihok Suporta rally rain or shine, I nodded and smiled. But I had my fingers crossed. I admired the wife’s confidence in the KP membership. Still I thought, “Good luck, Dors.” The sight when I climbed up the stage at the Plaza surprised me. It was awesome. Beyond the huge tent covering the stage were a mass of umbrellas. The huge crowd heeded the call to bring their own umbrellas. The rain was no mere drizzle. Makabasa gyud. But they stood there despite the rain.
Friends from the anti-Duterte side of the fence obviously did not believe that a rally expressing support for President Duterte could muster such kind of committed mass. They would rather share around an erroneous estimate of a mere 1,000 written by a newbie reporter despite all the pictures posted online showing the massive turnout.
Since the return of traditional politics, the turnout of political rallies is determined by how much the organizer has for snacks and fare. But not that Lihok Suporta crowd. The call was BYOP – bring your own provision meaning pagkaon, plete ug payong.
Ironically, a fake news site used that 1,000 figure to describe the rally as pro-Duterte. Nagpaila gyud mo tits.
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Why was such a turnout of committed folks possible? Perhaps, the leaders and organizers absorbed well the community empowerment and organizing lessons taught by Fr. Ed dela Torre, a fellow rebel priest and later political detainee during the Marcos days along with then Fr. Jun Evasco.
Or could it be because of participatory governance that Kilusang Pagbabago has pursued? Initial results of participatory governance were the turnover of hundreds of Tesda scholarships and several fiberglass motorboats from BFAR during the rally. CabSec Evasco called it “Biyaya ng Pagbabago.” I have the impression that there will be much more especially when the Kilusang Pagbabago and participatory governance were made part of the Duterte administration’s Philippine Development Plan 2017.
Is this a false promise as insinuated by factotums who don’t do due diligence? Kuyaw mamumo ang mosakay dayon. Hmmm.
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I posted in the Facebook group Maghisgot Kitag Politika Bay a video of the speech of Cabsec Evasco that discussed the administration’s direction to implement pro-poor projects at the grassroots through the Kilusang Pagbabago. This was posted as soon as possible after the rally. I suggest that supporters, detractors, and mere observers alike should watch and listen. Note that this is the cabinet secretary himself, which I’m afraid a mere Visayas underling is trying to undermine.