Rom’s article, “Must We?” summarizes the many opinions exchanged over the past week on the matter of “resistance,” where MLQ3 happened to quote a blog entry of mine entitled, “Resistance, Now.” Allow me to participate in this virtual round-table.
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I think nobody will disagree with me when I say that resistance is very, very inconvenient. Back in my college days, I remember how many of my classmates were ticked off every time a small band of students would rap on the classroom door calling for a walkout. Rallies and protest actions irritate drivers and commuters. The group of farmers in front of the Department of Agriculture may be seen as an “eyesore,” especially considering that this was part of Manny Pacquiao’s motorcade route. Bloggers take up precious time and bandwidth, especially for those teenagers who want to play DoTA. Who cares about resistance, when it is inconvenient to those who do not resist?
Consider that last sentence very, very carefully.
With all due respect to Rom, I have to disagree with her on one thing: yes, we should go out of our way, even in a fine day like this one, to fuel our hatred and our dissatisfaction towards The Government. I could, if I wanted to, just get the hell out of this computer shop, go to Timezone in TriNoma, and play Tekken 6. I could, if I wanted to, SMS my friends right now for an afternoon at Gateway and forget about the Philippines. Yes, we should go out of our way to vent out our spleens, our pancreas, and our intestines because of at least one of these:
We can. We must. We should. We have to.
I am sure that Filipinos don’t have to be reminded of things like “Hello Garci,” the pardon of Joseph Estrada, the invoking of executive privilege for Sec. Romulo Neri, the list goes on and on. I am sure that many Filipinos don’t have to be reminded of The Government’s inaction and ineptitude in handling the present “rice crisis.” The problem is that some Filipinos would rather have it at this, that this will pass, that dissent and resistance are inconveniences that make life even more inconvenient as it is.
I once got into a really heated argument with “pro-GMA” people who said that “we are upholding the rule of law.” Now that’s something, isn’t it? A President who disregards the most basic of our laws – with EO 464 for our right to information and Proclamation 1017 for free speech – is supported by people who, I assume, are very sincere with their support of the rule of law. The rule of law is not automatically the rule of right. What was lawful for Sec. Neri was to not answer a single question on the NBN-ZTE deal, but what was right was for him to tell the Filipino people every thing he knew about it. What was lawful was for GMA to use military force to suppress all unrest in 2006 through Proc. 1017, but what was right was for her to heed the voices of the people.
Yes, The President tarnished (among other descriptions that I am not really inclined to use right now) the very “rule of law” she “stands” for. Worse, The President does not stand for anything right about this country.
Yes, I agree that The President is not the root of all evil and she is not the cause of all our problems. There are a lot of things that have caused us to be in the political pickle that we are now. Yet this doesn’t mean that I agree with another contributor to our problems – Justice Secretary Norberto Gonzalez – that we should all give The President a “pat on the back” and “congratulate” her on a “job well done.”
We all need to speak out and make ourselves heard. We all need to act on our situations in every way we can. We need to risk some of the little conveniences in our lives for the inconveniences of fighting The Power and changing The System. It is inconvenient not to pay kotong to the corrupt cop, it is inconvenient to demand the tax collector where exactly your taxes go, and it is inconvenient to make it a point to pass by Malacañang to honk your horn really loud once or twice a week. It is inconvenient to pick up after your own litter, it is inconvenient to make a proper queue when boarding the MRT or when buying NFA rice, and it is inconvenient to make your voice heard.
It is inconvenient to disobey, it is inconvenient to stand up for what’s right, and it’s damn sure inconvenient to resist.
It is inconvenient to stand up for change, because it’s just so convenient to remain unchanged. We must resist.
Tags: executive privilege, Manny Pacquiao, protests, resistance, social change
