Voices 'round the rotunda: Mass protest or collective cluelessness?

MANILA, Philippines - As throngs gathered in Makati to take part in the biggest gathering since news broke out about the alleged NBN-ZTE anomaly, another group silently aired what they proclaimed as the other side to the controversy. Their placards and banners carried their positions: They wanted power rates to go down, but not President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. They dismissed the Senate inquiry on the national broadband network (NBN) project as a "political circus." They claimed whistleblower Rodolfo Noel Lozada was a liar, and had no other ability but to shed tears in front of the camera. But while their slogans clearly defined their calls, those who attended Friday's prayer-vigil at Welcome Rotonda in Quezon City appeared to have banded together for varying purposes and motivations. Some of them, mostly group leaders, were precise about their goals and expectations for the said rally. Others, however, were acting in mere reciprocation for supposed government assistance. Some were more clueless than informed about the issues behind the allegedly anomalous NBN project. And there were even some who were there plainly for the alleged money and, well, some free rice and chicken meal. Multi-sectoral groups Organizers of the prayer-vigil said that although their initial numbers were just around 100 people, they said they expected it to swell to 3,000 by that day's end. The multi-sectoral protesters came from groups like Kongreso ng Mamamayan, Kasangga sa Kaunlaran Urban Land Reform Task Force, Babae Ka, Damayang Maralita ng Taongbayan and other urban poor and peasant groups. RJ Javellana, secretary General of the Kongreso ng Mamamayan, said there is a stark difference between their movement and that in Makati City. "Malalim ang pagkakaiba dahil ang aming panawagan, lahat parusahan. Mapa-pribado o mapa-gobyerno. Huwag natin i-exempt si Jose de Venecia III o si Rodolfo Lozada. Kung sino ang mapatutunayan ng korte na may kasalanan, parusahan natin," he said. He said this with a notably large poster hanging behind him. The poster showed a curtained theater where images of several key players in the NBN investigation are dressed up as clowns. As though performing thespian yet comedic roles in a play, senators like Ana Consuela Madrigal (cast as "Gambi Madaldal") and Jinggoy Estrada ("Dinggoy Entrada") were depicted as wearing brightly-hued costumes, heavy clown make-up, and hilariously enormous red plastic noses. Javellana said that they were not lapdogs of the administration but were only after individuals who have "sinned" against the country. He stressed, however, that unlike those in Makati City, they do not resort to "raucous" means and are not asking for Arroyo's ouster. He said that highly contested issues involving the government should be brought to the proper courts even as they advocated peace and order amid these controversies, as evidenced by their day-long praying. 2,000 Hail Mary's Despite an imminent overcast blanketing the afternoon sky, the air was particularly hot at Welcome (or Mabuhay) Rotonda Friday. Erected at the heart of the circular platform of the rotunda was a makeshift tent that sheltered some 15 women, intently reciting the rosary in front of a statue of the Santo Nino. Several amplifiers helped magnify the women's prayers, especially since the place was dominated by the roar of vehicles in a relatively busy Friday traffic along E. Rodriguez Avenue in Quezon City. "Hail Mary full of grace. The Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women. And blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus," uttered the ladies, who had been praying the same prayer for more than five hours already. It turned out that they had planned to recite a complete prayer of the rosary each time they proclaimed one of their 20 wishes from God. These "petitions," as they called their wishes, spoke of requests for a solution for issues that ranged from topics about family and the Church to the economy and politics. Pro- or anti-Arroyo? Babae Ka, an urban poor group which vied for a seat but lost in the party-list race in the May 2007 midterm elections, led the said prayer. The group was formed several years ago to extend assistance to poor urban dwellers who disputed land ownerships all over the country. Ruth Vasquez, Babae Ka's president, said that bothered by the noise that is being generated by the NBN controversy, they were forced to take a "clear" stand on the issue and chose to took to the street and seek God's assistance. "Parati na lang rally dun, rally dito. Argumento dun, argumento dito. Kaya ang naisip namin ay magdasal na lang tayo. Kasi si Lord mapakikinggan niya at mahihipo niya ang puso ng bawat Pilipino," Vasquez said. But other things about the group did not seem as clearly defined as their call. Asked when the year of the group's inception was, Maria Corazon Tumang, second ranking official of the Babae Ka, still had to consult Vasquez, "2002? 2000? Ah oo, 2000 ano?" Vasquez, however, maintained they did not particularly support President Arroyo, but where merely thankful for the assistance that the government had extended to their embattled members who were fighting for land titles. "Hindi namin sinasabi na pro-Arroyo kami. Pero dahil sa naibigay na magandang programa na nakinabang ang urban sectors, andito tayo nagdarasal para sa katahimikan ng bawat isa," Vasquez shared.

Babae Ka members, seen here unfurling their banner, said they were grateful for the government's aid.

Babae Ka member Perla Gulas, a 61-year-old widow from Taguig City, shared Vasquez's sentiment when she said: "Hindi ako maka-Gloria. Kung sa ZTE (Zhong Xing Telecommunications Equipment) may dapat managot at may mapatunayang nagkasala, mayroon tayong hukuman na dapat hatulan ang nagkasala." Meanwhile, Tumang seemed to take a slightly different stand as she had a more pronounced loyalty for Arroyo and actually did not shy away from praising the President. While profusely fanning herself under the rather humid afternoon, Tumang said she doubted truth in what the anti-Arroyo militants are saying. Battle still on All three female protesters, however, were one in believing that President Arroyo should hold on to power until 2010. "Kung sa 2010, kung talagang inaakala ng mamayamang Pilpino na si GMA ay may pagkakamali eh 'di i-sue natin. Pero huwag naman ngayong time na ang mararalita ay talagang nahihirapan," Vasquez stressed. "Ang maipapayo ko po sa oposisyon, maghintay na po kayo ng 2010, malapit na po bumaba ang presidente. tsaka na kayo mag-agawan sa puwesto. Namumulitika na lang sila ngayon kaya dinidiin nila ang presidente," Tumang meanwhile said. While the group has yet to reap the rewards of their latest efforts to help Gulas and some 1,000 residents of Fort Bonifacio, they were unreluctant to admit that things had not entirely gone their way. "Natulungan kami lalo na sa kuryente. Pero wala pa rin kaming tubig. Yung kapirasong tinitirikan ng aming kubo, pinapalayas din kami," said Gulas, who claimed that their original settlement had alleged been "grabbed" from them by the Philippine military in the early 1990s. "Mamamatay na lang ako wala pa kaming tinitirhan na maayos," she added. "May 100 ka dito" At another corner of the site was another cluster of protesters, most of them downing free chicken and rice served on styrofoam containers. For fish vendor Lydia (not her real name), a duster-clad woman in her fifties, going to the prayer rally in Welcome Rotonda had to do with following orders more than mere showing support for the President. She shared that a certain "Ame" a few days ago had promised to give them P100 and lunch in exchange for trooping to the well-known rotunda. On the morning of the rally, she along with some 130 neighbors, boarded six rented jeepneys and headed for Quezon City. "Binibigyan kami ng pera kung lalakad lang. Pero hindi naman kasi kami araw-araw umaalis. Pero ang bayad sa amin, pag-uwi namin tsaka pa lang ibibigay ang pera (We are given money every time we are asked to go out. But we don't go out everyday. The payment will only be given to us once we get back home)," Lydia said. Lydia repeatedly maintained that they were "promised" money and food until her companion, Tess, a fellow fish vendor, approached her. Lydia then suddenly took back her previous statement about money changing hands. Instead, her topic shifted from alleged bribe money to supposed government assistance. Both women suddenly boasted of being beneficiaries of a land distribution program where they were awarded "certifications" to pieces of property in Navotas City. The female fish vendors claimed they had been given 25 years to pay for the property before they could be awarded land titles. Their male companion, Michael Mahusay, meanwhile, could only respond in generalities when asked why he joined the prayer-vigil. "Pagkakaisa namin ito. Gusto namin ng pagbabago." (We came here for unity. We wanted change), said the 35-year-old worker at the Navotas fish port. Mahusay said he did not care whether First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo played an alleged dishonest role in the controversial NBN mess. All that mattered to him was that the deal for the $329.5-million project was canceled. Mahusay said he did not join the rally in Makati because, "Magulo raw doon. Dito, tahimik (while it's peaceful here)." Youth speak Another set of demonstrators, composed of young college students humbly numbering to about 50, also could not find any reason why they should join their student counterparts in Ayala Avenue. Just behind the tent where the penitent ladies were reciting the rosary, the group carried banners that bore messages of protest while bellowing in unison, "Sigaw ng kabataan? Sa husgado, hindi sa Senado." RJ Villena, an electronics and communications engineer student from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines, spoke on behalf of the young rallyists. He said that their group, Pinoy Youth, was a newly formed group created through a merger among several youth groups in Metro Manila. Villena said they decided to join the prayer movement because they were fed up by the brouhaha that has been surrounding the government's telecommunications project deal as of late. "Kailangan sumabay sa ingay kung hindi matatabunan kami (We also need to compete or else we'll get drowned in the noise)," Villena said. He explained that while most students from the PUP think that key ZTE witness Rodolfo Noel Lozada Jr was telling the truth, there are those who think otherwise. "Hindi naman kasi lahat kami sa PUP ay pareho ng iniisip. Kung sila, gusto nila sumama doon sa Makati, kami mas gusto namin dito kasi mas tahimik (PUP students don't always share the same sentiments. If they opted to go to Makati, we wanted here because it is more peaceful here)," said Villena, who, while sporting a plain white shirt and carrying a back pack, appeared like a sociable conversationalist. Clueless? Villena also claimed to know each of the students from the 50-strong young contingent who flocked to the said rally site. But sitting just a few meters away from the young spokesman was Mario, another young lad who also claimed to belong to the same youth group. Curiously, when asked if he personally knew RJ, all Mario could do was shake his head and say, "No, I don't know him." Mario was among several individuals at the rally who displayed cluelessness. Two women protesters could not even find the right words to explain why they decided to join the prayer rally. All they could respond with to questions was a grin. Bonuses Another protester, Sergio Dava, 29, village captain in Barangay Zaragosa, Bugasang town, Antique, said he showed up at the said rally for yet another purpose. Dava was prompted to travel all the way from the central Philippine island to Manila with two Sangguniang Kabataan (Youth Council) officers when they heard about the prayer rally in Quezon City. The young village official said the government has been generous to local officials like him when it comes to gifting them salary bonuses, which would depend on their local government's annual savings. "Bago ako umupo last year as barangay captain, yung ako ang nag-supplemental ng supplemental bonus nila (other local government officials). Ang natanggap nila mga 5,000 each. Pero meron din nakatanggap ng almost P15,000. Depende nga kasi kung maraming savings. Lahat ng savings, puwedeng i-supplemental. Ito nangyari lang sa panunungkulan niya (Arroyo)," Dava said. He also bared the latest measure by the Department of Budget Management to augment several others of their benefits. "Meron ding bago na i-implement na inutos sa DBM na puwede na kaming mag-increase ng honoraria na magiging compensation or basic salary siya based sa grade ng municipality. So halimbawa ako sa ngayon ay barangay captain, honorarium ko lang ay P3,080 monthly. Kung salary grade ko ay 14, ang barangay captain ay makatatanggap ng P10,000 to P14,000," he said. Paid or not, acquainted or otherwise, clueless or not, the relatively smaller number of contingent who massed up at Welcome Rotonda that Friday afternoon were determined to contribute their voices. Though holding on to varying levels of familiarity on the issue at hand, these people at the end of the day headed back home with a collective cluelessness on how the controversial mess and endless bickering on the NBN deal will end. - Mark Merueñas, GMANews.TV