The Bagong Alyasang Makabayan (BAYAN) does not need to call a convention to decide whether they were wrong in calling for a boycott of the elections. Clearly, BAYAN was wrong.

BAYAN’s boycott led to many resignations, "leaves of absence", and virtual expulsion at all levels of the alliance and in the member-organizations (e.g., Ambrosio Padilla, Lorenzo Tanada, Mita Pardo de Tevera, Frank Arcellana). These splits have yet to be healed.

The boycott also left BAYAN with almost no influence with the Aquino administration. BAYAN has been reduced to making whimpering claims about the BAYAN affiliation of such Aquino appointees as Wigberto Tanada, though these appointees were active in the campaign.

Any self-respecting organization would purge those leaders whose decisions had led to such a debacle and replace them with those members who were wise enough to have seen the people’s will and decided to participate. These new leaders would be far more credible fiscalizers of the administration.

Otherwise, BAYAN will continue in its present pitiful status as a minor nuisance factor in Philippine politics.

J. Pedrosa Ramas
 

Ed:  letter was published by Mr. & Mrs. Speical Edition March 21-27, 1986 issue, but third paragraph was deleted