Duterte: Value liberty we got from EDSA Revolution
Published Feb 25, 2019 12:24 am
By Argyll GeducosÂ
President Duterte told the public to "deeply value" the freedom and liberty that Filipinos are now enjoying because of the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution.
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte
(ALBERT ALCAIN/PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN) In his message during the commemoration of the 33rd anniversary of the peaceful revolution, Duterte said he is hoping that the people would never forget that the democracy being enjoyed at present is due to the move of Filipinos back then. "I am hopeful that this occasion will inspire all of us, especially the younger generation, to deeply value the freedom and liberty that we won in EDSA," he said. "Let us never forget the sacrifice of those who came before us so that we may always be motivated to preserve and protect the democratic way of life that we enjoy today," he added. The President then reminded the people that just like in the first People Power Revolution, the electorate has the power to chart the course of the country. "As the entire nation prepares for the upcoming midterm elections this May, let us always remember how this historic revolution restored our power to collectively chart our future through the ballot," Duterte said. "May we all have a profound sense of appreciation and understanding of what we lost and what we reclaimed," he added. Duterte also noted that the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution is proof that "history can be rewritten" without resorting to violence. "Indeed, the peaceful revolution that brought together Filipinos from all walks of life during those tense four days of February 1986 has given rise to a Philippines that was reborn from the ashes of its tumultuous past," he said. Last week. Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said President Duterte will unlikely attend this year's celebration of the People Power anniversary. The Palace official, however, explained that Duterte skipping the EDSA People Power rite for the past three years has nothing to do with his closeness to the Marcoses, the family ousted by the revolution that catapulted Corazon Aquino to the presidency. "No connection, whatsoever," Panelo told Malacañang reporters in an interview. "Marami lang trabaho si Presidente eh (The President just has a lot of work to do). He'd rather spend time reading documents concerning the government, reading books to enhance his intellect some more," he added. The Palace official, however, said that the EDSA People Power Revolution is still important to the President based on Duterte's message of support to the anniversary of the revolution. Last year, Duterte called for unity and solidarity to defend the institutions that safeguard the freedom brought by the EDSA People Power Revolution of 1986. According to Duterte, the Filipinos, through the first EDSA revolution, have shown the world how a people's courage and resolve can alter the course of a nation's history. "Since then, the People Power Revolution has become the enduring symbol of our determination to fight for what is right and---during our country's most crucial and trying times---to defend and uphold our cherished democratic values," he said. In 2017, Duterte said that no single group can lay claim over the result of the said revolution. "No single party, ideology, religion, or individual could claim credit for the bloodless revolution at EDSA in the same way that no single party, ideology, religion, or individual could claim a monopoly of patriotism," Duterte said. "EDSA lives on and the spirit should continue to inspire heroism in all of us for the greater glory of God and country," he added. For the first anniversary celebration of the movement under the Duterte administration, Malacañang chose to hold a "simple and quiet" EDSA People Power anniversary rite. "It's going to be very simple and very quiet... It will be about a reflection on nation-building," former Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella had said. "The emphasis has shifted. It is no longer a celebration of the past; it is now a reflection on what can happen in the future... We are moving on from those things," he added.
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte(ALBERT ALCAIN/PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN) In his message during the commemoration of the 33rd anniversary of the peaceful revolution, Duterte said he is hoping that the people would never forget that the democracy being enjoyed at present is due to the move of Filipinos back then. "I am hopeful that this occasion will inspire all of us, especially the younger generation, to deeply value the freedom and liberty that we won in EDSA," he said. "Let us never forget the sacrifice of those who came before us so that we may always be motivated to preserve and protect the democratic way of life that we enjoy today," he added. The President then reminded the people that just like in the first People Power Revolution, the electorate has the power to chart the course of the country. "As the entire nation prepares for the upcoming midterm elections this May, let us always remember how this historic revolution restored our power to collectively chart our future through the ballot," Duterte said. "May we all have a profound sense of appreciation and understanding of what we lost and what we reclaimed," he added. Duterte also noted that the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution is proof that "history can be rewritten" without resorting to violence. "Indeed, the peaceful revolution that brought together Filipinos from all walks of life during those tense four days of February 1986 has given rise to a Philippines that was reborn from the ashes of its tumultuous past," he said. Last week. Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said President Duterte will unlikely attend this year's celebration of the People Power anniversary. The Palace official, however, explained that Duterte skipping the EDSA People Power rite for the past three years has nothing to do with his closeness to the Marcoses, the family ousted by the revolution that catapulted Corazon Aquino to the presidency. "No connection, whatsoever," Panelo told Malacañang reporters in an interview. "Marami lang trabaho si Presidente eh (The President just has a lot of work to do). He'd rather spend time reading documents concerning the government, reading books to enhance his intellect some more," he added. The Palace official, however, said that the EDSA People Power Revolution is still important to the President based on Duterte's message of support to the anniversary of the revolution. Last year, Duterte called for unity and solidarity to defend the institutions that safeguard the freedom brought by the EDSA People Power Revolution of 1986. According to Duterte, the Filipinos, through the first EDSA revolution, have shown the world how a people's courage and resolve can alter the course of a nation's history. "Since then, the People Power Revolution has become the enduring symbol of our determination to fight for what is right and---during our country's most crucial and trying times---to defend and uphold our cherished democratic values," he said. In 2017, Duterte said that no single group can lay claim over the result of the said revolution. "No single party, ideology, religion, or individual could claim credit for the bloodless revolution at EDSA in the same way that no single party, ideology, religion, or individual could claim a monopoly of patriotism," Duterte said. "EDSA lives on and the spirit should continue to inspire heroism in all of us for the greater glory of God and country," he added. For the first anniversary celebration of the movement under the Duterte administration, Malacañang chose to hold a "simple and quiet" EDSA People Power anniversary rite. "It's going to be very simple and very quiet... It will be about a reflection on nation-building," former Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella had said. "The emphasis has shifted. It is no longer a celebration of the past; it is now a reflection on what can happen in the future... We are moving on from those things," he added.