Members of Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) and its allied organizations will march in Quezon City on the day of the second State of the Nation Address of Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr amid the worsening poverty and hunger, rampant cronyism, intensified US military intervention, and continuing attacks on human rights defenders.
Over the past 12 months, Marcos Jr indulged in lavish parties and frequent foreign trips instead of addressing the cost of living crisis, food and job insecurity, and the post-pandemic economic hardships. His indifference to the plight of ordinary workers is reflected in the insulting decision of the government to give a mere 40-peso wage increase for Metro Manila minimum wage earners. His solution to the economic crisis is to gamble public funds through the railroaded and corruption-prone Maharlika Investment Fund. He approved the proposed hike in train fares while public utilities remain in the hands of big business as communities suffer from water shortage, power fluctuations, and inefficient and inadequate delivery of services.
Photo: Vera Files
Like his predecessor, Marcos Jr adopted the brutal methods of his dictator father in violently suppressing dissent. Members of Bayan have been arbitrarily and unjustly designated as terrorists by the Anti-Terrorism Council junta. Draconian laws are used to harass and detain activists, community organizers, and human rights defenders. Meanwhile, Marcos Jr has barred pending initiatives to make Duterte and other officials accountable for the bloody ‘war on drugs’ and all-out war against the communist movement.
The anti-poor, anti-democratic, and anti-Filipino policies of the Marcos Jr government have led to growing public discontent and outrage.
The Sona protest will be a venue for various sectors to express their views and present the true state of the nation. We support the call of the labor sector for a substantial wage increase. Bayan will also highlight the people’s agenda for genuine local development, human rights protection, good governance, and assertion of national sovereignty. We will assert the people’s constitutionally-guaranteed freedom of expression against any attempt to curtail this right.
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