"Mamuhay tayo bilang mga bayani (Let us live like heroes)," said Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto to Pasigueños during the celebration of "Araw ng mga Bayani" or National Heroes Day on Monday, Aug. 29.
In his speech, Sotto said it is not enough to have and recognize only a handful of heroes when the city is gearing towards genuine change and progress.
"Piliin natin ang kabayanihan. Piliin natin na tumayo sa ating mga prinsipyo, sa bawat punto -- mahirap man o madali, kikilalanin man tayo o hindi, marami mang makakaalam o walang makakaalam. Sana po ay piliin natin ang tamang choices. Mamuhay tayo bilang mga bayani (Let us choose heroism. Let us choose to stand for our principles at any point in our lives -- no matter how difficult or easy, whether we will be recognized or not, and whether many will know about our deeds or none at all. I hope we make the right choices. Let us live as heroes)," Sotto said.
Sotto, the city's officials and the Pasig police led the celebration of National Heroes Day at the Plaza Rizal.
The local government also invited the family and descendants of Gen. Valentin A. Cruz to join in the celebration. A native of Barangay San Nicolas, Pasig City, Cruz was known for leading around 2,000 Pasigueños as part of the Katipunan during the Spanish revolution.
They offered flowers and laid wreaths in front of Rizal's statue at the plaza.
Sotto urged city residents to remember their ancestral heroes who "paved the way" for what Pasig City and the country are now.
"Sana'y mag effort din po tayong kilalanin natin ang mga bayaning maaaring hindi naman kasikatan, hindi masyadong kilala, kapag may pagkakataon tayo, pasalamatan natin sila. Magbigay pugay pa rin tayo in our own little way (I hope we make the effort to know our heroes, especially the ones who are not well known, or unpopular. When we have the chance, let's also thank them and honor them in our own little way)," he said.
He expressed hope that the national and local heroes can serve as inspirations to the public in these trying times.
Pasig Memorya
To commemorate National Heroes Day, the local government and the Pasig City Museum formally launched "Pasig Memorya."
Pasig Memorya is a digital crowd-sourcing website that serves as an online archive that contains Pasig citizens' old photos of the city along with their corresponding stories and narratives.
The project encourages the public to upload and share their memories of the city to build a collective history from the perspective of its people.
The local government announced and introduced the project on Sunday, Aug. 28.
Sotto said "crowd-sourcing can really be an effective way of gathering information and research."
The mayor said they are willing to try this new technology in order to preserve local history that would otherwise be lost or erased over time.
"We want to make sure we treasure our culture and heritage," he added.
The archive is a part of the city's Cultural Mapping Project.
The project was made in partnership with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Philippines and non-profit organization Grupo Kalinangan.