MASP IN CLSU (The Inside Story)

It was a week after the great earthquake of 1990 when several students came from UST.

It happened over bottles of gin and rum, in Room 9 of Men's Dorm 10, the night after the distribution of relief goods, as UST met CLSU ( or those who can't go home because the roads were still blocked by landslides), with George retelling the story of MASP, and Shubert the frustrated activist listening intently.

Shubert's friend DL was already in but would not take the former, in those days of uncertainty when the Alumni Center and grandstand and finally CAS got burned down.

There was Joey first then Kano and Egay and Monje and Jadz, followed by Aiisa and Tarods and Tina, then the rest with Ayet as the first adviser, who met one afternoon in the steps of the Auditorium on 20 August 1990, elected their officers and got OSA-recognized.

MASP it was called but its tenets were based on CEGP's IBP, which went on for some time until Shubert with DL's prodding conversed with Peti B to make the union official, then Raffy showing up just in time to save the day, and the Pamantasang Bayan sessions finally get rolling with Jim L among the first teachers.

But still Shubert was more IBP than TPP, until he bolted out of SAMASA and formed his own party, ASAP it was called and catapulted him to the CEdSC presidency.

Then BISIG and learning politics from the prophets themselves (i.e. Randy and Ka Dodong), and the early days of Citizens' Action Party, until things got disrupted by PRRM's Pinatubo Party.

But the love burned and still today, with Shubert keeping his distance but being there when necessary, he who belonged to many parties but in his lifetime voted for only one...

FOOTNOTE: The first photo shows MASP cadres and alumni offering a salute to commemorate MASP's 25th national anniversary . The second shows the CLSU alumni contingent to the anniversary while the bottom photo is my pansit offering to yet another MASP milestone.