The UAE-based Rosette John Balanay, from the band Up the Ante, has penned a song about courage and bravery of the 44 Special Action Force (SAF) members who were killed during an operation in Mamasapano, Maguindanao, in January 2015.
“From my mother’s father, Maj. Aurelio Cabilla, to my uncles, hanggang sa pinsan ko who has just graduated from the Philippine National Police Academy,” GMA News quoted Balanay, Up the Ante’s vocalist, as saying.
Though he was the one who wrote the lyrics to the song, Balanay said “Fallen” was a team effort. “I wrote it but it was John Mark’s idea. He was also the one made the riffs and melody with the help of John Magno,” he reportedly said, referring to Up The Ante’s band leader and former bassist, respectively.
The song was written three months after the infamous Mamasapano clash, which up to now has been the subject of too much political controversy, while family members of the slain policemen continue to cry for justice, the report said.
Balanay reportedly said he doesn’t think “fallen soldiers [sic] are getting the justice they deserve.”
“But I don’t want to discuss further about what the government (past and present) is doing for this case. I am no expert. All we want is to honor those who are risking their lives to protect us,” he added.
Balanay was quoted as saying that the song has gotten positive feedback from listeners. “Some guys love the song especially when they come to understand the story behind it,” he said.
Recently, coinciding with the release of its latest music video for “Until My Lung Give Out,” Up the Ante was invited for a two-part radio interview by TAG 91.1, the first Filipino radio station in the UAE, reported GMA News.
