TALAVERA, Nueva Ecija–Presidential candidate Bongbong Marcos was delivering his campaign message Tuesday afternoon, March 15 on a stage located in an open field in Barangay Andal Alińo here when a loud chant from the crowd interrupted him.

“Hindi kami bayad! Hindi kami bayad! (We’re not a paid crowd! We’re not a paid crowd!)” the Novo Ecijanos shouted repeatedly. They weren’t complaining, but actually bragging.

Although there was a monetarily drizzle at the start of the program, it was for the most part a very hot and humid day, with no shade available to the attendees at all unless they brought a hat or an umbrella. Beads of sweat trickled down the faces of elderly folk as well as children, mostly teenagers.

Marcos kept mum and allowed the chants to resonate for at least 10 seconds. After that, he praised his supporters for not being motivated by money.

“Totoo yan, alam naman namin yun (That’s true, and we’re aware of that),” he said. By”we”, the former senator was referring to the UniTeam members.

“At pakinggan tayo ng buong Pilipinas: Ang mga sumusuporta sa UniTeam, ay naniniwala sa adhikain ng pagkakaisa. Hindi sila bayad! (Philippines, listen to us: Those who support UniTeam believe in the virtue of unity. They are not paid!)” Marcos said.

The attendees, easily in the thousands, roared as their collective sacrifice was acknowledged by their idol, “Apo BBM”, as Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte likes to call him.

In the Philippines, having a huge number of warm bodies show up at campaign rallies is a big deal for optics, and the common allegation between political camps is that a crowd wont get mobilized for these rallies unless there’s a “fee” involved.

For these rally-goers at this UniTeam event, they claimed that there was no such monetary benefit.

“Alam niyo po, kami po, kasama sa UniTeam, ay matagal na po kaming umiikot at isinisigaw at ikinakalat ang ating mensahe ng pagkakaisa sa ating mga kababayan (You know, we in the UniTeam have been going around for a while and we’ve been imparting our message of unity to the people),” Marcos said.

“Ang pagkakaisa, sa aming paniwala, ang unang hakbang para tayo ay makabalik sa medyo normal na buhay. Alam naman po natin, walang tutulong sa Pilipino kung hindi ang mga Pilipino rin (Based on our belief, unity is the first step toward a somewhat normal life after the pandemic. We know that nobody will help Filipinos, other than Filipinos themselves) underscored the Palace bet.

There was one more instance in his speech Tuesday where Marcos was pleasantly interrupted by a local. Yes, just one person this time.

“I love you, BBM!” the supporter screamed at the top of her lungs.

“Ang lakas ng boses mo! (What a loud voice you have!)” Marcos said in jest. He thanked the people afterward.