Protest actions do not stem from simply wanting to bring down government. These are legitimate actions seeking redress from government for grievances and ineffective governance.
GMA is again unwilling to submit herself to criticism, much less insincere in her rhetoric about reconciliation and moving on. She has trained her sights against the consistent clamor of people in the streets - the very people whose lives are affected by her neo-liberal economic prescriptions and the political turmoil brought about by her alleged cheating in the 2004 elections.
The worsening unemployment situation in the country which has even forced doctors and nurses to leave by the thousands, rising prices of commodities that have kept more and more families poorer and even more hungry, union-busting and a consistent anti-labor slant in GMA's government - these are among the hundreds of reasons why workers keep taking to the streets and demanding for GMA's resignation.
The President is not immune from blame, and in fact, she is the very fulcrum of all this mess at this point. The longer she stays in office, the worse the situation will be for the country, both economically and politically. To crack down on dissent to present a fake semblance of peace and lack of opposition will not sweep GMA's crimes under the rug. Because it stinks it will come out in the open time and again, even if she depletes national coffers to cover up her tracks. It sounds Marcosian, but it is true.
When government institutions fail the people, the people have the sovereign right to exercise their authority to demand that government submit itself to the people's verdict. The verdict is out on GMA and it is anything but favorable. The right of workers and the masses to make this clear cannot be violated by the Marcosian dogma of a no permit, no rally policy. The higher principles of freedom of expression and association cannot be violated by the police forces of a president whose very mandate to govern is under question and whose policies have proven time and again injurious to the plight of workers and the masses.
We warn government and GMA against trying to impose the harsh end of the stick against workers and people exercising a Constitutionally mandated right to seek redress. Martial Law put us under dark clouds for only so long until people power brought it down. Filipinos will not let it happen again.
If GMA even so much as tries to see if the authoritarian glove fits, workers and the people will see to it that it proves to be her undoing.
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