Who wants to be a Millionaire?
Two masses of people lined up in two different locations in Manila on Feb 5 2006, for the same reason. At both places there was a free show and a chance at a free gift. The 4 million urban poor of Manila could make a choice.
Like tens of thousands of others, Myrna a 43 year old mother was standing outside the sports stadium, hoping for her chance to become a millionaire. Her 4 year old Julianne clutched her mother’s hand and tried desperately to stay standing while the crowd pressed in and around her. The local TV game show “Wowowee” was offering free tickets to this anniversary show where hundreds would get prizes and one lucky person walk away a millionaire. They had camped outside the stadium for two days waiting for this chance of a life time. Most of the crowd was from the Manila shanty towns. They had come to the big city to strike it rich only to find their dreams evaporate into worse poverty. They were tired of trying to make enough money just to be able to eat supper at night. They were tired of scraping money together to buy their children’s school uniforms, tired of husbands wasting their precious money on drink and gambling. What had they to loose? They would come to try to escape the cycle of poverty.
Myrna remembers being pushed from behind. The gates were opening and everyone was determined to get inside. She tried desperately to hold on to Julianne but lost her grip. They fell and both were trampled by a stampede of frantic people. Myrna bruised and dazed crawled between legs looking for her daughter. When she did Julianne’s body was crumpled and still. 73 people were trampled to death that day and 359 people wounded. In trying to escape poverty they found death.
Across town on that same evening Franklin Graham was on the stage in the Luneta Park and thousands found a place on the grass to listen. By the end of the 4 day festival, 30,000 Filipinos had walked to the front to talk to a trained counselor to ask about the free gift of salvation. For many this is the first step on their journey of understanding what this free gift is all about. In trying to escape hopelessness they found eternal life.
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