Chapter 31

THE EDSA REVOLUTION

A political crisis had gripped the nation since August 21, 1983,
when Benigno Aquino, Jr. was assassinated minutes after his return to
the Philippines from exile in the United States and while under military
custody. Demonstrations against the “authoritarian” regime of
Ferdinand Marcos escalated in intensity and the “parliament of the
streets” became common occurrences. To defuse the situation and to
once again “legitimize” his presidency, Marcos called for snap
presidential elections in February 1986. Marcos and his running mate,
Arturo Tolentino, were proclaimed elected by the Batasang Pambansa,
using as basis official results issued by the Commission of Elections.
The opposition LABAN candidates, Cory Aquino, widow of the
assassinated leader, and Salvador Laurel, her running mate, contested
the results of the election, claiming that massive fraud and terrorism
were committed by the Marcos machinery. With the support of
influential Jaime Cardinal Sin and strong American pressure, especially
coming from Congress and the State Department, Marcos was
persuaded to yield power, thus avoiding what might have been a
bloody confrontation between Marcos’ military supporters and “people
power.”

People Power Revolt

Marcos’ “superior organizational capability,” and machine politics

delivered the elections to him, amidst revelations that violence and
fraud marked election day. Marcos’ proclamation by the Batasang
Pambansa on February 16 did not sound convincing to Cory
supporters. Cory announced a program of economic boycotts and non-
violent actions to dramatize her posture as the winner betrayed.
Before Marcos could be inaugurated President on February 25 th,
Defense Minister Juan Ponce Enrile and Vice Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Fidel
V. Ramos announced their break with Marcos. Enrile was alarmed by
reports of pending mass arrests of Reform the Armed Forces
Movement (RAM) officers and opposition leaders, which preempted by
gathering some 400 of his men in defensive positions at Camp
Aguinaldo. Enrile sought Cardinal Sin’s support and thousands of
people responded to Cardinal’s appeal for “our two good friends” and
began massing outside the rebel camps on EDSA. An estimated one to
two million people converged on Camp Crame and Camp Aguinaldo,
immobilizing the military counter-force that neutralize the military
rebellion. For four days, from February 22nd to 25th, 1986, “people
power” supported the Enrile-Ramos rebellion which increasingly
declared support for Cory Aquino. On February 25 th, Corazon Aquino
and Salvador Laurel were sworn in as President and Vice-President,
repectively, by Supreme Court Justice Claudio Teehankee. Enrile was
named Defense Forces Chief of Staff. On the same day, at noon,
Ferdinand Marcos took his oath of office in ceremonies at Malacañang
Palace, attended by several thousand flag-waving loyalists. Marcos’s
running mate, Tolentino, failed to attend the inaugural. That evening,
Marcons could no longer hold on in the midst of people power support
for the new government of Cory Aquino. Under pressure from US
Ambassador Stephen Bosworth and the US government to step down
in order to avoid violence, Marcos and his family left the Palace,
accompanied by General Ver and a small number of close supporters
and their personal staff. They were taken to Clark Air Base en route to
Hawaii.

As news of Marcos’ flight spread, crowds converged on the

palace grounds, chanting “Cory! Cory! Cory!” and “it’s Liberation Day!”
As the palace gates were thrown open, thousands charged into the
compound. Some looting was reported but by midnight, tens of
thousands gathered all over the city to pray, cheer and celebrate.

The four days of the February “Revolution” were marked bythe

outpouring of love, anger, hysteria and courage by a people desiring
for change or renewal. Amidst the euphoria which accompanied the
rejection of Marcos, restoration of the nation had to be undertaken.

After EDSA: The Revolutionary Interlude

President Aquino proceeded to establish a revolutionary

government under the terms of a “Freedom Constitution” which lagally
established the structure of government, pending the adoption of a
democratically-drafted constitution for Cory’s “Bagong Demokrasya.”
The new leadership reorganized the government – it abolished the
Batasang Pambansa controlled largely by Marcos loyalists; it appointed
new Supreme Court justices; and it replaced Marcos appointees with
officers-in-charge (OICs). The second step was to take over all monies,
assets, properties and valuables believed or considered ill-gotten by
the Marcos family and cronies.this was effected through the
Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) under former
Senator Jovito R. Salonga, who lost no time sequestering firms,
corporations and businesses with Marcos connections, this in the light
of revelations of the wealth that had been amassed by Marcos and his
cronies, fully one third of the nation’s total resources.
The Constitutional Imperative; Problems

To ensure the stability of government, the Aquino administration

appointed a Constitutional Commission in late 1986 to draft a new
Constitution. The Constitution thus drafted, which replaced the
“Freedom Constitution,” was ratified on February 7, 1987. The
congressional and local elections that followed set up the mechanism
of governance based on popular and democratic mandate.

Stability was elusive for a while. Marcos loyalists continued to

opposed the government, culminating in an attempt, in July 1987, to
establish a rival government at the Manila Hotel, with Arturo Tolentino
as temporary president. This coup failed to unsettle government.

The more serious threat to the new government came from an

attempted coup in August 1987 led by Col. Gregorio Honasan, who had
followed Juan Ponce Enrile in his break with Marcos in Februrary 1986.
Rumors of coups or a take-over of the government by the opposition
elements persist, and this plus the tremendous problems of moral and
economic recovery, the NPA and MNLF insurgencies, incompetence
and inefficiency, graft and corruption, and the bases issue continue to
confront the Aquino government.