STA MARIA, Laguna – Residents here came out in droves Thursday and crowded the streets to cheer and express their overwhelming support to Manila Mayor Isko Moreno as the “Team “Isko” motorcade made its way around the 16 municipalities of the 4th District of Laguna.
The Laguna sortie was the longest motorcade so far for Moreno and his Aksyon Demokratiko candidates lasting almost 12 hours from the 10 am jump-off in Sta. Maria town until the 9:30 pm sign-off in the municipality of Pila. The Feb. 8 motorcade in the City of Manila only lasted 7 hours after it was cut short for the 5 pm Proclamation Rally at the Kartilya ng Katipunan.
Besides Santa Maria and Pila, Laguna’s 4th district is composed of the municipalities of Sta. Cruz, Cavinti, Famy, Kalayaan, Luisiana, Lumban, Mabitac, Magdalena, Majayjay, Paete, Pakil, Pangil, and Siniloan.
The province of Laguna is a vote-rich province with 1.9 million registered voters.
Everywhere Moreno proceeded, thousands of screaming and cheering supporters jostle for position in the crowded streets, all trying to shake or just touch the hands of the 47-year-old Aksyon Demokratiko standard bearer, and warmly welcomed him with open arms in Laguna.
It was as if whole towns and villages stopped their daily chores just to get a glimpse of Moreno.
Workers, public utility vehicle drivers, store owners, market vendors, construction workers, farmers, parents carrying their children, senior citizens, youth, and members of the LGBTQI (lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, transgender, queer and intersexed) community were all there, everybody cheering Moreno as he and his team passed on top of a medium-sized flatbed truck with a make-shift roof.
Some mothers and fathers even raised their children asking Moreno to touch their heads, with some even asking him to embrace their children, to which Moreno happily obliged.
And there were times when Moreno alighted from the vehicle to greet and utter some words of comfort and gratitude to the elderly on wheelchairs who waited patiently in front of their homes just to see him and show their support to their chosen candidate.
People in outlying villages near the motorcade’s route also came in tricycles, cars, bicycles and on foot just to show their support to the “Yorme ng Pilipinas.”
Even motorists, commuters, travelers, truck drivers, and riders going in the opposite direction could be seen waving and honking their horns to express their support for Moreno, his vice presidential candidate Dr. Willie Ong and Aksyon Demokratiko senatorial bets Dr. Carl Balita, Samira Gutoc and Jopet Sison.
Shouts of “Isko, Isko, Isko” and “Yorme, Yorme, Yorme” reverberated non-stop wherever he went while cellphone were in full view as Lagunenses try to capture the precious moment that Moreno was with them in the flesh.
And in a unique display rarely seen in political motorcades, a number of residents were the ones giving Moreno food packets, water, flowers, and even a rosary as a way to bid him good luck and Godspeed in his journey to Malacaňang.
It was a scene eerily similar to what happened in the City of Manila during the first day of the 90-day campaign, just that this is not Moreno’s birthplace and bailiwick, but Laguna.
In town centers and village centers, the motorcade was forced to a crawl and sometimes even to a halt due to the size of the crowds that spilled over to the center of the streets.
Even Mayor Isko was overwhelmed by throng of Laguna residents who ignored the heat just to express their full support behind him and his fellow candidates from Aksyon Demokratiko.
“Grabe ang tao. Ang lamig sa Laguna pero ang init ng tao. Maraming salamat. Nakakatuwa pati ang mga kotse, nata-traffic pero natutuwa. E ako nga, hiyang-hiya e.,” he said to his companions in their vehicle.
Nightfall found the motorcade in Pagsanjan, but even the darkness did not deter the people to patiently wait for Moreno’s caravan to pass through their communities. “Gabi na lumalabas pa sila,” Moreno could only mutter in awe at the people’s enthusiasm.
The motorcade that started at 10 a.m. in the town of Sta. Maria ended in the town of Pila at 9:30 in the evening, with just three brief stops – when Moreno visited the San Sebastian Parish Church in Lumban to offer a prayer of thanks and divine guidance, when he delivered a short message in the town center of Pagsanjan, and a courtesy call to Laguna Governor Ramil Hernandez at the Provincial Capitol building in Sta. Cruz.
“Maraming maraming salamat sa mainit na pagtanggap niyo sa amin. Nawawala ang pagod namin dahil lahat ng bayan, mainit ang pagtanggap sa amin,” said in Pagsanjan while standing on top of the driver’s cab of the vehicle.
“Ano ba ang nais niyo? Gusto niyo ba maiba naman? Asul ang kulay ng kapayapaan. Asul at bughaw ang nanalaytay sa isipan ng bawat Pilipino. Huwag sana kayong magsawa, huwag kayong bibitaw. May awa ang Diyos makakaraos tayo. Itatawid ko kayo. Pag pinalad tayo, pipilitin nating iahon ang buhay ng bawat Pilipino sa pandemya ito,” said Moreno.
It was a reiteration of his earlier message in Sta. Maria before the motorcade started, wherein he asked for the full support of the people of Laguna. Moreno was welcomed in Sta. Maria town by Mayor Cindy Carolino and her husband, congressional candidate Tony Carolino. Both are running under Aksyon Demokratiko.
In that speech, Moreno said he will address the inequality brought about by the elitist democracy that ensued after the Marcos dictatorship which had brought the country and its people nowhere. He said it is this inequality that prompted him to apply for the presidency, to give the people an alternative option, and a better option other than the usual political families that has lorded over the Philippines over the past 40 years, and who are now again vying for power.
“Kailangang-kailangan ko ng tulong ninyo, nang itaguyod natin ang dating ng tamang panahon, na ang Pilipinas, ang bawat mamamayan, pantay-pantay, walang mahirap, walang middle class, walang mayaman. Buong bansa, simula Luzon hanggang Visayas, hanggang Mindanao, magkakaroon ng equal opportunity ang bawat isa sa atin, pati ang salinlahi natin,” he said.
If elected president, Moreno said he will address the perennial problems of poverty, hunger, unemployment, inequality and social injustice in the country by focusing on providing the minimum basic needs of the people – housing, education, health care and jobs – through the efficient and prudent management of government resources. These form the main pillars of his 10-Point Bilis Kilos Economic Agenda.