By JANESS ANN J. ELLAO
Bulatlat.com
MANILA — President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, progressive youth groups said, should be kicked out of school because she got a failing mark.
More than a thousand participants to the Pa-Siyam, a concert rally held at the Liwasang Bonifacio in Manila July 24, which was dubbed as the grand youth countdown to Arroyo’s ninth and final State of the Nation Address (Sona), gave Arroyo a failing mark for her performance as president.
“In almost one decade of presidency, Gloria [Arroyo] never implemented reforms in the Philippine education system,” Kabataan Rep. Raymond Palatino told the audience. He added that Arroyo never seemed to understand what history has taught them: “The masses would always win and dictators would always be ousted.” He gave Arroyo a failing mark in History because of this.
Anakbayan chairperson Ken Ramos said Arroyo also failed her Technology and Home Economics subject for not fulfilling her promises to uplift the lives of the Filipino people.
(Photos by Janess Ann J.Ellao / bulatlat.com)
Bugsy Nolasco, National Union of Students of the Philippines spokesperson, said in a statement that Filipinos are giving Arroyo a failing mark in Good Manners and Right Conduct for all the lies, deception and human rights violations under her regime. He added that Arroyo should have a failing mark in Science for not being able to address the crisis in the Philippine education system.
“While the masses are busy searching for ways to add a small amount of money for their everyday expenses, Gloria is doing nothing except multiplying her riches and the ways to deprive the people of their rights,” said Cristina Guevarra, chairperson of the Student Christian Movement of the Philippines.
The concert rally, which started around 5:30 p.m., featured various progressive artists and musicians like Jeff Pagaduan and Jess Santiago. The youth were later on joined by the peasants who marched from Southern Tagalog.
The peasants carried with them an effigy, which they called “Swine Glo,” that depicted Arroyo greedy for power but infected with the A(H1N1) virus. The effigy also carried a sign that read “Warning! Swine Glo, Deadly!”
Before the concert, the youth, led by the College Editors’ Guild of the Philippines (CEGP), held a “Shout Out Against Cha Cha” in front of the University of Santo Tomas around 3:00 p.m. and at the University of the East around 4:00 p.m.. The contingent from the CEGP asked students and passers-by to affix their signatures on a freedom wall to express their outrage over Gloria’s charter change maneuvers.
There were also simultaneous student protests from schools along Taft Avenue. Students from St. Scholastica’s College, who were joined by Jun Lozada, held a noise barrage dubbed as “Kulasa Kontra Cha Cha” along Leon Guinto st. Students from the Philippine Christian University and Adamson University also held simultaneous protest actions at Plaza Salamanca in Manila.
In a press conference July 24, law students from the University of Santo Tomas (UST), San Beda College, Lyceum of the Philippines, University of the Philippines and Ateneo de Manila University dared Arroyo to sign a resolution stipulating that she would not extend her term through any constitutional amendment. Kabataan Kontra Cha Cha convenor and spokesperson Terry Ridon said in a statement that the law students’ demand is reminiscent of former student leader Edgar Jopson’s dare to former president Ferdinand Marcos to sign a resolution indicating that he would not seek an extension of his term.
“We challenge Arroyo to sign this resolution stating she will not extend her term beyond 2010, or else she will face the people’s extralegal power – a people power uprising to remove her from office,” Ridon said. (Bulatlat.com)
