Oust! oust! oust!

Who let the dogs (and cats) out this time?

This time, it was the watchdog group Bantay Impeachment who brought out dogs, cats and other pets accompanied by their owners at the University of the Philippines’ Sunken Garden in a different protest action to demand yet again the removal of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

Dubbed “Dapat Oust Gloria” or DOG, the novel activity heralds week-long protests at the Batasan and elsewhere in Metro Manila as the House justice committee is expected to vote on the pending raps against Arroyo.

Bantay Impeachment claimed dogs are now barking “oust! oust! oust!” not “aw! aw! aw!” especially as members of the House of Representatives loyal to President Arroyo maneuver to kill the pending impeachment raps against her.

The canines wore dog tags bearing the words “oust! oust! oust Gloria!” while their owners flashed their own protest placards. Other protesters brought cats whose owners proclaimed in their placards that they are smelling “something fishy in Congress” while some allege that “rats are overruning the impeachment process.”

Bantay Impeachment convenors explained that “in most homes, there are dogs usually named ‘Bantay’ who guard against thieves. We need similar ‘Bantays’ to guard against Arroyo who is widely perceived as the single biggest thief in the government, and her accomplices in the thievery and the ensuing and continuing cover-up.”

“Our friendly Bantay house dogs would always smell who’s an intruder, a fake or a thief,” said the group. “Bantays would run after these malcontents, assault them and help in catching them, to defend our lives and homes.”

In this case, Bantay Impeachment says that people need to exercise vigilance over the ongoing justice committees in the House. “We already discovered a thief in the act of thievery, and while we would like to bring her to an impeachment court, some are acting like crazed, wild dogs (asong ulol)”.

Joining the rally was Anakpawis Rep. Crispin Beltran who himself is the proud friend of a two-year old black and white dog (crossbreed between an askal and a Japanese spitz) named Dauphin.

“If Dauphin could talk, he would also denounce Macapagal-Arroyo. He watches the news with me and my family every evening, and without doubt his opinion would be the same as ours, – enraged over the underhanded moves of the anti-impeachment Macapagal-Arroyo allies to kill the impeachment complaint,” said Beltran.

Beltran said that fellow lawmakers should delve deep into their consciences and refuse to be a party to the infamous scheme to absolve Macapagal-Arroyo of the serious charges against her.

He said that the least lawmakers can do is to allow the charges to be heard and for the investigations on the said charges to take place unhampered.

He warned that “blocking the impeachment process and dismissing it on insultingly lame and flimsy grounds will force more Filipinos into the streets and demand macapagal-Arroyo’s ouster.”

Bantay Impeachment, which maintains a blog at http://BantayImpeachment.blogsite.com and mailing list at BantayImpeachment@yahoogroups.com, is a campaign initiative of Bayan Muna, Anakpawis and Gabriela partylist groups, the multisectoral alliance Bayan and the broad Gloria Step Down Movement (GSM).