A gathering crowd

WHILE the House of Representatives nears the homestretch of the voting to kill the impeachment complaints against President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, a crowd is gathering and moving along the road to the Batasan Pambansa Complex in Quezon City.

Rallyists belonging to the Bukluran para sa Katotohanan are led by the widows, former President Cory Aquino and actress Susan Roces.  ABS-CBN News Channel’s Ricky Carandang said the crowd had swelled from 1,500 to 10,000, had originally assembled at the St Peter Church on Commonwealth Avenue and is being stopped about a kilometer from the Batasan gates by rows of anti-riot police and firetrucks.

"They will have to negotiate their way to the Batasan gates," said Carandang as the police seemed bent on preventing the crowd from advancing. At one point Carandang said that Roces was trying to push her way to the frontlines of the rally, but was prevailed upon by her fellow rallyists to stay within the circle of marchers.