Led by Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan)-Rizal, Rizal residents held a protest on July 18 in the town of San Mateo. They staged the protest in preparation for the national democratic groups’ large demonstration planned for July 28, the day of Ferdinand Marcos Jr’s fourth state of the nation address.

During the program, a Katipunan ng Samahang Magbubukid-Rizal representative spoke and exposed the intensifying campaign of land grabbing in the province under the framework of land use conversion. The group also denounced the large and destructive infrastructure projects in Rizal, including the Kaliwa-Kanan-Laiban Dam, which are driving farmers and Dumagat indigenous people off their land.

A representative from Bayan Muna Southern Tagalog discussed the issue of extremely low wages among workers. In Calabarzon, which covers Rizal, daily wages remain at ₱450-₱540 depending on the type of work and municipality class.

According to Anakbayan-Rizal, the Marcos regime clearly accomplished nothing for the Filipino people. “Fellow countrymen, the three years have proven that the Marcos regime truly abandoned the interests of the youth,” the group’s coordinator Ron Reyes said.

Reyes said the regime provided insufficient funding for education, decent jobs, and basic services to the youth. “[There is no funding] because this government prioritizes militarization and funding of the lackey, puppet, and trigger-happy military and PNP,” he added.

As the program ended, Bayan-Rizal stated that the public should expect nothing from Marcos’s SONA except lies and deception. He urged fellow Rizal residents to continue taking action and to join the mass protest in the upcoming state of the nation address.