The Yellow Umbrella

I saw a nice yellow umbrella in one dingky corner of the Redemptorist church in Baclaran. I saw people milling around the yellow umbrella, some signing a document with their names and signatures. There was a noticeable line of people, from all walks of life, patiently waiting for their turn to sign. And I saw a familiar face. It was Ed Roces, a friend and a colleague.

Like his patriot father before him, Ed is spearheading the call for Senator Benigno "NoyNoy" Aquino III to heed the call of the times and lead the nation as its president. In 1985, his father, the late Alejandro Roces, went all around town to gather signatures for Cory. Now, twenty four years later, Ed is doing what his martyred father did. As what Salonga says, like father, like son.

Curiously, what motivated Ed and his group to launch a signature campaign for Noynoy? Hindi pa ba sapat sa kanila na may isang Mar Roxas na tatakbo sa ilalim ng Liberal Party? Obviously not.

Why? Why is it that Mar Roxas does not satisfy the ideals of some people and supporters of the Liberal Party? Let's be frank.

1. People are saying that Mar Roxas belongs to an aristocratic family and that family allegedly robbed some people of their properties. Yet, for me, Mar is somewhat like his father, the late Gerry Roxas, who once dominated the Philippine political scene. What Mar lacks however, is the same tenacity, the same leadership prowess and the same inspiring aura that Gerry had when he was still alive.

Is NoyNoy different? No.

Noynoy is a Cojuangco, the family who used the treasures of the Katipunan to expand their estate and establish businesses that makes them one of the richest families in the Philippines. Yes, he is an Aquino, but that bloodline includes a Benigno Aquino who conspired with the Japanese during the occupation. The Aquino bloodline is politics at its best, and the Cojuangco bloodline links him to the best cacique class.

2. People are saying that Mar lacks the leadership abilities unlike his father who commands respect from his partymates. Many see the same thing in Noynoy. Noynoy is different from his father, Ninoy, since Ninoy commands utter respect from his partymates. Noynoy is more of a Butch Aquino rather than a Ninoy.

3. People are saying that Mar does not inspire allegiance. Ah, that's the difference between Mar and Noynoy. Noynoy inspires not just respect but allegiance simply because he does not show desire for the post, unlike Mar, who is perceived to be like Villar, who will do everything and spend every penny, just to get that desired post.

Yes, both belong to the same landed class that for millennia, has been enslaving the Filipino farmers. Yes, both belong to the same big bourgeouis class which has been enslaving the toiling worker class for centuries. And yes, both are unlike their fathers who carved their names in the annals of History by being different, by not being blue-blooded members of their class.

Noynoy, honestly, is still not the best leader to lead us away from the immorality of this regime. Neither is Mar.

Yet, if we compare him with Mar Roxas, Noynoy stands out because he does not desire for the post and he's not salivating to sit in that wicked chair in Malacanang. People say that Noynoy does not represent his landlord class, but in some instances, he did. For the record, Noynoy did not sign the Genuine Land Reform law, an obvious act which shows that he's more of a Cojuangco than an Aquino. Or, like I said, he is more of a Butch rather than a Ninoy.

But, I understand my friend, Ed Roces. Like the rest of us, Ed is looking for someone who'll inspire us, who'll lead us to the right path and who'll represent not the interest of their class but the interests of the toiling masses.

Better a Noynoy than a Mar. At least that would awaken those in the middle forces who are leaderless now. Better a Noynoy who can probably stand out against an Erap. And better a Noynoy who might just prevent a restoration of immorality in a Villar administration or illegal activities under an Erap.

Leap-frogging thru The Ninoy-Cory Phenomenon

When Jose Maria Sison, the founding chair of the Communist Party of the Philippines broke away from the PKP after debating on revolutionaty strategy, the concept of "leap-frogging" came into the realm of public discourse. What this leap frogging idea means is creating the necessary conditions for a revolutionary situation. It is mixing numerous actions together to create a "broth" that is, a situation of adverse consequences. Actions are undertaken to achieve a particular result or condition instead of allowing events to naturally ascend the higher stage.

This has been the widely accepted idea during the Marcos dictatorship. And this, my friends, is what characterized the length and breadth of the EDSA revolution. However, current historical interpretation of EDSA seems to just center on the twin legacies of Senator Ninoy Aquino and his wife, Cory, and consciously eradicated, albeit, isolated the big contributions of revolutionary groups, such as BAYAN, CPP-NPA-NDF, MNLF, MILF and the RAM-SFP-YOU.

It seems that people behind this are deliberately creating a somewhat "cultist" interpretation of History, by ascribing the success of the EDSA revolution only to the efforts of LABAN-UNIDO and center its success on the sacrifices of Ninoy. That there is a deliberate attribution only to those in the legal opposition seemed contrary to the events that shaped this revolution.

This revolution is part of the ongoing process which started way back in 1898 when the First Sons of the Morning united together and formed the Katipunan. The Katipunan legacy is what shaped the consciousness of Ninoy and his fellow Laban-UNIDO.

The part that Ninoy played cannot be over-ly emphasized. Everyone knows that his death emboldened 2 million people to go to the streets and rally. Yet, how about those in the provinces? How about those events in the rural areas where the deaths of people's organizers' sparked mini-revolts? And how about those thousands who died fighting with their lives that former menace to democracy?

Neither August 21, 1971 nor that of August 21, 1983 were crucial milestones in viewing this EDSA revolution. Those were the milestones accepted by politicians.

Right now, there is a conscious attempt to replay the same emotions and the same perspective we had back then in the period 1983-1986. That period was never the length and breadth of this revolution, no. That period started way, way, way back. Events just tapped the underlying current of dissent within the Filipino soul, which just burst asunder when the right conditions were created.

Those millions who trooped to EDSA in 1986 were there not as a disorganized lot, no. People's organizations played a big part in the entire revolt. What is now being devoured as staple public idea is that only the LABAN-UNIDO led this massive outpouring of anger. This is not the correct interpretation of what had transpired. EDSA was a conscious collaboration of disparate forces joined together in a fight against a strongman.

Ninoy's legacy is that he sacrificed his life so that middle forces are made fully aware of their bondage. Those middle forces were key to the EDSA formula. With their participation, the paradigm of struggle that is EDSA was completed.

We all know that we cannot really re-create the conditions that led to EDSA. We exist in a totally different political environment where we don't have the formal structures of a dictatorship, only a pseudo-dictatorship. A totally different strategy is needed to defeat the current Arroyo regime. If we are to say that we need another Ninoy, that is a wrongful interpretation. We need a new breed of Ninoys and Corys, of Jomas and Saturs, of Nur Misuaris and of Dado Valerosos, who will sacrifice their lives so that others may truly live decent lives. Theirs are incomplete legacies of revolts, not revolutions. The true revolution is still upon us. The True Filipino Revolution is still being nursed from the loins of the Filipino masses, waiting for the right time to show itself once again, like a Bernardo Carpio. And this time, there is no leap frogging.