DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 30 November)—Holiday or not, progressive groups here took to the streets to mark the 160th birthday of Andres Bonifacio, urging President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to address various educational, security, and economic issues during their protest at the Freedom Park here Thursday morning.
Progressive groups stage a rally at Davao City’s Freedom Park to commemorate the 160th birthday of Andres Bonifacio on 30 November 2023 (Thursday). MindaNews photo by IAN CARL ESPINOSA
The President, in his Proclamation No. 90, moved the commemoration of Bonifacio Day from November 27 (a Thursday) to the 30th, which falls on Monday, and made it a non-working holiday to give Filipinos a long weekend.
Even if November 30 is a working day, progressive groups such as Kilusang Mayo Uno-Southern Mindanao Region (KMU-SMR), Anakbayan Southern Mindanao, and Transmission-Piston Southern Mindanao flocked together to air their grievances against the current government.
The participating groups said that they are continuing Bonifacio’s revolutionary spirit in striving and pursuing nationalist and democratic struggle “that the national hero had started.”
In a statement by KMU-SMR, the group said they aim to lobby for a P1,100 daily national minimum wage which can sustain ordinary Filipino workers’ needs.
The current minimum wage in Davao Region ranges from P428 to P443 per day.
“The situation of Filipino workers is dire and worsening as the administration of Bongbong Marcos enters its second year. Prices of basic commodities are rising, yet workers’ wages remain low,” the group said in a statement.
They also pointed out the government’s “harassment and intimidation towards [labor] leaders and activists.” Notably, KMU-SMR released a statement that their secretary-general, Paul John “PJ” Dizon, and auditor Leoncio Rabaca were “harassed by elements of [the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict]” as they received an “unwarranted entry by the agency’s officials”.
KMU-SMR said that NTF-ELCAC officials “threatened and coerced Dizon” by urging him to “surrender” to the authorities in order to “clear” his name. The group said that should Dizon not cooperate with the government agency, he will be further threatened with criminal charges.
These incidents are said to be “blatant violations” of workers’ freedom of association, the group said.
Meanwhile, the progressive group Anakbayan called on the government to increase the education budget, as this resulted in budget cuts to 36 state colleges and universities (SUCs). They also denounced the mandatory Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program.
Notably, former president Rodrigo Duterte said during his television program that Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte intended to allocate the proposed confidential funds from her offices for the revival of the mandatory ROTC program, noting that the program will be “pushed as compulsory.”
But the House of Representatives stripped the vice president of confidential funds, realigning the P650 million she asked to agencies involved in intelligence work.
Transmission Piston, meanwhile, expressed sentiments on the potential job losses that may occur among jeepney and bus drivers with the implementation of the Davao Public Transport Modernization Project, which is also referred to as the High Priority Bus System. (Ian Carl Espinosa / MindaNews)
