At the start of the four-day observance of EDSA People Power Revolt this year, former Pres. Fidel Ramos bewailed the prevailing lack of interest in the event that shook the world in 1986. Ramos of course should not have looked far to know why Filipinos are apathetic not only to the observance but to the memory of EDSA. A key player in the bloodless coup that forced strongman Ferdinand Marcos out of Malacañang, Ramos could have simply removed the colored glasses to see the real picture. For a little perspective, the question raised by Inquirer reporter Gil Cabacungan to Pres. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is precisely the sentiment felt by most Filipinos. In a televised interview, Cabacungan asked the President the question she did not like to hear: “Isn't it a concern for you that the billionaires during the time of Marcos and Ramos are also the billionaires now?” The question struck a sensitive chord on the President and she swiftly withdrew from the interview, obviously holding on to what remains of her patience and reining in that infamous temper that was all set to explode.

Without any doubt, Cabacungan hit the nail on the head. It was not so much because Arroyo beat a hasty retreat. It is so because this is the question that keeps popping up in the minds of Filipinos saddened by the fate of their country. When he declared Martial Law in 1972, Marcos said that among other things, he wanted to save the country from the oligarchs. As it turned out, he merely wanted the word reinvented. Oligarchs went out of vogue, cronies took their place. Marcos however did not have a franchise to the opportunism that afflict the powerful and the affluent in the country.

During Cory's time, it was Kamag-anak Inc. that became the in thing. At the very least, Ramos was a little more discreet. Under the guise of privatization and trade liberalization, the former general's incumbency saw the rise of former military officials to the ranks of the wealthy. Ramos made sure he hid behind layers of seemingly harmless entities to distance himself from scandal. Erap of course took his wining and dining to new heights. While the masses had long been appraised of his bohemian lifestyle, they could no longer stomach the excesses and lined up when the call to rally against him was sounded. All this time, the ranks of the poor multiplied. With the economy in tatters, more and more opted to flee the country notwithstanding the social costs that it entails. Like rats deserting a sinking ship, the best and the brightest set out to sea. Is it any surprise why Filipinos are not jumping with joy during EDSA rites?