Strike force

How far will you go in the name of law and order?

The debate on this has been reignited by the head of the Special Operations Group Strike Force of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority.

Gabriel Go of the MMDA has developed a following on TikTok (and incurred haters and serious threats to his life) for his regular posting of what he does for a living: clearing the streets of Metro Manila of obstructions. These include sidewalk vendors, illegally parked cars and obstructive structures.

Go had been the strike force deputy for some time, having been recruited to the MMDA from his previous posting in the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission during the Duterte administration. He left the MMDA for several months in 2023 but returned later in the year as head of the strike force.

It has been a career leap for Go, a Tsinoy fluent in Hokkien and Mandarin (with Spanish thrown in) who obtained a degree in Consular and Diplomatic Affairs at De La Salle-College of St. Benilde. He says his language competencies help in dealing with foreigners encountered by the MMDA.

The work, he admits, is “hard,” as he acknowledges the need to balance adherence to the law with the socioeconomic realities in a country with a large population living below the poverty line. The law applies to all, he stresses, but he is aware of the need to balance this with compassion.

Go faced me in person for The STAR’s online show “Truth on the Line” last Monday, nearly a week after he was set upon by striking jeepney operators and drivers whom he had told to clear the area around EDSA and Connecticut Street in Greenhills, San Juan.

Video showed a water bottle being hurled at Go and his MMDA crew during the commotion, and police shielding him as they led him away from the scene. He said the bottle struck and damaged the helmet of one of his team members, but no charges will be pressed.

Go explained that the mandate of the strike force’s SCOG – the Sidewalk Clearing Operations Group – is to get rid of obstructions to vehicular and pedestrian traffic, and this was what he wanted to do. It was around noon and the schools in Greenhills were about to go on lunch break, so the area had to be cleared of traffic obstructions, including the protest rally of jeepney drivers.

I asked him if, in hindsight, he would have dealt with the situation differently. Pondering his answer briefly, he said no.

*      *      *

Cynics say that we Filipinos are ungovernable and notoriously pasaway or incorrigible.

Go believes that with sufficient information, role models and the certainty of being caught for infractions, there could be a sea change in our pasaway culture.

At the start of the interview, he said his academic background in diplomacy and international relations equipped him to deal diplomatically with aggressive behavior.

His hardline approach to his work has drawn him praise – but also condemnation, and not just from jeepney drivers and operators. Owners of vehicles that have been towed by the MMDA for illegal parking also resent his operations.

Vehicle owners in Metro Manila used to be required to ensure that they have space for parking that does not obstruct the streets. But the rule was relaxed during the pandemic lockdowns, Go noted. Today the rule is no longer enforced.

He is currently studying the revival of the rule especially along major thoroughfares and the so-called Mabuhay lanes or alternate routes for EDSA.

Go is aware that he has been slammed as heartless by sidewalk vendors he has driven away from the streets and sidewalks, plus their sympathizers.

But he says he has also received encouragement from people who appreciated being told about how to go about vending without risking being driven away by the MMDA or having their paraphernalia confiscated.

Go stressed that he has a policy of never confiscating the goods being sold, even if the violator is a recidivist. Having grown up in Manila’s Divisoria-Chinatown districts, he knows that vendors borrow money for those goods (probably under usurious “5-6” terms) and he doesn’t want to seize their livelihood.

So OK, the guy does have a heart. But he still wants to send the message that the law spares no one.

*      *      *

To improve public understanding of the rules and what the MMDA does, Go has been posting videos on TikTok of the activities of the strike force, in particular the SCOG.

Of course there have been critics, some of whom see him as a publicity hound with political ambitions. In response to my question, Go was honest enough not to rule out entering politics. But for now, he said he was focused on his work.

Most recently, he drew some flak for issuing a citation ticket to a policeman who parked his motorcycle on the sidewalk during SCOG clearing operations on March 25 affecting the Anonas Police Station in Quezon City. But others noted that the motorcycle is unmarked and is therefore not a police vehicle, so why should the driver get special treatment? Shouldn’t cops lead in following the law?

Despite receiving flak and death threats, Go says he is delighted to also get positive feedback from people who thank him for the information provided in his posts, and even from young children, who are among the biggest TikTok users.

Will this kind of community engagement help bring about a sea change in the pasaway culture?

It will help, but Go knows there are no simple answers to a complex problem. He hopes there will be leadership by example, but acknowledges the difficulty of eradicating the attitude of entitlement among many VIPs.

Maybe it will help to have a strike force head who is not easily cowed by rule violators who pull rank.

Gabriel Go’s battle cry is “SCOG banat!” Let’s see how far he can take this.

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