Some photos I took from yesterday’s event over at Makati.
My sentiments of what took place yesterday will be posted later.
I go to rallies with an almost equal weight on two things: a personal conviction to the cause, and the event being a good photo-op. Last week’s Anti Con Ass rally made me question the first, and since I do these things wholeheartedly, how the hell can I shoot when I’m pissed?
I was sending updates on Twitter via SMS on the cab on my way to Ayala. Twitter’s a social networking platform I was not very active in, considering I signed up back in 2007, but having added my Plurk friends over, and them being very vigilant in informing everyone else in their own networks about the Anti Con Ass movement updates (there’s also me being a closet and rather shy political opinion maker), I knew it was the next best way in sharing the important stuff.
Like in most photo-ops, the camera stays in the bag for the first 5-10 minutes, until I get a feel of things. Police squads, a fire truck, hordes of street vendors, same-dressed organizations, and Makati’s urban poor were all prominent entities as I tried to get near the stage. The presentations were just about to start, and my rough estimate: there is only about half of the crowd there who went to willingly participate in the rally. There was a growing number of behind-the-fence Ayala yuppies.
The concentration of the crowd was right smack center of that Ayala intersection, but I was hopeful for a crowd swelling in the next few hours. I was at the anti Cha Cha rally late last year, which already got some flak from not having the expected numbers, so I do believe I had a valid point of comparison.
Oh yes, I was at Edsa Dos, too.
With my camera already out of the bag, I found my way to the backstage, where the politicos were. It does seem to be a more credible photo-coverage if I did have one or two of them in a snapshot, but I think it has more to do with the stories that are already associated with their name and face. As seen on the slideshow posted above, I caught Binay and Chiz, but I think this capture was a lot more meaty in substance:
That’s the son with a picture of his father at the back of his shirt. Nobody flocked after him, not even the press.
I went to the nearest convenience store to cool myself at almost 7PM, and I gladly found wifi as well. Read through everyone else’s updates, and I think I’m in the minority, loudly complaining re the turnout. Yes, I’m real glad protest actions like this are still done, and gets media and web coverage for all to see, but I don’t think, and feel like, that there’s a likely chance that we would again converge en masse, in president-toppling numbers.
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We’re all hopeful, we have to be, but I can’t blame anyone from being apathetic while its apparent that we’re being screwed. Obviously, the change we all want does not align with the fairy-tale dreamland project the present administration wants for the country.
My take is that the solution lies in a credible, inspiring, and agreeable leadership. The US and the Philippines has probably the most unpopular two-term presidents in the past few years, and well, maybe we do need a messianic, Obama-like leader, who can start by bringing pride into the Filipino psyche again, and follow it up with policy-making we need. Sadly, none of our ambitious presidentiables seem to fit the bill.
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My Twitter feed for that day:
At the back of rally stage, behind Mar Roxas. Just observing the personalities, not shooting. #conass
5:42 PM Jun 10th from UPD8
Sana dumami pa rin mga tao. Ang luwag dito, kumpara sa huling pagsali ko sa rally dito sa Ayala #conass
6:07 PM Jun 10th from UPD8@emerson_banez i’m afraid ill be leaving early. disappointing turnout tsk tsk
6:46 PM Jun 10th from web@joeyalarilla 20k? Oh come on. I’m here to support the cause, pero thats, sadly, rally crowd padding 🙁
7:02 PM Jun 10th from web@joeyalarilla padding pa rin! nakaklungkot nga, di naman umulan na. masyadong jaded na ang pinoy.
7:11 PM Jun 10th from webLeft Makati. The crowd is paper thin at more or less 1k at this time. Its official: the Filipino is jaded re the country’s affairs. All thanks to GMA
8:03 PM Jun 10th from UPD8
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Ooh, I saw M1. 😐