Rappler's Cotabato roadshow survives magnitude 7.8 earthquake, holds forum on Bangsamoro elections

When the floor tilted and hangers swung, the Rappler team in Cotabato City knew their roadshow was in trouble. On Monday, June 7, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck Mindanao, forcing the team to abandon their workshop venue at Notre Dame University (NDU) and shift all sessions online from a cramped hotel room.

By Tuesday morning, the biggest question was whether their voter empowerment public forum — already with nearly 200 registered attendees and speakers who'd traveled from far away — would still happen. NDU engineers had declared the buildings safe, and campus operations were set to resume. But then Cotabato City Hall announced a suspension of all school operations for safety checks.

"We were heartbroken," the team wrote. With NDU partners Bernard and Gavin, they hunkered down until 11 pm planning multiple scenarios. Rappler Mindanao coordinator Herbie Gomez knew Mayor Bruce Matabalao personally. He made calls that went unanswered, sent a Facebook Message asking for help, and emphasized that NDU had cleared their buildings.

By midnight, with no response, the team was almost resigned to a virtual forum. Then, around 20 minutes past midnight, Herbie got a Messenger reply from the mayor: the forum could proceed.

The next day, over a hundred participants attended. Panel discussions tackled concerns about true representation, election-related disinformation, violence and voter intimidation, and criteria for choosing Bangsamoro parliament members. The Commission on Elections (Comelec) demonstrated the voting process with automated vote-counting machines and sample ballots unique to the Bangsamoro parliamentary elections.

"One for the books," said host Apple Dadong.

"Maraming salamat po sa lahat ng staff ng Rappler at ng mga panels. Marami kaming natutunan," said Ella in the Bangsamoro Voices chat room.

"The Ambag Natin roadshow provides an essential layer of empowerment... Equipped with this awareness, I'm breaking away from previous voting practices — where many passively react to candidates without cross-checking or background-checking their tracks," said Eris.

Speakers included Jennevie Cornelio, a Teduray leader from Maguindanao del Norte, and Comelec spokesperson John Rex Laudiangco, who flew from Manila with a team and three vote-counting machines. This was the first roadshow leg co-organized by Felix Olandria, a former Mover and new MovePH specialist, alongside lead organizer Joan Alindogan.

The earthquake, which caused buildings in General Santos City to implode and left a climbing death toll, tested the team's crisis management skills. But they found laughter and joy amid the stress, holding what they called a successfully concluded public forum.