Another chance for peace with the Reds
For tonight’s special presentation on our talkshow Straight from the Sky, I enlisted our talented talkshow hosts, Mr. Erik Espina of Ang Republika and Mr. Mike Acebedo Lopez of Open Mike for a roundtable discussion on the topic “Whatever happened to the EDSA Revolution 31 years later?” Erik Espina, like me, was with the group of then Vice President Salvador “Doy” Laurel while Mike Lopez was just a baby when the EDSA Revolt ousted the Marcos Dictatorship.
Since this is not an interview, we three talkshow hosts are here to represent our sectors. Erik Espina represents Doy Laurel’s UNIDO, which was the strongest political party against the Marcos Dictatorship, while Mike Lopez represents the millennials who would later realize what the EDSA Revolt was all about, while I represent the anti-Marcos groups who asked Tita Cory to lead the nation against the conjugal Marcos dictatorship.
This makes for a very interesting discussion as to what happened to the EDSA Revolution. I purposely showed it two weeks after the 31st celebration so we can include what happened in EDSA the other weekend and why there was a massive rally in Luneta supporting Pres. Rodrigo “Digong” Duterte. Call it pathetic that there were two rallies for the 31st EDSA anniversary, but what was really sad was that the number of people who went to the EDSA Shrine numbered only a few thousand despite the presence of former President Benigno “PNoy” Aquino, III and the Liberal Party senators.
So watch this interesting discussion with Mr. Erik Espina, Mike Lopez, and me tonight on SkyCable’s channel 53 at 8 p.m. with replays on Wednesday and Saturday same time and channel. We also have replays on MyTV’s channel 30 at 9 p.m. Monday and at 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. on Wednesday and Friday.
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Last Thursday during the induction ceremonies of the officers and trustees of the Cebu Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Inc., it was the first time I met with Pres. Rodrigo “Digong” Duterte after the ceremonies were over. Presidential Assistant Michael Dino accompanied me to the stage to meet with the president who remembered me during the start of his presidential campaign when he met with Cebuano businessmen at the Country Club. I next met Duterte also at the Country Club after he won his Presidential bid, but he was still president-elect at that time. So in a way it was really the first time that I met Pres. Duterte now that he is the president.
I thanked him for giving the go signal for the 3rd bridge over the Mactan Channel as it brings fresh hope for us Cebuanos that if the construction won’t be delayed, it would be a great way to solve our massive traffic problem now happening between Mandaue City and Lapu-Lapu City. Of course, this also means that for the next three years, unless those flyovers will be installed in the major intersections of ML Quezon, Ave., Plaridel St. and UN Avenue, traffic will always be congested on your way to the Mactan-Cebu International Airport.
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There’s positive news these days that Pres. Duterte has opened his heart to talk peace with the communist rebels that a month ago reneged on their unilateral ceasefire, which forced the president to order the immediate stop to the peace talks in Rome. But this time Pres. Duterte put some pre-conditions before the peace talks can resume. He has asked the communist rebels to release its police and military hostages, stop collecting so-called revolutionary taxes, and refrain from asking favors. Then he added another condition that the communist rebels should stop burning equipment in the areas that they operate.
So the ball is in the court of the communists rebels. Pres. Duterte said, “I’m ready as long as we communicate well. I’m ready to resume the ceasefire again, but this time I want it to be sincere. Back then, there was a ceasefire but my soldiers were killed. That’s so difficult. For me, no one will win. If we Filipinos fight against fellow Filipinos, nobody wins. The nation, the Philippines loses.” How true. Let’s hope that this time, the communists show their sincerity to the Filipino people and seek real peace for our nation.
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