EDSA, 12:00 Midnight - Cardinal Sin's plea that the people help Ramos and Enrile was taken literally. Thousands of people began massing outside the rebel camps and supplying food for the soldiers. Fidel Ramos: That day we had to develop additional forces outside Crame and Aguinaldo and, of course, we needed to reinforce our military forces. This is why our call to the people to come and support us was very constant. And we were able to do this through June Keithley and the radio broadcasting crews of Radio Veritas who were on the job, calling on the people, transmitting for us even messages which were tactical in nature. This was the first time in military history, anywhere in the world, when private broadcast media, run by concerned citizens, were used to transmit or relay military orders or directives to military units in the field."
STA. ANA, MANILA Â Father James Reuter, S.J., was the vital link in the communications system of the revolution. He had a VHF radio link to Gen. Ramos in Camp Crame; another to Veritas radio station where June Keithley was broadcasting; and a telephone line to the US Embassy political section headed by Gabriel Kplan, Scott Hallford and Bruce Thomas.
MALACAÑANG PALACE - Tonight, nothing was working. The Enrile-Ramos team was on the air, making noise without letup over Radio Veritas and other stations, waging an aggressive propaganda war. Eager to confront the rebels, presidential aide Col. Aruiza called up Gen. Ver on the other side of the river and urged him to act. Ver said, "I have no instructions from the President."
All through the night and the next two days, there was the same maddening inaction on the part of government troops. No one was thinking; no one was taking the initiative. Several generals besides Ver could have planned and executed counteraction, but they didn't. Some were nowhere to be found. They were all waiting for Marcos, but Marcos was sick. Others had already made up their minds to sit it out and join the winners.
CAMP CRAME, Past Midnight - Butz Aquino sought out Gen. Ramos to tell him, "The troops are here!" Butz was surprised to see the general "so relaxed, with his cigar, like he has no problem, as if it's a social visit." He was glad he saw Enrile first because then, "there was urgency."
Ramos explained their plans to secure the camp, briefed them regarding the entrances and exits that should be guarded. Butz asked how many people Ramos had. "All told, about 3,000."
"As it turned out, he was also counting the wives, househelpers, everybody in the camp, including the dogs. The soldiers were only 300."
Gen. Ramos asked if the troops were prepared to stay for two months. Butz answered, "If it takes three months to remove that guy from Malacañang, we are prepared to stay three months."
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