By CESAR JOLITO III
Youth leaders and reform advocates took center stage during the Trillion Peso March 2.0 in Bacolod City yesterday, urging vigilance and government transparency — just as Malacañang affirmed President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.’s support for protesters — demanding accountability over alleged multibillion-peso flood control scams.
Leading the protest action were Kabataan Party-list Representative Atty. Renee Louise Manda Co and former Negros Occidental Governor Rafael “Lito” Coscolluela, who said Filipinos deserve a government that is fully transparent, especially amid widespread anger over anomalous infrastructure projects.
“Mahalaga na nandito ang taumbayan dahil tayo talaga ang magbibigay bukas at kinabukasan na deserve ng taumbayan, hindi po mga politiko,” Co told rallyists, saying the youth will continue pushing both legislative and public campaigns against corruption.
“Well, ang ginagawa natin — una, meron po tayong legislative measures and government engagement na ginagawa,” he added.
Coscolluela, convener of the Tama Na Coalition, said the worsening political climate demands constant public scrutiny of government actions.
“Masyado kasubó sang sitwasyon sang Pilipinas,” Coscolluela said.
“[Dapat may] transparency — kinahanglan mabal-an naton kun ano ang ginahimo sang gobyerno para mapunggan naton ang corruption,” he added.
He said that instead of repeatedly clashing with the government after failures, Filipinos must guard and foresee potential abuses before they occur.
The Bacolod City Police Office estimated the crowd at about 3,000, its director, Police Colonel Joeresty Coronica, said.
More than 2,141 personnel from the Police Regional Office in Negros Island Region (PRO-NIR), other lead agencies and local traffic units were deployed across Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental, Siquijor, and Bacolod City to secure the mass actions.
PRO-NIR Director Brigadier General Arnold Thomas Ibay said police fully respect the right to peaceful assembly, calling it “a vital pillar of democracy.”
‘We will not be silenced’
General Alliance of Workers Associations (GAWA) Secretary-General Wennie Sancho said yesterday’s anti-corruption rally reflected deep national frustration.
“The working class, the backbone of this nation, will be silenced no longer. We assert our dignity, we reclaim our honor, and we demand justice,” Sancho said in a statement.
“The sun rises over the crowded streets, a sea of determined faces united in outrage and hope. We will not be deceived. We will not be oppressed. And we will not be silenced,” the GAWA secretary-general added.
Sancho said the coffers of the government “have been plundered, and the democratic ideals shamelessly trampled by power-hungry tyrants.”
“To the tyrants who have stolen from us, who have lied to us, and who have shamed our nation: Your time is up. We will not be intimidated, we will not be corrupted, and we will not be defeated,” he said.
Palace: Marcos supports rallyists’ calls for accountability
Hours before the rallies peaked nationwide, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) issued a statement affirming President Marcos’ alignment with the public’s clamor for accountability.
PCO Undersecretary and Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said the President supports the “legitimate, non-destabilizing” calls of protesters.
“Freedom of expression ay iginagalang ng administrasyon na ito. At alam natin ang panawagan ng mga kababayan natin: panagutin ang mga sangkot, at hindi naman para mag-destab[ilize],” Castro said in an interview with dzBB.
She emphasized that the President himself exposed the alleged ghost and anomalous flood control projects now under investigation.
Castro stressed that the investigation will not spare anyone — including individuals close to the administration.
“Hindi naman i-open ng Pangulo ang issue na ito kung alam niya na tatamaan siya. Alam niya na wala siyang ginawang mali,” she said, adding that the President wants airtight cases built on solid evidence to ensure no guilty party escapes accountability.
“Dahil sa pagbubunyag ng Pangulo, nagbukas ang utak natin, ang mata natin, na inaabuso ng mga makapangyarihan ang pondo. At ‘yun ang gustong labanan ng Pangulo,” she added./CJ, WDJ