The Authorities thought that turning the country into a semi-"police state" will make cowards of 80 million Filipinos. In a "slow burn," the citizens are today displaying their pent-up outrage against the excesses of an oppressive government. They are "cowards" no more.

Cartoon pictures of government officials with long noses - depicting what happened to the character Pinochio whenever he told a lie, abound. Stars yelled "We will, we will oust you" to the tune of "We will Rock You" in the Makati rally last Friday as thousands of rallyists pelted the picture-face of GMA with garbage.

Posters and stickers scream: "Moderate your greed, Exterminate your breed." Joey de Venecia, scarce hair, jeans and all, sounded like a 70s demagogue - demanding the "thieves in the Palace to quit."

The Integrated Bar of the Philippines has spoken in strong words - disbarment for lawyers involved in forcing witnesses to sign documents under duress. Students, then apathetic, now see the issues clearly and are making school-backed political statements.

Business led by the Makati Business Club had asked for Cabinet members Lito Atienza and Romy Neri to resign. The three business groups (Makati Business Club, Management Association of the Philippines and Finex) issued board-backed, strongly-worded club statements - short of asking GMA to resign.

The laughable DTI secretary Peter Favila allegedly threatened to let loose the BIR on unsympathetic business firms. MBC chairman Ramon del Rosario challenged Favila to "bring them in," showing that "Boy Blue" courage we saw during the 1985-1986 waning Marcos years. Like in Marcos' time, the BIR had not been used to run after Tax Evaders but after Political Reformers. But the public knows that the worst thieves are found inside the citadels of corruption called the BIR and Customs.

Struck by the impunity of it all, the CBCP (Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines) issued a call of "communal action" against these travesty of justice and oppression. Finding the term "communal action" ambivalent, running activist - priest Roberto Reyes charged the bishops of that "moderate censure against the powers-that-be because government might moderate their donations to the bishops." Every one seems to be saying their piece of anger now.

Over 800 killings and disappearances of church leaders, activists, media men and farmers have been a black eye in human rights for the GMA administration. This record, however, did not scare the farmers from Sumilao to march from Mindanao to the Palace and demand justice for the land stolen from them. This did not prevent journalists handcuffed during the Manila Pen crisis to file charges against the authorities.

Last Friday, the Supreme Court spanked the Government (particularly the NTC and DOJ) saying that preventing the playing of the "Hello Garci" tapes by media is "prior restraint" and therefore unconstitutional. Clearly SC Chief Justice Puno, unlike Marcos' SC Chief Justice Fernando, will not hold the umbrella for GMA in public.

To justify the tanks and troops that recently converted the two city military camps into a garrison state, the Government said there were 7 Special Operations Groups (speaking Arabic, sic) aimed at killing GMA while the Muslims protest that there is an on-going peace talks, for heavens sake.

Sycophantic local government leaders - beneficiaries of perks and pork - gathered Friday in Manila to show their constituents were for GMA - while cities disproved them - like Cebu, Davao and Cagayan which had rallies of peeved citizenry. Bacolod City, the birthplace of the Arroyos - Mike and Iggy - rocked with 2,000 people joining a pro-Lozada rally.

Meantime, lightning rallies were staged by Gabriela at the LTA Building (office of the First Gentleman) in Makati and activists at the palatial home of disgraced ex-Comelec chair Ben Abalos in Mandaluyong: two sites of massive corruption, according to the rallyists.

Last Friday morning before the Makati rally, the laughable DTI secretary Favila told - in their face - foreign investors and bankers that the Philippines is the best investment bet in the Far East - while the delegates snickered. The last month alone some P8 billion in "hot money" had left the Philippine Stock Exchange to better shores.

In that same economic forum, President GMA said her administration will not "tolerate corruption" and "is taking the ZTE issue very seriously." Few days ago, the PNP, Avsecom, airport officials, the DENR and trouble-shooter Mike Defensor - tried to "kidnap" super-star ZTE witness Lozada or to make him appear in the Senate and tell "the government version" of the ZTE Story.

Atienza had referred to "ES" and "Mam" as his boss in the episode and a PSG guard was involved in the airport abduction. Who will believe GMA? Now the DOJ (with Raul Gonzales, of course) and the Ombudsman (chaired by a Law classmate of Mike Arroyo) have been tasked to investigate the ZTE scam? How credible are these institutions?

Given their chance to tell their tall tales, a horde of government men appeared in the senate - and the whole nation on television and radio last Monday - and tried to rattle, mislead and intimidate Lozada. But his truthful even painful accounts of the star witness only made all the President's men look foolish, at worst - dumb, at best.

Today, Sunday, Cory Aquino - the woman who kicked the dictator out of the country in 1986 and had demanded for GMA's resignation after Hello Garci - called for the faithful to attend a morning Holy Mass at the La Salle Greenhills (where Lozada is being safe-kept) to be officiated by a Jesuit - in prayer and support for Jun Lozada.

Lozada, today, is the new symbol of a new day dawning for the country. In the past, opposition to GMA has been scattered because there was no symbol of "Good" to pit against the symbols of "Evil." The sincerity and honesty of a Jun Lozada has given a "face" to the "Good" and people will rally around him in the days to come.

The Eastern PNP had installed spy cameras on the gates of La Salle to perhaps document and intimidate the supporters of Lozada coming to that Holy Mass today and the days thereafter. They have news for government.

Many will troop to La Salle today - with the faces wide open for scrutiny, some with placards with "interesting messages" for Government and others showing their dirty fingers to the camera.

Maybe, the 80 million Filipinos are cowards no more.

THE NEED FOR FISCALIZERS

We in the Fourth Estate always welcomes any sector who joins our media crusade for clean governance. We are a horse and carriage, in that respect.

We need fiscalizers in every local government unit so "evil won't triumph", a role which, for instance, the Legislative

branch can do in order to maintain check-and-balance. Are our city, town or provincial legislatures doing that? Let us remember that sometimes all it takes for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing in the face of evil. It is also called the sin of "omission".

The latest to sound as if inclined to this call is former OIC Governor.Victor de la Serna who was once a foe of media during his incumbency. He canonized himself Mr "Big Time Governor" - but the founding publisher-editor of this paper was never cowed by self-proclaimed titles.They fought openly in public discourse.

De la Serna today demands transparency regarding the P97 million "city hall fund" which he claimed is under the descretionary call of the city mayor. Mayor Dan Lim said the figures are bloated. However, the mayor indicates that he will publish his city hall expenditures on a quarterly basis. While de la Serna was asking for accountability of the 2006 expenditures, Lim is committing to publish the current expenses by quarter.

Could we be comparing apples with oranges here? Are the premises of this public debate clearly established?

The feisty, combative city mayor has also asked de la Serna to simply get the figures of the past years from city hall since they are all public documents. Or is the former OIC Governor asking for an itemized justification per budget on a line by line basis?

The public, actually doesn't give a hoot what lovers' quarrel caused the sudden rift between these two "best allies", who last election, were like sweethearts roasting to a crisp lechon re-electionist Rep. Edgar Chatto. All the public wants to know now is the truth and accountability.

Well for De la Serna, he says he just asking for transparency for the spending of every centavo of Juan dela Cruz. Dan accepts Victor's moves and even challenged him to file charges against him. In fact, he wrote Ombudsman Visayas to "investigate him" which to many sectors sound so "over reacting" - or is it? Victor says he is not filing charges but is simply demanding an "open book" of Dan's city hall discretionary funds. He even questioned why Dan has to be fuming mad if asked of such accounting which he is obligated to do being the "repository" of people's money.

We just hope that at the end of the day, we see black and white figures to convince every taxpayer that Mr. Mayor is not putting a single cent to his pocket. Or that Atty. De la Serna is not just grandstanding but is being patriotically investigative.

What is obvious now is that it pays to have a strong Opposition who will act as fiscalizer in every LGU in the province. Perhaps, the reason why a former OIC Governor has to take the cudgels is because no one inside city hall is bold enough to scrutinize the city hall fund.

The public is just hoping some insiders, like the lawmakers (not just in the city) but in every town and in the provincial level

will start demanding figures from their chief executives in the manner that they demand transparent governance. We need more whistle-blowers in the mold of a Jun Lozada on the ZTE-NBN scam at the local level.

At the other level - provincial - one can start by asking why the Provincial budget in 2005 was lower than the 2004 budget (an election year). Doesn't budgets always escalate every year - due to inflation? True fiscalizers should ask that question.

For Comments: email to bingo_dejaresco@boholchronicle.com Or editor@boholchronicle.com