Bags stuffed with cash and Noynoy at Luneta

On the day P-Noy declared a new corruption-free era in the Philippines, and shortly the parade capping this year’s June 12 Independence Day celebration, a young man named Bajo checked suitcases stuffed with oversized peso bills near the Quirino Grandstand.

He was one of more two dozen performers from the Tanghalang Pilipino of the Cultural Center of the Philippines who were asked to be part of the June 12 Independence Day parade.

“So what’s the money for?” I asked. “Para saan ang pera.”

Bajo laughed, then joked about hauling cash from a bank and heading to the U.S.

Then he added, “You’ll find out. It’ll be great!”

The troupe had been asked to perform a dance to help boost P-Noy’s anti-corruption campaign. The fake cash was part of the show.

When it was their turn to perform before guests, led by the politicians including P-Noy, an actor playing the Pinoy trapo – short for ‘traditional politician,’ derived from the Pilipino/Spanish word for ‘cleaning rag’ – strutted arrogantly, throwing the cash around.

Then he stood proudly next to a banner. It read: “Project: VOTE for Me or Else.”

The dance ended with a tableau, affirming the faith, perhaps, in  P-Noy’s vow of “a new era in our history,” of a “new Philippines, free from the clutches of corruption and poverty.”

It was my first time to watch up close P-Noy giving a speech as president. The speech in Pilipino was well-crafted, I thought. It was also a fairly strong delivery.

But it was hard to gauge the impact of the speech on the people around me.

Noynoy had given the same message in the past, after all. It was also a hot, humid afternoon. Maybe people were tired from the hours of waiting and standing in the heat.

The parade kicked off with rattling gunfire signaling the arrival of the president. The march of soldiers and military and emergency services personnel was impressive.

The performances themselves, including the Tanghalan dance, were well-executed and engaging.

But on stage, the dignitaries seemed bored. They looked like they were eager to get the parade over with so they can go home and maybe head on to some exclusive party for the privileged of the land.

It’s been a year since P-Noy became president. A lot of has happened. He is still popular, it seems. But the optimism has faded.

It was striking that he capped Sunday’s Independence Day festivities at the place where his presidency took one its earliest blows.

Luneta is now known not only for a bungled rescue. It now also represents an ugly stain in P-Noy’s vow to usher in an era of responsible government — one in which the leader of the land is not supposed to let family connections and friendships stand in the way of making tough decisions.

His call for a war on corruption continues. That’s also why organizers of the parade turned to the CCP’s Tanghalan to take part and to help highlight P-Noy’s anti-corruption campaign.

But it was hard to tell if the message came through.

At least, Bajo, the Tanghalan performer thought it did. He thought the skit featuring oversized peso bills stuffed in suitcase which an actor playing a trapo then cast around arrogantly had an impact. That the hours they spent putting together and rehearsing their dance were worth it.

“Tingin mo tumalab?” I asked after the show. “You think it had an impact?”

He smiled. The trapos may seem bored, he suggested, but he thinks their performance hit the spot.

“Effective sa kanila yon. It was effective,” he said. “Sakit yon. Sakit. I think it had an effect. It hurt.”

He was partly kidding. But I thought his answer was also an expression of hope.

Maybe that’s what celebrating June 12 also means.

On Twitter @KuwentoPimentel

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