a determination to continue the struggle"
Sounds an appeal to civic unity rather than an appeal to assert further the alternative as one would say, knowing that with the folk during those times wanting to assert further justice and retribution, the order instead "had immediately enough" of acting 'revolutionary' but instead focusing on restoring order as it creates a basis to legitimise a "new government" that of course promising the folk with words like "social justice" and "participatory democracy" treating as some kind of compromise with the them. But, contrary to most government statments and speeches that expresses mere "calls for unity" if not "healing the wounds brought by this uprising", this uprising that resulted from the downfall of the dictator Marcos is more than just a failed coup attempt-turned-peoples action.
And also to think that this event started from a call for action brought by the late Cardinal Sin (Via Radio Veritas), this four-day action as actually becoming a built-up especially by those willing to defy the policies of the Marcos regime as its earliest actions like the First Quarter Storm of 1970, the lightning rallies during the Martial Law period, boycotts against the rubber-stamp parliament, and various forms of actions especially from the studentry, workers, urban poor communities, and others both affected by economic turmoil and the repression brought by Marcos and his henchmen. These folks had enough of the delusion brought by the "new society", if not realising how Marcos's promise of ending the reign of the oligarchy and usher a reformed nation turns out to be a farce- making depictions by the mainstream press and government statements regarding this EDSA uprising as a purely spontaneous response to the calls of church and political leaders are historically inaccurate and erroneous.
And knowing that the order rather consolidated the status quo in this ever-continuing past, has made the concerned that there is no "revolution" during that Four-day event in EDSA. Yes, it did overthrew a tyrant and formed a "revolutionary government" in its place, even created a new constitution and "trying to usher a new democracy" to take place the dictatorship; but this doesn't escape the fact that those who promised justice are the ones who fooled the folk, especially the downtrodden who promised land and fair wages, of restoring sovereignty and accountability.
***
Now, thirty-five years after this revolt, the Filipino people find themselves under a rule no different from Marcos, except for being bloodier, a lot more nefarious, and incomparably corrupt. And it is not surprising for like his idol, president Duterte wanted to follow Marcos, but in a blunt manner starting with his anti-drug campaign "Oplan Tokhang", "Double Barrel", to those of the Anti-Terror Act and Operations "Kapanatagan" and "Kalasag" against 'left-leaning' organisations and individuals.
Also like his idol, Duterte is fascinated with debt-driven development, particularly infrastructure programs that most of which were carryovers if not driven by loans. And contrary to the administration's promise of a "comfortable life" for Filipinos, unparalleled repression and destruction has brought an upleasant scene in the countryside and even in the urban areas "all in the name of development" that sometimes accompanied with "restoring order" for companies aligned with the order's interests. From this, the regime has borrowed billions of pesos for "construction projects" to those of "purchasing war materiel"- and this did really provoke the peasant or the urban poor dweller as the order destroy farmlands and communities.
What more in the onslaught of the COVID19 pandemic, that Duterte rather use the situation "to restore order" with he repeatingly use the opposition as a scapegoat and distration from the administration's neglect. For Duterte, it doesn't matter about the cases to grow least it create fear for the many- as evidenced by no free/or affordable mass testing, aggressive contract tracing, or minimal support for those affected by the pandemic since the imposition of the "Enhanced Community Quarantine". Worse, with the rising prices of commodities, especially food (meat and vegetables), the people find themselves unable to make ends meet. The passage of the acts "meant to heal, rise, recover as one" rather emphasise on saving entrenched interests by means of further "opening the economy" to foreign investment with lax regulations (while leaving Duterte's own budget to his 'pet programs' that is, nothing to do with alleviating the situation). His staunch supports and gofers in the administration and the armed forces has been afforded VIP inoculation of the COVID19 vaccine; while his emergency powers granted him the authority and freedom to control appropriations for the unchecked procurement of personal protective equipment, testing kits, and other necessities for a pandemic response.
With this debt-driven 'developments' and order-driven 'repressions', Duterte has proved himself to follow the late dictator. His supporters may described his actions as a "patriotic act" this insatiable greed and fascism reflects what Marcos did during the dictatorship. Not even surprising that his undeclared state of emergency be as "smiling" like Marcos's supporters would describe his Martial Law as a "Smiling Martial Law" with all its pretension of Democracy and Freedom- depite the fact that police and military running amok and committing human rights violations left and right with the unrestrained power they have been given.
***
With this situation, the folk, regardless of what apologists insist the "developments" brought by Duterte and his henchmen, realise that the regime is following what Marcos did: a debt-driven growth, if not attempting a "smiling" state of emergency just to dissuade everyone from knowing a bloodied truth. That by using "peace and order" and "development", both uniformed thugs and interest seekers wanted to exploit (especially in this pandemic) to strike fear in every community- either by bombing the countryside or the ancestral domain, to those of harassing the opposition and even those of the concerned citizen expressing disbelief, the order Duterte brought is but a mockery of what the folk wished for- that of a "comfortable life for all" as what the president said few years past.
And to think that this regime is a continuity of its predecessors, it retains the orderist machinery created by Marcos. As key personalities of Marcos’ martial law remained in power and at the core of the security and defense establishment- worse, none was ever punished due to their involvement in the atrocities during the dictatorship, while others rather "rehabilitated" by the new regime that promised "justice" against the perpetuators. They instead rose from the ranks of police and the armed forces, became legislators or lived in their comforts, trying to justify the dictatorship as a "necessary move against communism". Like Marcos, Duterte catered to the interests of the armed forces and the police, appointing retired officers to key government positions, unleashing the police in the drug war and emboldening them with assurances of immunity, allotting a large portion of the budget to acquire more weapons, and giving the military increasing powers to control “the whole of nation” by making counterinsurgency the central policy of his government.
With these actions meant eschewing human rights and freedoms altogether, disregarding people's aspirations while feigning that they call for "national unity" and "healing the wounds" brought by this "People Power". But, contrary to those appeals, fascist crimes, rights abuses, and various forms of social injustices and disenfranchisements remain unabated. Any mass initiative by the folk- of workers, peasants and other sectors to uphold their national and democratic aspirations continue to be suppressed with arms and decrees.
But despite this, the folk "who has that faith in god and country" has enough of this systemic bullshit. That by broad unity, and by asserting the national and democratic aspirations this meant facing the risks, but, through that organised strength and unity lies the chance of overthrowing a tyrant even it requires going beyond the parameters. For whether it is a renewed "new society" or "new democracy" as presented by the order and its apologists, the truth is: the country remains in its centuries-old plutocratic nightmare that needs to be destroyed, and in its place lies a blossoming of a true democratic government that embodies the aspirations of the Filipino folk.
This is no regime change so to speak as shown by the past EDSA revolts of 86 and 01, for the fact is, the folk demands a national and social revolution- and they're willing to act in it.