Around this time 27 years ago, the final phase of the People Power Revolution was unfolding in the nation’s capital, highlighted by the departure of the Marcoses and the installation of President Corazon C. Aquino. Social media was not yet around at that time, so Dumaguetenos were glued to their radio sets awaiting the latest information from Manila.
Here at home, then Negros Oriental Provl. Commander, Lt. Col. (and now retired Brig. Gen. and incumbent National Security Adviser) Cesar P. “Garrick” Garcia Jr., recalling the events in an interview Saturday, said he was with NAMFREL Chairman Msgr. Merlin Logronio when then PC Chief Fidel Ramos and Defense Sec. Juan Ponce Enrile announced they were going to take their last stand at Camp Aguinaldo.
Logronio asked Garcia: What will happen now? Garcia replied, “It will take a million people to gather in EDSA to prevent Ramos and Enrile from being attacked.”
Soon after, Cardinal Sin went on radio to ask the faithful to converge at EDSA. “There’s your one million people,” Logronio told Garcia.
That’s how the historical event called the EDSA People Power Revolution of 1986 came to be. For that moment, and for the days to come, everyone became proud of being identified as a Filipino. As an OFW working in a cargo ship narrated, “Whenever we met other ships, the crew would call out to us to ask if we were Filipinos. When we said we were, they would flash the thumbs up sign!”
The EDSA Revolution was a turning point for the Filipinos and the Philippines. It was, for many, like someone switched on the light in a dark room.
But also for many Filipinos, the dream at EDSA continues to be unrealized. Millions remain poor. Corruption is rampant. The Marcoses have made a comeback in the political scene.
Does the failure of the government to win the cases they have lodged against the Marcoses mean a failure of the EDSA People Power Revolution?
Not quite. The spirit of EDSA is the empowerment that many Filipinos feel they have today and use (sometimes abuse) it in the name of the common good. Today, Filipinos have no qualms about looking for strength in numbers if they want change. The message of EDSA means that people can do something if they unite.
EDSA meant and continues to signify clean governance. It is not a guarantee that corruption will disappear in a flash. It is a determination to pursue the vision of an ideal government that is of, by, and for the people.
We all have a stake in making EDSA work. We must strive to be well-informed so we can help actualize the vision by actively participating in the decision-making process.
