Walking to the Sotelos at 2035 last night, I saw so few people about that it felt like curfew. When I left for home at 2200 I got a shock: the first person I saw had his arms up. Then I spied a line of people doing the same and I realized it was just a routine bus search. As usual, the PC men were so intent on covering everyone that I just walked through unbothered.

More Manilans are barricading themselves at home and carrying whistles. Telephone numbers for the police are prominently displayed next to the phones even if most expect the police to arrive late enough to let the culprits escape thus avoiding a skirmish.

Regarding the transfers of the various corporations reported yesterday, the consensus is that the Japanese know the jig is just about up. They've been quietly selling valuables and preparing their children for evacuation. Those who have to stay know they are in a precarious situation, but they're still prepared to fight to the end. New troops continue to stream in, and new airbases are being constructed as more planes fly in. New arrivals get a few days off for rest and sightseeing. They then assemble in the Luneta for a review before going on to their assigned posts.

As for Primco, a month before the organization's transfer, the Japanese Army resealed some bodegas (for their own needs) previously sealed by Primco. Those goods are no longer in the organization's books. Sazaki, of Primco, let it slip that he was the one who over-sealed Awad's bodegas. This kind of racket has been going on for a while. No wonder the often-promised distribution of Textiles never took place.