After being subjected to drastic weather changes across two major rallies at Luneta and EDSA on Sunday, September 21, photojournalist Jilson Tiu came home with a headache. The Baha sa Luneta rally earlier that day saw placards, banners, and effigies floating amid a sea of umbrellas as protesters braved the heat to be at Rizal Park in Manila. There, civic and political groups and unorganized citizens alike gathered to call for justice surrounding the flood control anomalies and an end to government corruption.
In the morning, Tiu decided he’d attend the Luneta rally alone, ditching initial plans to go with a group of artists. “I decided that I’d follow my gut,” he told Rolling Stone Philippines. “I’m not new to rallies, so alam ko na ‘yong flow.” He rode a jeepney to Rizal Park, where he followed the march from Taft Avenue to Roxas Boulevard.
For him, one of the highlights of the Luneta rally was capturing actress Maris Racal, who led the chants for the Philippine-Palestine Friendship Association during the march. “Sabi ko, ‘si Maris Racal ba ‘to?’” Tiu said, recalling that he was unable to recognize her with the cap and the megaphone until he reviewed his photos later in the day.
“Nandiyan siya sa tao, kung saan ‘yong sobrang sikip kami, as in hindi na kami makahinga,” he said, adding that it was amazing to witness a celebrity like Racal on the ground.
“I just focus on capturing what people say,” he said, noting that much of the sentiment at the Luneta rally drew on the attendees’ personal experiences with anomalous infrastructure projects. He said that some protesters came from Bulacan, which the government zeroed in on during recent investigations into the ghost flood control projects of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
“‘Yong protest na ‘to, hindi lang siya tungkol sa flood control infrastructure,” Tiu said. “Lahat siya ng infrastructure [projects] ng DPWH, from roads to simple bike parking.”
The photographer also called the Baha sa Luneta rally the “calm before the storm,” noting that the peaceful protest was followed shortly by riots in parts of Manila, and that heavy rains fell on the Trillion Peso March in the afternoon.
Trillion Peso March
After a quick break at home, where he started editing photos, Tiu headed to EDSA on a motorcycle taxi. But he couldn’t get further than the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of Peace, also known as the EDSA Shrine. Attendees, most of them wearing white, had already flooded the thoroughfare all the way to the People Power Monument at the corner of White Plains Avenue. “So I focused on the crowd. Gaano sila kadami, how people dominated the street.”
“[The president] should have closed part of EDSA,” he added. “Just give it to the people, kasi nahihirapan ‘yong tao mag-rally. May scheduled rally e.”
The EDSA rally’s organizers estimated the crowd to be at 70,000 people. But despite calls for the rally being made days ahead, no road closures were planned along EDSA. GMA News reports that people began to assemble at the People Power Monument in the morning, with crowds spilling over a part of White Plains Avenue. Eventually, the westbound portion of the avenue was closed to accommodate the protesters, but EDSA remained open to motorists even as more people filled up the street from the monument to the shrine.
In the afternoon, the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) put out an advisory that the section of EDSA leading to White Plains Avenue was no longer passable for vehicles. But still no road closures. “Ang ginawa ng mga cars, nag-turn back sila. It’s a good thing they gave it to the people.” Tiu added later on, “Sumakit ‘yong ulo ko sa busina.”
Without permission to fly his drone over the crowd, he opted to find a building to take photos of the crowd, but didn’t stay long because of the headache.
Not the Last Rally
“Maraming gustong magpabagsak kay Marcos sa EDSA,” Tiu noted. But he said that wanting the current government to fail could be risky for the country. “If you want the current government to fail, for me, you’re on the wrong page. Kasi ito ‘yong current status natin e, so the only thing for you to hope for is for the current government to succeed.”
Despite that, he said that the people are right to call on the government’s failures and demand accountability. “It’s a good thing na a lot of people really condemn everything that is happening.”
When asked what felt different about Sunday’s set of rallies, he said, “It’s real. Kasi marami akong rallies na napuntahan na binayaran talaga ‘yong nag-attend e.”
“‘Yong rally na ‘to, totoo siyang sigaw ng taumbayan. Ngayon, parang pagod na kasi talaga ang tao. Like ako, pagod na ako.”
He added that before the flood control controversy blew up in late July, barely anyone knew of the cuts being taken from the DPWH’s flood control projects. “Alam ko na maraming kupit na nangyayari sa road construction, sa mga sirang kalsada. Pero sa flood control, ngayon ko lang siya nalaman. So karamihan siguro ng tao nag-rally ngayon, ngayon lang siya narinig.”
With the controversy making headlines nearly every day for the last two months, the scandal compounds on the people’s other pains, only intensifying their rage.
“Dumadami na ‘yong taong tulad ko na napapagod na kakabayad ng tax tapos pataas ng pataas ‘yong bilihin. Tapos ‘yong Pilipinas, parang 10 years late pa rin tayo sa mga partnering countries natin. Because almost lahat ng binabayad nating tax, binubulsa lang ng gobyerno. So feeling ko gusto lang ng tao na next week may makulong na.”
Tiu believes that the Luneta and EDSA rallies will not be the last, and that the next big rallies may not be as peaceful.
“Feeling ko mangyayari siya ulit kapag wala pang nakulong next week. Kailangan may managot e. Kailangan may point person na makasuhan, kasi ang tagal na e. Pinakita ng government ‘yong pera. Ang bagal-bagal ng Senado, ang bagal-bagal ng Congress, ang bagal-bagal ng Department of Justice. And feeling ko ang next na mangyayari, hindi na siya peaceful, kasi dinaanan na natin sa peaceful e.”
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