‘… the time isn’t ripe for another People Power
— because people do not think the alternative is better.’
HERS is a peoples’ campaign, says Kamala Harris, one that begins with organizing at the grassroots and ends with her victoriously entering the White House in January next year.
Her administration, Bill Clinton says, will be one where the first word will be “you, you, you” rather than what Clinton says is the “me, me, me” focus of Donald Trump.
And she is “Kamala Harris, for the people” — the five words she uttered time and time again when prosecuting a case as San Francisco district attorney and then attorney general.
It’s the spirit of people power all over again.
Here in our islands, there’s also a call for people power. This one is emanating from personalities loyal to former President Rodrigo Duterte, who now feels hemmed in — from ICC investigators, on the one hand, to the search for Pastor Apollo Quiboloy, his staunch supporter and confidant, wanted for various offenses both financial and sexual. The pincer movement on Duterte poses the most serious threat to his decades-long political career — as well as to his and his family’s hold on power in Davao City.
(It just struck me that there’s so much parallelism in the situation that Duterte and Donald Trump face. But let’s save that for a future piece).
The call for People Power against a Marcos president is supposed to recall and relive the heady days of the 1980s which toppled the first Marcos. The cries against a “dictatorship” are meant to paint the fight as one between good and evil. But there the similarities — or the forced similarities — end.
In the 1980s, it was seen as a battle between good and evil. These days, you hear people talk about the lesser evil vs the worse one. And people would prefer to live with the lesser than go back to the worst.
In the 1980s, the ferment was around Metro Manila — always the opposition stronghold. So much so that when February 25 happened the rest of the country felt “out of it.” Today, it seems the ferment centers around Davao City — more particularly around a kingdom.
Elsewhere, it all seems peaceful and quiet.
At Liwasang Bonifacio, there may have been more vagrants than protesters the other night.
Bad news for my friends sympathetic to PRRD and PAQ: the time isn’t ripe for another People Power — because people do not think the alternative is better.
Also, I think Filipinos are tired of all these People Power stuff so much so that even the Yellows can no longer ride its spirit to power. Too many promises made and too little fulfilled. Too many hopes raised and so much dashed.
Sara vs. BBM is not the same as Cory vs FM. It’s not even close to Kamala vs. Donald.
This time is no time for People Power IX.
Or whatever version it is already.
