People will never forget history – Sotto

MANILA, Philippines — Filipinos will not forget the dark days in the country’s history under the 20-year rule of the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos despite insidious and repeated attempts to downplay the hardships of the people and the atrocities committed during the period, Senate President Vicente Sotto III said yesterday.

“History is history. It has happened already. So, how can you forget? If you want to forget, that’s on you. But you cannot erase what has already happened,” Sotto said in Filipino and English.

He likewise took exception to “the lie being peddled” that the lives of Filipinos were better before the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution compared with the present time, as he pointed out the widespread human rights abuses and massive corruption during the Marcos era.

He warned twisting historical facts could be equated to spreading disinformation.

“How can you revise history when it already happened? What you’re essentially doing is disinformation, not revising history. You will never be able to revise history,” he said.

He recalled the circumstances around how he was able to compose the iconic song “Magkaisa” at the height of the EDSA Revolution.

Sotto wrote the song while watching men in uniform being met by people who had gathered to protest against the Marcos administration.

He said he was able to finish the composition in three days or on Feb. 25, 1986, which was also the day that forces loyal to the dictator defected, forcing Marcos and his family to flee to Hawaii.

“So that inspired me to write the song ‘Magkaisa’ which I finished in two or three days. By Feb. 25, there was euphoria all around, so when I gave the song to the late president Cory Aquino, she was very happy,” he said.

He said the late Fr. Bob Garon, who was around when he presented the song to Aquino, immediately brought videos of various scenes in EDSA that they put together to be played in various television stations with the song as the soundtrack.

“You’ll never forget that,” Sotto said.

Lacson at PMA homecoming

In Baguio City, presidential aspirant Sen. Panfilo Lacson leads the long list of awardees at the alumni homecoming of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) this weekend.

Via virtual and physical attendance, Lacson, of PMA class 1971 and standard-bearer of the Nationalist People’s Coalition, is one of four Lifetime Achievement Awardees in this year’s grand PMA event. Other PMA alumni receiving the same award are his “mistah” (classmate) and fellow former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Edgar Aglipay, and Class 1968 batchmates Cavalier Anselmo Avenido and former PMA superintendent Melchor Rosales.?With the virtual and limited face-to-face attendance, the PMA expects only 1,200 attendees from all classes for the two-day homecoming which ends today. Pre-pandemic attendance to the annual homecoming reached about 6,000.

A Thai senator, 1981 graduate Thawip Netniyom, leads eight more Outstanding Achievement Awardees that include chiefs of their respective uniformed agencies: PNP’s Dionardo Carlos, Philippine Navy’s Adelius Bordado and Philippine Coast Guard’s Leopoldo Laroya, all of Class ’88; and Philippine Army’s Romeo Brawner and Philippine Air Force’s Connor Anthony Canlas, both of Class ’89.

The two other awardees are former PNP chief and senatorial candidate Guillermo Eleazar of Class ’87 and former AFP chief of staff Jose Faustino of Class ’88.

Ten more Cavaliers receive this year’s homecoming Plaque of Meritorious Recognition led by Secretary of Human Settlements and Urban Development Eduardo del Rosario (Class ’80), along with Class ’81 batchmates Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente, Dangerous Drugs Board chairman Catalino Cuy and National Intelligence Coordinating Agency director general Paul Monteagudo; and Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources director Eduardo Gongona (Class ’82), Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office chair Anselmo Pinili (Class ’83), Customs Commissioner Rey Guerrero (Class ’84), National Task Force against COVID-19 chief implementer Carlito Galvez Jr. (Class ’85), Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency director general Wilkins Villanueva (Class ’88) and special envoy for transnational crime Bruce Concepcion (Class ’90).

Other Cavalier awardees are Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong (Class ’82) for outstanding accomplishment for administration, Cipriano Acosta (Class ’82) for private enterprise, Erwin Luga (Class ’82) for special field (religion), Edgardo de Leon (Class ’88) for staff functions, Michael Ray Aquino (Class ’88) for contributions in alumni affairs, William Gonzales (Class ’89) for command administration, and Leo Francisco (Class ’82) for police operations, Roy Echeverria (Class ’93) for Coast Guard operations, Melvin Banua (Class ’87) for Air Operations, Herbert Dilag (Class ’88) for Special Operations, Ashley Nastor (Class 2000) for Naval Operations, Gladius Calilan (Class ’01) for army operations, Paul Mendoza (Class ’06) also for air operations as junior officer and Junrey Sajulga (Class ’13) for naval operations as junior officer.

This year’s homecoming is themed, “Mga PMA Cavaliers: Tunay na Kaagapay ng Sambayanang Pilipino sa Panahon ng Pandemya o Kalamidad” (PMA Cavaliers: Genuine Partners of the Filipino Nation in Times of Pandemic or Calamity).

Yesterday’s General Assembly guest of honor and speaker was Speaker Lord Allan Velasco while today’s homecoming proper will have President Duterte as the virtual honored guest and speaker.  – Artemio Dumlao, Cecille Suerte Felipe