It's Happening: Thousands March on EDSA for Trillion Peso March Part 3 as Philippines Marks 40 Years of People Power
It's officially happening. Thousands of Filipinos are marching along EDSA right now for the third installment of the Trillion Peso March, coinciding with the 40th anniversary of the People Power Revolution. Protesters began gathering at the EDSA Shrine early Wednesday morning and have been marching toward the People Power Monument in Quezon City since around 8:45 AM.
White Plains Avenue was closed to vehicles starting 6 AM to make way for the rally, organized by the Trillion Peso March Movement and Caritas Philippines. The anti-corruption movement launched in September 2025 has now held three major marches — the first on September 21, the second on Bonifacio Day (November 30), and now this third one on EDSA Day itself.
Meanwhile, Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) and other progressive groups under the EDSA40 alliance are holding a separate protest at the EDSA Shrine, after talks to unify the two rallies broke down over differing political demands. Bayan is calling for the resignation of both Marcos and Sara Duterte, while the Trillion Peso March focuses on anti-corruption reforms.
A high mass presided by Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas — the protégé of the late Cardinal Jaime Sin, who played a pivotal role in the original 1986 revolution — is scheduled for 6 PM at the EDSA Shrine. The Church's involvement adds symbolic weight to the anniversary, echoing the nuns and priests who stood before tanks four decades ago.
All this is happening despite President Marcos Jr.'s decision to declare February 25 as merely a "special working day" — not a holiday. Forty years ago today, millions of Filipinos peacefully overthrew his father. Today, his son's government treated it like just another Tuesday. But judging by the crowds on EDSA, the spirit of People Power is very much alive.
