Bank Robberies, Bombs, Bullshit and Bribes
Election time in the Philippines
22nd May 2007
The SM City mall in Fairview erupted into chaos.
What to do?
Some people scrambled up the elevators, some scrambled down the elevators, desperate to be anywhere but here.
Some peered out of shop windows, hoping they'd be would okay if
weren't noticed. Other stills slammed down the roller doors on
their shops before they dashed to the exits.
Me? I was just annoyed that something was interrupting my Internet time.
Chris and Lorelei had only just arrived in the Philippines and were looking a little nervous. Since I had survived tear gas
attacks in Uganda, it fell upon me to take the lead. I queried a
few people and learned that there had been a bomb threat. Scary, yes,
but not as scary as the gunshot I subsequently heard. I figured that a possible bomb threat was better than definite gun shots and so suggested to my companions that it might be best if we stay put.
Raising Political Funds Filipino Style
I later learned that all the kerfuffle going on at the SM mall was
caused by a bank robbery. The gunshot I heard had been a shotgun being
fired into the air (thankfully) and the bomb threat was a hoax. Both were done to cause confusion.
The robbers got away with a large sum of money. All the
security guards fled and offered no resistance. I don't blame hem
in the least. There is no way that I'd take a bullet to save a
bank from losing some money.
But, who was behind the bank robbery?
It was almost certainly organized by a Filipino politician in
order to raise money to buy some votes in the upcoming elections.
Here in the Philippines, money = votes. If you can buy more
votes than your opposition, then you'll almost certainly win. Failing
that, you can always shoot the other guy (seriously).
Not heading south
I almost headed to the southern island of Mindanao with my good mate Raymund
to observe the election fraud that was going on there. For
various reasons though, it didn't work out. It would of been
fascinating to have seen the massive fraud that happens here in the
Philippines.
For a more detailed account of exactly what went on during the recent elections, I suggest you give this a read.
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2005, 2006 and 2007 Malcolm Trevena.
All the stuff on this site is written by me, Malcolm Trevena. Feel free to
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