Coco Martin went full Cardo Dalisay with his Instagram protest posts

The ABS-CBN shutdown is a blow to 11,000 employees and the state of our press freedom. Of course, a lot of public figures have reacted—but none of them went off like Coco Martin.

In his latest Instagram posts, the “Ang Probinsyano” actor released long statements—in all caps, no less—regarding the shutdown. “Pasensya na po dahil hindi ko na mapigilan ang sobrang galit na nararamdaman ko,” read Coco’s Instagram post. “Nakakapagod nang manahimik at magpigil kung ang mga nasa paligid mo naman ay mga walang-pusong tao.”

Meme all you want about “Ang Probinsyano” or Martin’s lisp (since y’all are into THAT), but that won’t stop Cardo Dalisay ’gram blasting the injustice with his words instead of a .45 caliber.

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Tutal wala naman kasiguraduhan kung buhay pa ako pagkatapos ng pandemic na ito. Tama lang na masabi ko ang mga saloobin ko. Sa mga taong pilit nagsulong sa pagpapasara sa ABS-CBN, sana ay panatag na panatag na ang kalooban niyo. Sana nagdala ito ng lubos na kaligayahan sa mga puso ninyo. Mahirap magsawalang-kibo sa mga taong katulad ninyo na patuloy na nang-aabuso. Wala kayong mga konsensiya, naatim niyong pagkaitan ng hanapbuhay at pabayaang magutom ang ilang libong mga pamilya! Lalo lang lulubog sa kahirapan ang mga Pilipino! Ito ba ang serbisyo niyo sa bayan? Hindi ako mangingiming sabihin ang totoong nararandaman ko ngayon. Sa mga taong tulad niyo na hindi karapat-dapat pakitaan ng diplomasya at pagkamalumanay. Ang dapat sa inyo usapang sanggano at walang-hiyaan! Galing ako sa hirap at jologs ang pagkatao ko, kaya wala akong pakialam ngayon kung anong sasabihin ng ibang tao. Hindi man ako kasing talino ng iba, alam ko at malinaw sa akin na MALI at KAWALANG KATARUNGAN ang tanggalan ng hanapbuhay ang ilang libong empleyado ng isang kumpanyang naglilingkod sa sambayanang Pilipino ng ilang dekada! Maraming maraming salamat Solicitor General Joe Calida at sa bumubuo ng National Telecommunications Commission sa kontribusyon niyo sa ating bayan! TINATARANTADO NINYO ANG MGA PILIPINO!!!

A post shared by Coco Martin (@mr.cocomartin) on May 5, 2020 at 5:37am PDT

A lot of celebrities have been hashtagging away and sharing their experiences. Yup, even pro-Duterte celebrities like Alex Gonzaga have mourned the loss of their station. But no one tackled the situation like Coco Martin. In his posts, he talked about the jobs his co-workers lost, refused to remain silent about injustice, and questioned authority when the abuse of power is apparent.

“Mahirap magsawalang-kibo sa mga taong katulad ninyo na patuloy na nang-aabuso,” writes Coco. “Hindi man ako kasing talino ng iba, alam ko at malinaw sa akin na mali at kawalang katarungan ang tanggalan ng hanapbuhay ang ilang libong empleyado ng isang kumpanyang naglilingkod sa sambayanang Pilipino ng ilang dekada.”

coco martin been preaching ever since about the ph government and saying that he's not knowledgeable enough about the rules of law… but deep down we all know that he is one of the SMARTEST guys & he keeps proving to us that we stan the right guy ?

protect at all costs ✊❤ pic.twitter.com/e4BDRKSsYQ

— not julia bontes anymore (@cocojulxx) May 5, 2020

We only watch “Ang Probinsyano” during bus rides (not gonna lie). Still, Coco Martin has our respect. He is so well-known that he even managed to steal national treasure, Apo Whang-Od’s heart. He did not sugarcoat his anger—and this is the energy we need right now.

“Such strongly-worded statements from celebrities are unusual in the [Philippines], even as ‘Ang Probinsyano’ yields quite some political influence, so much so that police tried to censor it in 2018,” tweets The Washington Post journalist Regine Cabato. “Cardo Dalisay is coming for your neck, guys.”

Still from “Ang Probinsyano”