People Power: How We Will Again Inspire The World

MANILA:

This is not what you think it is.

February 1986. Some 14 years after the declaration of Martial Law by President Ferdinand Marcos. There is going to be a coup against Marcos led by Defense Minister Juan Ponce Enrile and Lt Col Gringo Honasan, but that fails when some people reveal to Marcos the plot. So now, Enrile, Honasan & Company are the targets of capture or assassination. Instead of surrendering meekly, they decide to fight to the last. 

Obtaining the support of Constabulary Chief Fidel Ramos, they move to Camp Crame and plot their next moves. Ramos says, I remember hearing, "What we need now is people power." He calls someone to call Cardinal Sin to call the people to come out and show support for the rebels with a count of warm bodies. I also remember Butz Aquino was soon calling upon his group, the August Twenty One Movement, or Atom, to meet at the Isetann Dept Store in Cubao, Quezon City, to help populate Epifanio De Los Santos Avenue, or Edsa, which runs along Camp Crame, where the Constabulary was, as well as Camp Aguinaldo, where the Army was. Atom was named after the date of the assassination of Butz' brother Ninoy Aquino, victim of Martial Law, in 1981 yet. Will revenge be sweet?

Saturday, 22 February, I wasn't going to Edsa. I was afraid. But we kept listening to Radio Veritas..

Sunday, 23 February, still I wasn't going to Edsa as I was still afraid. At dawn, the main transmitter of Veritas was knocked down. It switched to a standby transmitter. We kept listening until it failed.

Monday, 24 February, midnight, the radio staff began broadcasting from another station that called itself "Radio Bandido." Bandit Radio. We kept listening. No, I wasn't going to Edsa as the fear had not left me. What if the soldiers fired on the helpless civilians to discourage others from joining the Edsa protest? But we kept listening to Radio Bandido.

Tuesday, 25 February, I decided to go. The other day, while I was listening to the radio, I thought that the side of Marcos was winning and I told myself, I had to do something I would not regret later. I did not relish the idea that Marcos would go on and perpetuate his rule. We had to walk from Guadalupe Bridge to Camp Crame because the bridge had been sealed off for all traffic except foot.

As I walked, I was surprised at the quiet, peaceful atmosphere along Edsa, It was as if we were there to join some festivities. When I got to Camp Crame, Enrile & Honasan & escorts moved from Camp Aguinaldo to consolidate position with Ramos and his constabulary boys. The road was packed with warm bodies. It was a little frightful, because you could not move away from the pack to avoid being crushed by the wall of bodies moving tightly & imperceptibly from one side of the road to the other.

That was the day they flew the Marcos family to Hawaii. End of my story.

(My personal joke is that it was I who caused the Marcos family to flee – even with millions of people in so many days walking in and out of Edsa in support of the rebels, Marcos would not let go of power until I joined the people at Edsa.)

People Power had triumphed.

Ms Cory Aquino became President of the Philippines – but we Filipinos did not begin to live happily ever after. 

Not even after Fidel Valdez Ramos became President.

Not even after Joseph Estrada became President.
Not even after Ms Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo became President.
Not even after Noynoy Aquino became President.

Neither are there promises of progress by Rodrigo Duterte. No premises to hope either.

On Monday, 27 February 2006, TIME Magazine came up with a cover story on the peaceful revolt that Filipinos staged from Saturday to Tuesday, from 22 February to 25 February 1986, ending with the flight of President Ferdinand Edralin Marcos and his entire family to Hawaii, along with their trinkets & treasures. TIME says, "Twenty years ago, the Philippines ousted a dictator and inspired the world. People Power. But the nation has yet to fulfill the promise of those glorious days."

Yes, we Filipinos have no reason to celebrate 25 February 1986 except to celebrate a fall. 

I want to celebrate a rise instead! We have to rise to the occasion, beginning with a Vision.

Yesterday, 4 gentlemen and I were talking about what's happening in this country. To protect the innocent, I will refer to them as Snop, Vlem, Dnan, and Ors.

Snop: "Everybody knows the solutions to the problems of this country."
Frank: "Yes. And you know why our leaders have not succeeded? They have no Vision! So they don't know where they want us to go."
Snop: "And how to get there."
Frank: "Yes. That's Mission. They don't know that either."

Marcos had Vision: "This nation can be great again!" I think he made a great President, no matter what other Filipinos think, even given the bad side of a dictator. For instance, Ferdinand Marcos is the godfather of Philippine science; Imelda Marcos is the godmother of modern Filipino music.

Trump has Vision: "Make America great again." I think he will make a great President, no matter what the Americans think, even given the bad side of a demagogue. For instance, he has declared that henceforth prayers (God) would be allowed in the classroom.

How about Rodrigo Duterte? His campaign slogan was "Tapang at Talino," Courage & Cleverness. Memorable, but that's not Vision. I'm looking for Vision.

Duterte is not any luckier with his advisers from the National Economic & Development Authority, or NEDA. They failed him, the NEDA minds who prepared the text for their Chairman of the Board, who is also our President, to sign as Executive Order #5, "Approving And Adopting The Twenty-Five-Year Long Term Vision Entitled Ambisyon Natin 2040 As Guide For Development Planning." Or Rodrigo Duterte failed himself. Whatever.

Did you know that EO#5, which has only 631 words, has 2 statements of Vision and they do not match? Rodrigo Duterte can learn from management theory (image from Fareed Siddiqui, LinkedIn, linkedin.com):

Let us now view with a magnifying glass AmBisyon Natin 2040's Vision (EO#5):

In 2040, we will all enjoy a stable and comfortable lifestyle, secure in the knowledge that we have enough for our daily needs and unexpected expenses, that we can plan and prepare for our own and our children's future. Our family (live) together in a place of our own, and we have the freedom to go where we desire, protected and enabled by a clean, efficient and fair government.

You call that Vision!?

If that's how complicated your Vision is, how do you derive your Mission from it? You have overwhelmed yourself with a great many things to define and measure in order to say you have achieved the Vision: stable; comfortable; secure; daily needs; unexpected expenses; a place of one's own; protected; enabled; and clean, efficient and fair government.

I would like to have a country like that, but it's a dream too wild. AmBisyon is too wildly ambitious!

I understand that tomorrow, Saturday, pro-Duterte groups will also hold their rally to dissipate people's attention from the anti-Marcos and commemorative People Power rally at Edsa. I say, both groups will be wasting their time & talents – instead, they should be commonly advocating that the government show intelligence by coming up with a Vision that is achievable, such as in these 5 powerful words:

Emancipate the poor from poverty!

And then the Philippines will fulfil the promise of those glorious days of February 1986. And then the Philippines will once again inspire the world! @

24 February 2017. Total word count, excluding this line. 1307