In every mass action, the first thing that concerns the public is the size of the crowd. It's the number of those who participate that the people would like to know, whether or not the protest gathers enough support.
Because of public interest, it has become an important habit of the media to first look into how many have convened during any street demonstration. In their stories, instinct would always dictate reporters to give foremost consideration to the number of participants in their lead.
A case in point was the past mass actions nationwide against the misuse of the Priority Development Assistance Fund of some congressmen and senators. The media never failed to prioritize the size of the participating crowd in order to give the readers or viewers the idea of the magnitude of public outrage over the controversy.
In Cebu, last Sunday's mass protest against the pork barrel drew different number estimates. The Cebu Coalition against the Pork Barrel System, the event's organizer, said at least 10,000 people joined a march from Fuente Osmeña to the Plaza Independencia. But newspaper reports put the number at less than 5,000 participants.
Of course, numbers are just numbers and they do not represent the true size of the crowd. However, in any protest action, public influence is still shaped by the number of the participants.
But what is really more important is the resounding voices of those who troop to the streets. Whether the latest mass action drew a large number or not was really the least of the organizers' concern.
It was the cause of the participants that brought a strong statement about the misuse of the people's money. The very essential part of a demonstration is when protesters, whether they number in millions or just below a dozen, exhaust all the legal means enough to let their voices be heard.