The movement against the pork barrel is gaining momentum and the next rally has been given approval and needed support by the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA). The next rally will be held on Sept. 11 at EDSA, and the organizers have talked with the MMDA regarding traffic rerouting on Metro Manila’s busiest thoroughfare. In order to lessen any inconvenience to commuters and the citizens using public transport, the rally will be held from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. It is being bannered as a prayer vigil at the EDSA shrine at Ortigas corner EDSA.The organizers have taken pains to remind the public that the rally will be non-political and have stated that there will be no shouting, no banners, and no placards.
However, it is interesting to note that the rally will be at the EDSA shrine. Filipinos have always associated rallies at the EDSA shrine to Cory Aquino, the former President and the mother of PNoy. It is also interesting, as Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda noted, that the organizers chose Sept. 11 as the date for the next rally – which is the birthday of former President Ferdinand Marcos.
The non-partisan nature of the rally is a mixed signal and might alienate a lot of people. Marcos loyalists celebrate the date in their own way. Even as the corruption and the human rights abuses of the Marcos era are slowly fading in the collective memory of Filipinos, the accusations of graft and corruption, as well as human rights abuses during the Cory era have been bubbling to the surface.
The measures by the organizers to end the Sept. 11 activity by 4 p.m. will help alleviate the evening rush hour traffic, although there is no assurance that evening traffic will be no less heavy.
Will you be joining the EDSA prayer vigil on Sept. 11? Let us know in the comments below.
Photo: EDSA Shrine by aberdeenklein
