Along a busy street,
people hurry past,
cars cry out in chorus,
each chasing their own day.
Across that street sits an old man,
in a loose, torn shirt,
selling vegetables,
hoping for pennies
to fill an empty stomach.
On that same street,
hundreds gather,
banners raised high,
truth painted in black and red.
In unison, they screamed,
“Wakasan na ang korapsyon!”
Indeed,
the street holds stories.
It has witnessed underpaid workers
set out with the sunrise,
and return with the stars.
It has braced trembling bodies,
lying on the cold ground—
no roof, no wall,
owning only a piece of cardboard.
It has carried the footsteps of the angry,
and heard the cries of the brave—
the endless scream for justice.
If the street could speak,
it would tell of lives worn down by greed.
It would march with the protesters,
for it too bears the marks of corruption—
never repaired, always drowning in injustice.
Because, like the people who walk upon it,
it remains neglected, yet still endures.
Najhanne Buat Asum, 21, is from Balindong, Lanao del Sur. She is a fourth-year student in the Bachelor of Arts in English Language Studies program at Mindanao State University – Main Campus. Najhanne writes from the heart, inspired by what she observes in the world, and hopes her words can make a small difference.