Dear Friends,
On June 3 at 5 p.m., we are launching Wakasan Na!, a movement to end President Duterte’s rule and his legacy of failed and detrimental policies. This will be an online event via Zoom, livestreamed over various social media platforms and covered by the press.
Wakasan Na! is an offshoot of the “Save the Nation! Duterte Resign!” petition initially signed by 500 personalities and which has gathered more than 69,000 at the change.org site. It aims to hold Duterte accountable for his failed leadership and usher in a change in leaders and policies if not now then by the 2022 elections. It is an effort to help the nation out of the rut and spur us into recovery (please see attached concept note).
In this light, we would like to invite you to be part of Wakasan Na! by joining our online launch on June 3 at 5 p.m. (please register using this link: https://bit.ly/2QTEdhX) and by clicking the “Like” button at the Wakasan Na! Facebook Page (https://tinyurl.com/pckacm6p).
We would also like to invite you to participate in the nationally-coordinated motorcades and protests scheduled on June 12, Independence Day, with the theme “Wakasan na ang pagpapakatuta sa China! Atin ang Pinas! China Layas!”. Other details to follow.
For more information, please contact the Wakasan Na! Movement at WakasanNaMovement@gmail.com.
Wakasan Na!
More than 500 personalities signed the “Save The Nation! Duterte Resign!” statement within 48 hours of its rollout last April. Sixty-nine thousand others signed the petition on change.org.
From any angle, the statement represents a breakthrough.
Amid the fear brought by almost five years of Tokhang and the incessant attacks on critics by Malacanang and its social media army, thousands chose to stand up and say, “Enough.”
To these 69,000 Filipinos, concern trumped terror. Patriotism won over timidity. Love for nation prevailed over apathy.
The statement itself laid down what fueled these decisions. Thousands of extra-judicial killings, corruption, neglect of poor and vulnerable Filipinos, the shameful conduct of President Rodrigo Duterte, bordering on treason, in the face of Chinese aggression, and the cynical conduct of its failed pandemic response.
But one statement, one petition, does not make a movement. Most goals, especially those that have to do with national survival and progress, need more than a single action. It takes a people to exact accountability on corrupt tyrants. It takes this same people to help the nation out of the abyss and spur recovery.
Thus, the “Wakasan Na! Movement”: Because we need to help each other in reminding people why Duterte and all he stands for should never again rule this nation. Whether people seek resignation, impeachment, ouster, or ensuring the defeat of his political heir in 2022, there is enough ground for us to come together and work together.
We must defeat Duterte’s attempt to stamp his evil legacy on our people.
In its place, we can combine our energies, brains and passion to craft an effective health response plan, including the grant of adequate and timely ayuda. We can gather to assert our national sovereignty and defend our rights in the West Philippine Sea. We can join and support the many diverse efforts to end EJKs and other human rights abuses, ensure long-term protection of civil liberties, cement good governance and rekindle efforts to seek a just and lasting peace.
Wakasan Na! is also a pledge to break the silence and a call to help other Filipinos find their way to speaking out and expressing both their disappointments and their vision for the nation.
Wakasan Na! is an avenue where we can collectively overcome fear and indifference and show the world that beyond the administration’s bluster and bravado, more and more Filipinos are seeing Duterte as nothing but a very tarnished, tottering idol. The handwriting is on the wall: #WakasanNa!
