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November 29 — It was just like any other day for Sen. Antonio Trillanes, who had to face the Makati Regional Trial Court at 9:00 a.m. for the Oakwood mutiny case, the previous one he had masterminded some years ago.
While a lawyer was questioning co-plotter Brig. Gen. Danny Lim during court proceedings (there are two versions of this report), he was nudged by Layug and everything started to get out of the ordinary courtroom semblance. The MPs (military police) assigned to Trillanes did not heed the judge’s call to order and since they were armed, what happened next prevailed.
At around 10:15 a.m., he walked out and marched towards the Manila Peninsula Hotel (Pen). With him were former Vice President Teofisto Guingona, Trillanes’ bodyguards and some members of the Magdalo group that took Oakwood with him some years ago. Trillanes started calling for civilian support, which he had none in his Oakwood dry run, as he marched from the court towards the Pen. A considerable number of the press and the media went along to cover the event.
By 1 p.m. or so, the marchers were at the Pen and were settled in a room on the second floor. Media and the press were restricted to go beyond midway of the second floor alley.
Seemingly, the Pen detour was planned, as other anti-government personalities, who, later on appeared, were already there. Not by chance. ‘Running priest’ Robert Reyes, Bishop Labayen, movie actor/screenwriter Bibeth Orteza and former UP President Dodong Nemenzo were there. Trillanes’ lawyers, Argee Guevarra and JV Bautista also proceeded there.
The Makati RTC immediately released Trillanes’ warrant of arrest for contempt.
By 2 p.m., NCRPO Chief Geary Barias arrived at the Pen but some members of the Magdalo tried to hold him back. He declared a 3 p.m. deadline for all to vacate the Pen premises. For the duration of Barias’ stay at the Pen’s lobby, he attempted to gain more ground but was ushered towards the door while those within applauded to see him leave.
As “authority emanates only from the people in a democratic and republican government,” Trillanes’ group calls on the public anew as they let in the media in a conference room at the Pen. Under an assumed ‘political act,’ which is remotely related to his Oakwood mutiny case, Trillanes and his group leveled the following challenges against the PGMA administration: an illegitimate government devoid of ethical considerations; no sense of decency; slack in public accountability; a senate that cannot function well as it blocks all efforts at it; a congress where representatives are paid. The group believed their action is legitimate under democratic laws.
Their demands are valid and we know it; but in the end, Trillanes and company decided to move out of the Pen. Fumes from tear gas cans already filled the lobby up to the second floor. Some members of the media and the press were handcuffed and held in an area by the hotel entrance. Later on, they were told to proceed to Bicutan (Camp Bagong Diwa) for ‘interrogation’. Media paraphernalia and equipment were confiscated.
Before he gave himself away, though, Trillanes spoke. Between fumblings and seeming unsure words, he said: what was started is not finished yet.
But what viable and legal alternatives to the present government did he provide, if any? He can’t just drive a president from her office with nothing else to offer, can he? Could the personalities he was with at the Pen promised him the mass base he was calling for?
Or, did he know from the beginning that it was a lost cause? On second thought, was it really a lost cause? It cannot be counted out that the guy is brilliant. His parting words bear something else. Could it be that the walk-out from the courtroom detonated something we don’t know yet? Was that a signal for something big to come later?
From the courtroom to the Pen was a long way for a stroll and there had been no intervention from the government’s side at all. It was shown on national television that he could not be touched during that stroll. Could he be protected from the sidewalks by some other elements that holing him up at the Pen was the only way to catch him? What if he just stayed on Makati Avenue so he could have a good view of what was happening outside and freely call on the mass base he so needed for his plot to make it to first base? He has a cellular phone with him; he has links to just anyone!
And what breed of men makes up his MP’s and bodyguards? For all we know, they could have escaped early on even before reaching the court for his scheduled hearing; but no, he had to show his rebel side again. Who designs his schedules? Even from his cell, the government doesn’t have that much grip on him if he can do anything whenever he steps out. Is he just playing along?
Who else could be behind him in this act? For the former Vice President Guingona to be joining him, there must still be others who don’t want to surface yet until such time there is certainty in that move.
There is, obviously, something bigger than what we perceive here or what we are made to believe. For one, Trillanes’ rebel days are not yet over and, apparently, he knows he is always steps ahead of the government.
