Makati Court sideshows

It has been a while since I have been practicing in different courts of Metro Manila.

I haved observed that it is in the Makati Courts where one can witness a lot of sideshows other than court-related practice.

There are political rallies now and then conducted right in front of the old Gusali ng Katarungan of Makati, where the courts, until very recently, were housed.

Presently, almost all courts are now housed at the new Makati city hall building.

Trivia: Usually, most buildings, out of superstition, do not label their thirteenth floors as such. Many believe 13 is an unlucky number. So the thirteenth floor is usually labeled the "14th" floor. But not at the Makati City Hall. The 13th floor is not denominated "14th" floor but the "33rd" floor. In the thirteenth level are the newly-transfered Metropolitan Trial Court. So, a litigant this morning asked that he be brought to the "33rd" floor because he had a court hearing. There is an elevator button for the "33rd" floor alright. But it takes you to the thirteenth level. Only in Makati.

Once, activists staged a lightning rally to protest the proceedings against Representative Crispin Beltran. His case was was being heard in a Makati sala.

Then I recently witnessed the (human) barricading of the Makati City Hall to prevent the ouster of their beloved Mayor Jejomar Binay, who was placed preventive suspension by Malacanang.

At one time, while attempting to file a pleading at the 12th floor of the Makati city hall where the Regional Trial Courts are housed, Binay's "yellow army", who are tasked mainly to maintain smooth traffic in the Makati streets, were converted into human barricades in front of the main door of the city hall.

It was a Friday and talks were rife that policemen were out to bodily remove Binay from city hall. So Binay's "yellow boys" stood ground, thus preventing people from entering the building.

It was a fiesta mood at city hall. There were singing, dancing on stage to entertain the rallyists guarding city hall.

Free food was flowing to keep the crowd "alive and kicking", in a manner of speaking.

When other non-Makati residents heard that food was being distributed free, they flocked to city hall, without knowing the reason why people were gathered in the first place.

How did I know they were not from Makati? They wore T-shirts that read: "Mahal namin si Mayor Lito Atienza."