HEADLINE: An Oakwood mutiny sequel. Trillanes and a group of people renewed their call for PGMA's ouster and called for withdrawal of people's support to the current government.
Morning of Thursday, I thought it was just the usual protest or walkout from courtroom or whatever you like to call it. I really thought that it would not be making a big fuss.
By late afternoon, we knew it was not a small ordeal. Poor Manila Peninsula (with above 70% occupancy) had to be evacuated! I feel especially sorry for the couple who was having their wedding reception. The SENATOR and his men have already taken over the hotel. Tanks and soldiers were surrounding the hotel perimeter as well as media men. The 3 PM deadline was not met to restore order. I am not well-informed on details about the tear gas, gun shots, etc. Anyway, tension waned before 6 PM and I heard it was because Trillanes did not want to hurt civilians inside-out.
While most of the offices closed early for a longer-than-expected long weekend, our manager went outside to check the situation (our office is walking distance from the hotel). Seeing that there is no need to panic and that it is more dangerous to rush home during the critical moment, he ordered and reminded us that it was business as usual and that we would be retaining the 9-6 office hours.
Employees at the company were in a frenzy. I personally kept my screen on inquirer.net for updates and kept chatting with my teammate C who had meebo updates from her friends and got calls from her mother with TV updates. My parents were worried sick but I assured them it was nothing.
By the time I went home, the streets in Makati were empty. The ever-busy city became a ghosttown yesterday and everything was quiet. You will remember you are in Manila when you get back to EDSA where traffic was terrible even at 10pm. Manila...Manila...I keep coming back to Manila...
