Rough Groove

Trillanes et al, misinformed?

At the rate Trillanes et al is going, I really don’t think that his group, including his supporters know the real sentiments of the people. If they knew, will they have pushed through with their supposed spontaneous walkout and take over of Manila Pen wherein no one from the public came? How come, this website sprouted immediately yesterday? What about protesters bearing stickers of Trillanes gathered at the Ninoy Aquino statue at the intersection of Paseo de Roxas and Ayala Ave. yesterday afternoon while inquirer.net reported that some Tondo denizens were paid to rally?

It seems that Trillanes, his group and his supporters including the Black and White Movement, Guingona and some others are really misinformed about the true sentiments of the people. That’s why they continue to mouth long discredited and failed ways of changing a government and continue with their old framework even if it failed the first time.

Trillanes is at it again

I may have some issues with the government especially the corruption that is going on, the enforced disappearances and killings that the UN is blaming the military for it, but I don’t condone what Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV and his group is doing. Again. Just four years after their infamous Oakwood Mutiny at the Oakwood Suites (now the Ascott), a few meters from the Manila Peninsula Hotel, they’re at it again. Yes, they may have valid grievances but I just don’t approve of their methods.

The Manila Pen siege in Makati

These are some photos of the standoff that happened at the Manila Peninsula Hotel when the group of Trillanes and supporters like former Vice President Teofisto Guingona, Archbishop Labayen, the running priest Fr. Reyes and other civil society members walked out of the court hearing at the Makati Regional Trial Court, walked the stretch of Makati Ave. and eventually entering by surprise the hotel where they held press conferences and called on the resignation of the President. They also proposed the formation of a caretaker government to be headed by Chief Justice Puno (who turned down their call) and called on the people and the youth to support their move.

The corner of Makati and Ayala Aves. was closed to traffic. The beseiged hotel, Manila Peninsula with its landmark fountain with cascading waters shown above.

As always, usyoseros are looking from the distance. It was somewhat a lively group as jokes about the siege were told. The crowd is like watching some movie shoot with some shouting “CUT” while others are saying, “o, smile, nakatutok yung camera sa atin (smile, the camera is pointed at us)” Some are taking photos with their cameras and mobile phones. There was even a man who hastily left grumbling “ang tagal naman ng bakbakan, mauwi na nga… (the action is taking too long, better go home).”

A few minutes of standing here, sporadic gunfire broke out but the crowd just stood there and waiting for the next happening.

As the afternoon is fast fading and more sporadic gunfire heard emanating from the hotel, this tank zoomed past the area I’m standing at which is just near the intersection of Ayala and Makati Aves. During the entire event, it was just drizzling and not really good to take more shots.

Just tailing the tank, this military truck also passed by. The Manila Pen is at the background. By this time, I got text messages from my mother in Cebu who was watching the news on TV updating me that Trillanes’ group was surrendering already.

Riot police are standing at the road. Behind them, at the left, is the hotel. Inside, Trillanes and his group including the former vice-president, the archbishop as well as other supporters were being handcuffed, loaded into a waiting bus to be brought to the military camp in Bicutan.

Some interesting news items lately

Been reading the Philippine Daily Inquirer (19 and 20 November issues) and some interesting news items I’ve stumbled upon:

+ Senate to probe peso’s rise - Sen. Loren Legarda, the chair of the Committee on Economic Affairs would want to look at the peso’s steep rise and assess the impact on Filipinos.

Comment: The following day, it was followed by…

+ Senate may probe Glorieta blast, Escudero urges colleagues to act on Trillanes resolution - while the authorities are still giving 2 - 3 weeks to wrap up the investigation and Israeli, US and Australian experts say that a gas explosion may be the culprit, Senator Trillanes, 3 hours after the blast happened, shouted that it was the work of the government.

Comment: wow, at the rate the Senate is investigating almost all events that are happening in the country, will they still have time to legislate? I wonder, will this be another case of OPEN and CLOSE but-without-concluding-anything type of investigation?

+ Party-list lawmaker denies hand in Batasan blast. Rep. Mujiv Hataman: My conscience is clear.

Comment: His name as well as Gerry Salapudin’s, the previous congressman, kept on cropping up in the investigation. Hmm… convicted plunderer Erap also said those words to deny that he ever committed corruption shortly arriving triumphantly in his San Juan fiefdom after getting an unconditional pardon.

+ Maternal mortality declined in Quezon City, from 10 per 100,000 in 1996, shooting up to 14 per 100,000 in 1997… - Rina Jimenez-David’s article entitled Tales of two cities where she’s comparing the divergent family planning policies of Quezon City which encouraged it and Manila where the former mayor Lito Atienza discouraged most modern methods.

Comment: shooting up? I would have understood if she was talking about a more sizable number or unless she was confusing the numbers with percentage (40%)?

+ Mariannet’s death is Arroyo’s fault - David Michael M. San Juan (dmsanjuanMM3@yahoo.com) in the Letters section writing that Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is to be blamed since this government is duping us - lying through its teeth - into believing the country’s much ballyhooed yet generally unfelt economic miracles. He continues: Mourn if we must for Mariannet, but we can do her and other Filipino children a greater service if we will help remove the biggest impediment to genuine economic progress: illegitimate, insensitive, and corrupt-to-the-bones Arroyo. Our battle cry should be: Justice for Mariannet! Justice to the people! Oust Gloria!

Comment: yeah, unless we keep on blaming all things negative to this government the more we will not move forward. Its always the blaming game. Now, what are you doing for your country? Sitting comfortably reading the papers and bitching about the current state of the nation?

This administration is sinking fast!

Why does GMA has to hastily pardon the convicted plunderer Erap!? After all the effort of successfully convicting him, after all the agony of seeing every political accommodation given to this unrepentant old man, in just 6 weeks he was then released from his detention without being sorry for what he did, nor spending a single day in jail? Why so soon?

I’m just disappointed. Very disappointed. And angry at how all this has to come. Maybe its the start of her downfall.