I went to the Kapihang Kamalayan ng Malalayang Lasalyano (coffee-table gathering for social awareness of Lasallians who are freedom-loving) earlier this afternoon because the keynote speakers were Rep. Teddy Casiño of Bayan Muna and the star witness of the ZTE-NBN deal scandal, Engr. Jun Lozada. There was also Br. Mike Valenzuela from the De La Salle Brothers. Basically I just went there for some star power and to see another gathering of Lasallians. I really wasn’t particular of any specific objective aside from that I want to hear their stands about the national issues in real life.

What got me into thinking mode was the debate that was done by the De La Salle Debate Society about the urgency and the impact of the people power versus the constitutional methods. They debated for one hour as the audience including me listened. Gave applauses where it deserved. The oohs and aahs were surely there as the audience had a divided opinion. So now I’m putting what I thought earlier into writing

Deep inside me, I was really contemplating. Is it really time for method of last resort? How effective will be the people power once the people unleash it? Are we guaranteed of at least a 50 percent chance of succeeding? Are we really guaranteed with better days once Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is ousted from the presidency? The signs are all pointing there. The recent turn of events suggest that the people take matters into their own hands already. Over-priced projects. The NBN-ZTE broadband deal. Election rigging and Hello Garci. Extra-judicial killings. Oppression of the press freedom. The Executive Order No. 464. Oppression of the Filipinos. In-your-face bastardization and circumvention of constitutional processes and democratic institutions for personal interests. The current administration already created the perfect storm. The perfect equation for the people power.

But is it already due? Is the time already ripe for picking? These questions circumvent my mind. This is the first uprising that I’m fully aware of. I wasn’t born yet during EDSA 1. Didn’t care too much about the EDSA 2 and the EDSA 3(?). Back to the topic.

I was also thinking that maybe the people should wait this out and extract the “all constitutional channels”, according to one of the debate speakers, to make the President step down from her position before the people decide to go out in the streets and voice their disgust. Pressure the House of Representatives to impeach Mrs. Arroyo. Demand them for a change. That were the things that I picked up from the debate and it seemed to be reasonable of a process because it goes under the legal approach and evidences against the president are more concrete and much more harder. The downside of taking the constitutional approach is this whole nation will wait until September because of the 1-year ban on impeachment complaints one one government official that failed previously.

The only thing that I have against the constitutional processes is that the Filipinos are already like a bomb about to tick off and explode and certainly they don’t want to deal with a waiting game with the government. Certainly not with this cloud of brouhaha. I don’t bet that this thing or even the people can still wait until September - unless the present administration pulls another trick from its bag of tricks.

This Arroyo administration is a fast learner, and they may just take away important pieces of the puzzle so the next time we go out of the streets, the people power will halt into a complete standstill. That alone makes me think to just take the other road, which is using constitutional options, but Rep. Teddy Casiño mentioned earlier in the coffee-table discussions that the people in the House of Representatives were already plastered people by the government - plastered, of course, with cash.

They will move heaven and earth to block all impeachment complaints that are formally filed under the government court systems. If that is the case, then the whole process is just an exercise in futility. That will leave the door so wide open for another people power.

It’s a lose-lose dilemma for the people. We’re just being asked to pick for the lesser evil.

Which brings me back to my point… again: Will another EDSA revolution still be as effective this time? Will the bloodless revolution thing still have the power to make the current presidency to break down? Will it even remain bloodless this time?

There is this possibility that we rally for the current government’s ouster and the current president will just remain apathetic to the calls and block all the channels for the people, including the critical piece in the puzzle which is the military. There’s no denying to the fact that the piece that completed the puzzle for a successful uprising of the people is the defection of the military. I fear that possibility. Why so?

The first people power revolution, Defense Minister Enrile and Gen. Fidel Ramos defected. The EDSA Revolution 1 was so successful after 14 years of Marcos’ oppression. Marcos was forced to step down from his position and flee from the country.

The second time, Defense Secretary Orly Mercado and General Angelo Reyes defected. The EDSA Revolution 2, or EDSA DOS, was not that resounding as the 1986 people power but the people still achieved what they want. Estrada was convicted, later to be pardoned.

This time around? I really don’t see any indication that the Defense Secretary and AFP Chief of Staff will defect from the government side. I don’t really see it in them. That’s what scares me. I’m not insinuating that they were plastered by cash but we maybe put into a situation that we are blinded to go into the streets not knowing that there will be no life support to protect us.

And I don’t really think that the international community will like the fact that they are seeing this nation change presidents in the citizens’ hands whenever they see fit and not through constitutional avenues. Also, the two people powers have only changed the leadership here in our nation and not really brought us to the right system. There should be a consensus effort to amend the system once Mrs. Arroyo is ousted.

Okay, I’m sounding a bit too negative but that is the hard truth. I myself am for the people power, but when only highly needed. When it really already matters to go out and the streets and it already is worth to die for the benefit of the next generation. I don’t really think that it will be effective now given the fact that the administration is in full armor defense mode. I really think that they have to wait it out until the constitutional avenues have been extracted by the people and/or bastardized by the government and then that’s the time that we all brace together for people power. We still have to win the important pieces of the puzzle to make the people power successful and the good effects long-lasting.

We don’t want to wait but we don’t want to go into the battle without bullets. The government will just steamroll on all of us and our rights if that will be the the case in the next uprising. Yeah, let’s go to the streets but let us all prepare this time because I think that it will take more than just plainly converging in EDSA to make this attempt to be successful again.

And it turns out that my decision to attend the coffee-table discussions was not put to waste.