(With the sector dominating the crowd of protesters on July 25) Urban poor in QC and areas near Batasan gear for a bigger mobilization this coming SONA

NEWS RELEASE I July 21, 2011

QUEZON CITY—It's easier to mobilize nowadays. Thousands of urban poor shall flood the street of Commonwealth Avenue to Batasang Pambansa and put a halt to Aquino's anti-poor programs on his first year in office.

This is the statement of militant urban poor Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap (Kadamay) in a press conference held in Quezon City four days before the nationally-coordinated protest on Aquino's Second State of the Nation Address (SONA).

The objective conditions after Aquino's first year in office assure a bigger mobilization coming from the informal sectors nationwide, especially among the urban poor in the vicinity of Batasang Pambansa,” the militant group's national secretary-general Gloria Arellano says.

Recent SWS survey noted a higher percentage of the population rating themselves poor, from an average of 48% in 2010 to 51% in 2011 equivalent to 10.4 million Filipino families. Among them, 4.1 million households are expriencing involantary hunger.

These data are worse than during the term of Arroyo who is probably among the most unpopular presidents in the list.

“The widespread poverty and hunger due to joblessness, meager wage increase and unbated price hikes and Aquino's misled and therefore ineffectual poverty alleviation effort, the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) make it easy to drive the poor into the streets,” Arellano adds

Members of Kadamay has recently stormed DSWD and NAPC questioning the lack of basis for the expansion of the Cash Conditional Transfer (CCT), the centerpiece of Aquino's poverty allevation program, as well as the susceptibility of its 21-billion fund to corruption.

“Though Aquino has maintain a 'good' net satisfaction rating according to surveys, the issues and the demand of the people to change the status-quo assure us of not only a bigger mobilization, but an easier one, compared to previous years especially coming from the urban poor sector,” Arellano adds.

Forty per cent of Quezon City's population are urban poor, accounting to 222,744 families according to the Metro Manila Development Authority. Aside from the lack of jobs and livelihood programs from the government, they suffered the worst attacks from the Aquino administration in forms of demolition and eviction from their communities.

Arellano adds: “In Quezon City alone, thousands face eviction from their communities due to pro-capitalist developent projects of the national and local government. Not less than 5,000 urban poor families were relocated to relocation sites in Montalban and Bulacan on Aquino's first year alone to give way to development projects like the QC-Central Business District, the C5 North-Extension Project and the National Governement Center. Most of the relocatees went back to their communitites because of the worse condition in the relocation areas.”

“On July 25, we call on the thousands of urban poor families in Quezon City and neighboring cities to go out of their communities and flock the streets leading to Batasang Pambansa. The same call is adressed to every urban poor in all cities nationwide to join in the nationally-coordinated protest of various organizations under Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) on Aquino's second SONA. We suffered the most on his first year alone, and we can't stand 5 more years under the anti-poor administration of Aquino,” according to Kadamay.

In Quezon City, the militant group expect thousands of urban poor to flood Commonwealth Ave with assembly point at the Litex area. At 10am, they will start the “Urban Poor March” leading to the Batasang Pambansa.

Reference: Gloria Arellano, Kadamay National Secretary-General (0921.3927457)