Walkthrough of the People Power Experiential Museum

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The People Power Experiential Museum is a makeshift setup at Camp Aguinaldo created for the 30th People Power celebration and open for free to the public from February 25 to 26. However, according to Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte, there has been talks about having it as a permanent attraction by transferring it to the newly constructed Quezon City Museum.

On our way to the People Power Experiential Museum inside Camp Aguinaldo, a special van took us inside the camp from the Gate 5, but for regular visitors, there is also bus outside Gate 5 that will bring you in. But be early as it gets full quickly. The museum is still open until February 26, 2016.
The organizers assigned buses to pick up visitors from the Gate 5 of Camp Aguinaldo, and then take them to the location of the People Power Experiential Museum inside through the Gate 5 entrance. You need to fall in line and register first at the area near Gate 5. Gate 5 is near the People Power Monument along White Plains, Quezon City.

Once inside the location, if there are too many people, you get to wait for a while seated at the grandstand since the tour involves live presentation of actors, so people are allowed inside the museum only by groups and at certain time intervals only after the previous group is done. There is a video presentation about Ninoy Aquino being shown at the grandstand so you will have something to watch while waiting. There's also a few guidelines presented to advise everyone to follow.

Since the images and ideas being presented at the People Power Experiential Museum are too sensitive, and highly controversial, especially for those who have their own affiliations and personal beliefs, I would leave it up to you to interpret what the entire presentation would want you to think.

Some would say that the present administration is using this opportunity to gain an upper hand against their opponents for the upcoming election this year, especially the Marcoses whose Bongbong is currently running as Vice President partnered with Miriam-Defensor Santiago as President.

There have been other opposing groups not wanting to have another Marcos back in the government. They shout "Never Again" especially those who directly suffered under the so-called dictatorship of former President Ferdinand Marcos and his first lady Imelda Romualdez Marcos. But Filipinos seem easy to forget or forgive as the Marcoses have been back in the government for several years already.

I would love to share you the details but I do not want to spoil the experience so I can just ask you to watch the 6-parts video I uploaded on our official YouTube account for those who cannot make it to the museum in person. You can find them at http://www.YouTube.com/user/wazzuppilipinas

Another waiting time will be done at the entrance near the People Power Experiential Museum. You will also be shown a video presentation that looks more like a warning message for everyone who may be sensitive with what was about to be shown. It will tel you that the museum experience will last for roughly 1 hour. There will be ushers to guide you inside so you won't get lost and can maximize the experience.

The great thing about the experience is that you can bring photo and video cameras inside, including your smartphones and tablets, and do selfies and groupfies too.

The guided museum tour is composed of 11 parts, and surprisingly, without giving out any spoilers, our President Benigno Simeon "Noynoy" Aquino III has a special participation in it. I won't tell which part of the tour he will appear but it's sort of high-tech or futuristic (not a new technology but could be impressive for the newbies especially the students who were majority of the visitors).

I took a lot of photos, videos and video interviews on this coverage. The special video presentation is where you can almost experience the entire 1 hour video walkthrough inside the People Power Experiential Museum.

The experience does not end there as one side of the People Power Experiential Museum are other exhibits mainly by uniformed staff from the camp where they display their equipment and other accessories used in their operations and everyday activities. There are also food vendors available, several chairs and tables, plus a stage where performers entertain the audience while dining or resting after the tour. 

I specifically targeted majority of the youth in my interviews so I could find out if they understood the meaning of the EDSA Revolution. However, it seems there are many who are still lost in a void and very much confused with what the People Power was all about even after their walkthrough inside the People Power Experiential Museum.

I decided to take the bus shuttle going back to the Gate 5 of Camp Aguinaldo so I can have the opportunity to interview the other visitors after their People Power Experiential Museum tour. I was also able to interview a parish priest who was among the passengers inside the bus, and a senior citizen who teaches history who was at the People Power monument. You can learn from the video about their thoughts and insights about the People Power.

Sadly, based from the comments they shared on video, I believe not all of the students clearly understood the significance of the People Power Revolution. My interview with a priest and a senior citizen, to gain a perspective on the other thoughts of people from other sectors, were also somewhat enlightening yet I felt one of them was being too cautious on what to say and another was the opposite.

It would be a big disappointment if this museum will exist only for the originally expected two-days. It should go on so many others, especially those from the provinces, can come visit, experience and learn from the tour. There should really be a venue for these kind of presentation. I am surprised it took them 30 years before they finally thought of doing something like this.

If ever people will think the prime motivation of setting up the People Power Experiential Museum was to discredit the current administration's foes, it is highly up to the visitors to make their own interpretation. After all, we should not let political agendas stop us from making a commemorative museum to educate the youth, especially the Millennials, who were not yet around during 1986 when the People Power Revolution took place.

We would like to thank the organizers of the People Power Experiential Museum for the opportunity to be among the many who witnessed this amazing tour. I'm sure when they finally take this to a better venue, there will more additions and improvements, and a lot more time to reflect at every part of the tour. I find the tour a bit fast on other parts, and a bit long on some, but over-all, the experience was truly awesome.

The 6 parts video coverage is on our official YouTube channel at http://www.YouTube.com/user/wazzuppilipinas. More photos at our official Facebook page athttp://www.Facebook.com/wazzuppilipinas and more images on our other social media accounts