Return of the coup pals - SKETCHES by Ana Marie Pamintuan

Old coup plotters never die. They also refuse to fade away. In the case of Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile and his long-time aide, Sen. Gregorio Honasan, toppling a government is probably an easier path to power than running for re-election. After their individual performances at EDSA in the past days, they could be dislodged from the tailend of the senatorial race by their two fellow opposition candidates who are better crowd agitators, Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago and Panfilo Lacson.

We got these four candidates’ names from intelligence reports leaked yesterday. Expect the four to deny the report, especially if the crowd at EDSA thins out with the withdrawal of the Iglesia Ni Cristo and the mobilization of the EDSA Dos forces. Maybe Senator Miriam will even declare with relish again, "I lied!" Signature cackle follows.

I wish I could say she was just playing devil’s advocate at EDSA. But it sure looked more like Senator Miriam was truly coming unhinged with the prospect of power at her fingertips. Because that was also part of the buzz yesterday: that the coup pals did not intend to restore Joseph Estrada to power, but were planning to install themselves as part of a junta that would lead this country to the Promised Land, amen. Again, I expect this story to be heatedly denied, unless Asiong Salonga, by some miracle, rides again and the four can picture themselves as the heroes of EDSA Tres.

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Fortunately, some quarters finally realized they were simply being used by the coup pals for their own political agenda.

How long can the EDSA crowd be sustained? The military and police have refused to defect, the INC is withdrawing, the Catholic Church definitely isn’t joining. Plus the money is running out.

Yes, the money. I know that crowd has legitimate grievances, and I do feel, like the rest of the middle class, that we are all partly responsible for the failure to lift millions of Filipinos from the dehumanizing clutches of grinding poverty. I think those text jokes insulting the crowd at EDSA must stop, though I admit some of the rallyists have the glassy-eyed stare of rugby sniffers. They are poor, they love Erap and I’m sure there are many who went to EDSA of their own volition – we must concede that.

But I also know money and a good deal of organization were also involved to put that crowd together. The boys who look like punks wear t-shirts emblazoned with the surname Asistio. What do you make of that? There were also streamers of party-list groups identified with Erap. Who paid for all the buses to transport the rallyists?

And who paid the caterer, Anna’s, whose owner operates the canteens of Xavier University and Immaculate Conception? The caterer hardly made money from preparing packed lunch and dinner for 25,000 people daily with a budget of P20 for lunch and P40 for dinner, but that was a lot of money for the person who footed the bill.

I know people who were paid P500 a day to go to EDSA. They were offered a smaller amount if they would get free lunch and dinner. They said they collected the money from the campaign headquarters of one of the coup pals near EDSA after signing up. Someone checked their attendance after an hour. Then they were free to leave.

Over the weekend, however, they were asked to attend three days in a row for P1,000 and to accept only an IOU. They declined. And that’s why I say money is involved and it’s running out.

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But even if there’s money involved, we must admit that there is genuine sentiment out there for Erap. How you wish all that passion of his multitudes could be channeled to more productive endeavors. How you wish Erap had put his immense popularity to good use. He could have done anything, he could have made his followers swallow all the bitter pills needed to improve this country. He could have been a great president.

Instead he used his popularity for himself, his families and cronies, with an occasional dole-out including fake land titles to his masses. I don’t know when the poor will finally see through his acting. There must be another popular personality who can persuade the poor that he or she feels their pain, and truly mean it.

No one can take it against the poor to gather at EDSA. But we must remember the characters who are manipulating that crowd for their personal agenda. These characters will do anything for power, even if it means bloodshed. We haven’t seen the last of the coup pals.