Progressive groups unveiled effigies that they will burn for the third State of the Nation Address (SONA) of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. today.
Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) prepared two effigies for this year's SONA, the group named the protest effigies 'Umbagang Pilipinas' and 'Bolang Pilipinas'.
Umbagang Pilipinas, a 12 ft. effigy, displayed the President and Vice-President Sara Duterte engaged in a slapping fight. Marcos is wearing the United States flag as a sash and Duterte’s sash is the flag of China.
WATCH: Effigy nina Pang. @bongbongmarcos at VP @indaysara Duterte na tila nasa boxing ina-assemble na sa Commonwealth Avenue | RH 15 @JecelleRicafort, DZRH News#AngIkatlongSONA#SamaSamaTayoPilipino pic.twitter.com/EqCazwxMHu
— DZRH NEWS (@dzrhnews) July 22, 2024
“The effigy features Marcos Jr and Sara Duterte engaged in a slapping brawl while being smug and indifferent to the plight of ordinary people who are barely surviving because of rising prices, insecure jobs, and cheap wages,” BAYAN said on a Facebook post.
"The effigy intends to demonstrate that the nonstop bickering and maneuver for power and influence of the Marcos and Duterte dynasties is a public nuisance," the group added.
Furthermore, the sash symbolizes the ‘puppetry’ of the country’s top two officials to foreign entities.
The second effigy prepared by Bayan artists is named “Bolang Pilipinas”, an oversized beach ball that includes the ‘Bagong Pilipinas’ logo.
Bolang Pilipinas will represent the empty promises of the Marcos admin and their slogan, tagging it as 'pambobola' or the act of deceiving the Filipino people.
"After two years, Marcos Jr. has proven that he is only capable of lying as he has nothing substantial to offer other than to require Filipinos to sing and recite the “Bagong Pilipinas” hymn and oath," Bayan said.
The group will march until they reach Commonwealth Avenue where they will be burning the effigies. In case of rain, they will just destroy the effigies.
The UGATLahi Artist Collective will also burn an effigy of President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. on Commonwealth Avenue. They called the president's effigy the "Chimpanzee of War."
Despite the rain, the UGATLahi Artist Collective set fire to the effigy of President Marcos in front of the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) on Commonwealth Avenue.
WATCH: Sa kabila ng pag-ulan, nasilaban ng UGATLahi Artist Collective ang effigy ni Pang. @bongbongmarcos sa tapat ng CHR sa Commonwealth Ave. | RH 15 @JecelleRicafort, DZRH News#AngIkatlongSONA #SamaSamaTayoPilipino pic.twitter.com/OnWXVPGIfr
— DZRH NEWS (@dzrhnews) July 22, 2024
Meanwhile, the PNP earlier said that they will file charges against protesters who will be burning effigies.
Mga nagsunog ng effigy ngayong araw ng #SONA2024, tutuluyang kasuhan ng PNP — PGen. Marbil @dzrhnews https://t.co/hDWGMCxadS pic.twitter.com/XWIUsY0j1G
— Edniel Parrosa (@ednielparrosa) July 22, 2024