“If you had the power to do anything you want, what would you do?” I hear this question so often as I go through life, and as a kid, I would go to the answers that my imagination fueled like making a house fly with balloons or talk to toys. Now, being a teenager with raging emotions, I’d say I would go as far away as possible from here and start a life on my own. Others would have different intentions for their reasons, and some would even be selfish. Fortunately, not everyone has that kind of opportunity, and unfortunately, the ones that do oftentimes turn a blind eye. Take it from President Rodrigo Duterte, a man sitting on top, who uses his power to not build his country but instead destroy it by taking the lives of its citizens.
During this COVID-19 pandemic, we are all expected to stay inside our respective homes. By doing so, we are not only saving ourselves but preventing the spread of the virus in our communities. In the first few weeks of the implementation of an Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ), the numbers of positive cases were still on the rise. Instead of directing efforts towards an effective solution and a concrete plan to this pandemic, Duterte signed a law that granted him the power to deal with the contagion. This includes adding more strict guidelines and allowing the police to punish those who fail to follow rules. Punishments such as capturing the violating citizens, forcing them to stay in dog cages, to lay down in the scorching sun for hours, and holding them in prison cells.
That was only the beginning of the storm. With the blueprint of the drug war, Duterte also called for the “shoot to kill” order, which implies that the police have granted permission to shoot anyone who went against lockdown restrictions. The President was not even afraid to be blunt about him encouraging murder, saying that we should not challenge the government. So not only were people dying from this pandemic, but they were also dying bullet by bullet.
Activists are being pulled into the equation as well. Throughout this ongoing pandemic, despite following the protocols, activists are being detained and even murdered in the most gruesome ways. Like how an activist from Cotabato got his throat slashed and his eyeballs removed.
And the cherry on top of it all is that the government isn’t hesitating to take advantage of our vulnerability. It’s bad enough that we are facing the constant fear of the virus every day, now the fear of the government is added. People are not just dying; they are being controlled. They were threatened by the fear that one little misstep is going to lead them to their graves. This is prominent especially towards people of IP communities who own acres of land that the government takes for the benefit of their capitalists. Like how an Aeta community was bombed in Zambales because of their land being a mining spot. This event would leave you begging for your life and if you weren’t already dead, they will continue terrorizing the community until you end up exchanging it for your land. If they don’t bomb the lands, they bomb the schools. Recently, a military group bombed a Lumad school in Bukidnon with the reasons being that by bombing their school, this prevents them from learning how to read and write. And if their ability to read and write is put to a halt, it would be easier to oppress and manipulate them into signing papers for the government to take ownership of their lands.
All of these disastrous acts, of course, caused an outrage. However, others would argue that we are simply too sensitive to the happenings and that we should just do what the government tells us to do. “Why can’t you just stay inside?”, “It’s an easy task to do.”, “If you don’t want to get killed, just follow orders.” Well, those who are saying that have a thing called privilege. We have to understand that not everyone is born with the comfort of having enough money, enough food- even a roof above their head. The government gave so much power to these forces to subdue and silence the anxious masses, demanding them to comply even though their lifestyle prevents that from happening. The victims of these killings were not people who violated the rules for no reason. The ones who went outside during this pandemic are simply hardworking people who have no other choice in providing for their families.
The disappointing part of this is that the people who are supposed to ensure our safety, who are supposed to keep peace in this country are exploiting the system and its citizens because they can. They approach each situation with a lack of sensitivity and empathy, using gaslighting techniques to save face. And the media eats it all up! We are faced with news filled with white lies, destroying our trusts even more.
Again, if you had the power to do anything you want, what will you do? We may be a generation that is too afraid to talk at the fast-food counter, but together, we have the power to defend what is right. Enough is enough and now we have to wake up. We don’t have to endure this; it is time for us to realize that the Philippines is being suffocated by fear and we are just allowing it. We need to permit ourselves to see that there are people who are fighting – for rights, for lives, for land and we can go from there. We can raise more awareness and we can fight. We have an opportunity to regroup, educate each other, and to fight a bigger battle for the betterment of the people. Sitting idly waiting for a miracle is not going to cut it because we are the miracle that this country has been hoping for.
