Aldrein Silanga
It took two weeks to construct the effigy depicting a blood-thirsty image of Obama bringing nuclear weapons as his chariot of war being pulled by a rabid dog in the image of Philippine president Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III pivots to Asia-Pacific.
It is the first Obama effigy conceptualized by Aldrein Silanga, 27, member of Bayan Muna-Metro Manila. With another visual artist, Mervin Pimentel, he said they began constructing it two weeks ago. They were later joined by eight to 10 activists from urban poor communities who they guided carefully to help in finishing the effigy.
When done, Obama in his chariot of war, pulled by rabid dog Aquino, stands on a four-wheel steel cart manually steered along the streets of Manila ahead of the peoples march by no less than 10 persons, including the artists.
Obama and Aquino’s effigy was then burned in Mendiola, and they continued the program they started in Liwasang Bonifacio.
Although the Bayan artists spent a long time creating the effigy, Silanga told Bulatlat.com he feels happy that it was burned in the end – “it’s like releasing stress. It is a cause of difficulty everyday, and here we burned it down.”
