Palace pays tribute to frontliners, tells Filipinos to emulate Rizal’s principles
Published June 19, 2020 11:33am
Malacañang on Friday asked Filipinos to emulate the principles of Dr. Jose Rizal, one of the heroes of the Philippine revolution against the Spanish colonial rule.
In a statement, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said Rizal’s life was a “testament of how a single person’s deep love for his country could spark the re-awakening of our forefathers’ desire for freedom and change.”
“We ask our people, the youth in particular, whom our beloved hero referred to as the ‘hope for our future,’ to take inspiration from his life and emulate his principles to be agents of genuine transformation for a better Philippines,” Roque said on the occasion of Rizal’s 159th birth anniversary.
The Palace also paid tribute to frontliners in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, calling them “modern-day heroes.”
“We are proud to see today modern-day heroes —our courageous frontliners — who rise up to the challenge and serve as beacons of hope to a people weary and fearful of the present global health scare,” Roque said.
Rizal, who wrote novels that tackled the ills of Philippine society under Spanish rule, was born on June 19, 1861 in Calamba, Laguna. He was executed by firing squad on December 30, 1896 at Bagumbayan (now Rizal Park in Manila) after a Spanish court martial found him guilty of sedition.
Rizal died at the age of 35. — Virgil Lopez/RSJ, GMA News
