Call to become agents of genuine change like Rizal
Malacanang yesterday encouraged Filipinos to get an inspiration from the country’s national hero, Dr Jose Rizal, to help them become “agents of genuine change.”
Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo made the call, on the eve of the country’s annual commemoration of the execution of Rizal on Dec 30, 1896.
“While tomorrow, December 30, marks a mournful day in Philippine history, the Palace is reminded of the fruits of the ultimate sacrifice our national hero, Dr Jose Rizal, contributed in the collective memory of the Filipinos: freedom from bondage,” Panelo said in a statement issued a day before the 123rd anniversary of Rizal’s martyrdom.
“May Rizal’s sacrifice push us to be the better versions of ourselves and be agents of genuine change. Happy Rizal Day to all,” he added.
December 30 of every year is declared as a regular holiday to allow the whole nation to observe the death anniversary of Rizal.
Rizal, who was convicted of sedition by Spanish court martial, was executed by firing squad at Bagumbayan field, now popularly known as Rizal Park, in Manila on December 30, 1896.
Panelo said Rizal’s passing 123 years ago did not go to waste, as it fuelled the “re-awakening of our forefathers to stand up against the excesses or abuses of the colonisers which extended for over three centuries.”
“Although Rizal’s heroism is now only recalled through history books, we celebrate tomorrow as it serves as an inspiration for the modern-day Rizals — the youth particularly — to remain steadfast as they face the challenges of the present times and to become beacons of hope for this motherland,” he said.
Panelo stressed that December 30 of every year formed part of all Filipinos’ collective imagination of their “continuing revolution against those who still treat our nation as a vassal state.”
“It is also during this occasion that we make Rizal’s death relevant in our dayto-day lives by, in our own small ways, being in the service of others, rooted in and strengthened by the love of the people,” he said.
“After all, it was Rizal who posited that life is useless if not consecrated to a great ideal,” the Palace official added in the statement.