The Philippines has several other holidays commemorating their heroes: (1)  “Day of Valor” commemorating the surrender of Bataan and Corregidor to the Japanese during World War II; (2) Bonifacio Day, commemorating the death of Andres Bonifacio, leader of the Philippine Revolution against Spain; (3) Rizal Day, commemorating the death of Jose Rizal, national hero (who was adamantly opposed to Bonifacio’s revolution!). There’s also All Saints’ Day commemorating all the dead, hero or not. In time, Cory Aquino will be commemorated as another national hero.

What are heroes remembered for? For bravely sacrificing their lives for freedom. For their unassailable integrity and virtue. But in the Philippines, these heroes do not have any lasting effect on the public officials as well as the ordinary citizens, as seen in the rampant corruption and social ills in the culture, seemingly unequaled in the rest of the world.

Holidays and heroes are celebrated for one thing: so that people who remember them will imitate their virtues. Even the Bible tells us this:

For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us, because we were not idle when we were with you… It was not because we do not have that right, but to give you in ourselves an example to imitate (2 Thess 3:7, 9).

Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith (Heb 13:7).

Beloved, do not imitate evil but imitate good (3 John 1:11).

Let us bear in mind, then, that every time we celebrate a holiday, it is for remembering an event or a person worth imitating.

For a more detailed discussion of Philippine holidays, click here.

RCJ Building Room 305 (3rd Flr)
Ortigas Ave Ext cor Countryside Ave
Brgy Santa Lucia, Pasig City
Philippines
Tel. nos.: (02) 661-0653 • (0927) 863-6364
Email: dvopilgrimatgmaildotcom

How to get there:

From Cubao, Ayala, Megamall/Robinson’s/Crossing: Take any jeepney, bus, or FX taxi to Cainta, Taytay, Antipolo, Angono, Binangonan via Ortigas Ave Ext. Get off at corner of Ortigas Ave Ext and Countryside Ave right before Super 8 Center and Ever-Gotesco Mall. RCJ Bldg is on the right.

From Cainta, Taytay, Antipolo, Angono, Binangonan: Take any jeepney, bus, or FX taxi to Cainta, Taytay, Antipolo, Angono, Binangonan via Ortigas Ave Ext. Get off at corner of Ortigas Ave Ext and Countryside Ave right after Ever-Gotesco Mall and Super 8 Center. RCJ Bldg is on the left.

From Marikina: Take any jeepney or FX taxi to Cainta, Taytay, Antipolo, Angono, Binangonan via Ortigas Ave Ext. Get off at Junction (Imelda Ave cor Ortigas Ave Ext). Take another jeepney, bus, or FX taxi to Ayala, Megamall/Robinson’s/Crossing. Get off at corner of Ortigas Ave Ext and Countryside Ave right after Ever-Gotesco Mall and Super 8 Center. RCJ Bldg is on the left.

Scenic Routes, Anyone?

I didn’t know there was such a thing as an orderly sight in the Philippine highways until…

	… two days ago, when I saw for the first time a freeway that was uncluttered by billboards, shanties, vendors, heavy traffic and smog. On our way to Lipa City, Batangas, we took the Southern Tagalog Arterial Road (STAR) Tollway, and saw this pleasant view on the left. All I saw was a postcard-perfect lush green tropical scenery. And because there were hardly any buses and jeepneys, the air was breathable. Click picture to enlarge.
	Compare STAR Tollway with this sight of ugly, dangerous billboards and smog along South Superhighway just south of Manila. Click picture to enlarge.
	For about 20 kilometers (12 miles) from Santo Tomas to Lipa City, I only saw three billboards, including this obnoxious one promoting, of all things, MSG. Click picture to enlarge.

The Dumbest (and Deadliest) New Year Celebration in the World

“Insanity is doing the same thing, over and over again, but expecting different results.” – Rita Mae Brown, Sudden Death (Bantam, 1983)

Year after year, hundreds of Filipinos get maimed and a few are killed by firecrackers and stray bullets in New Year’s Eve celebrations. And year after year, government officials brag about a ban on this senseless revelry.

Many Filipinos, influenced by Chinese tradition and superstition, believe that noisy New Year’s Eve celebrations drive away evil and bad luck in the coming year and explodie huge firecrackers and firing guns, even under threat to life and limb (pun intended). Every neighborhood in big cities is a scene of people lighting the biggest firecrackers that they have bought from markets, malls, and sidewalk vendors; “illegal” firecrackers are practically available to anyone anywhere. These are not cheap, but Filipinos are willing to spend their hard-earned money (or their relatives’ hard-earned money from overseas jobs) on such insanity.

What if each barangay (city district or ward) pool all the money they want to spend on their own personal firecrackers to hold a fireworks show at exactly midnight? These shows should be conducted and supervised by fireworks people who know what they’re doing. They should be held in a big plaza or school or any place big enough for people to gather and visible enough for the whole district to watch. And maybe toss in a couple of hours entertainment before the midnight fireworks show. This is what many cities in the U. S. enjoy on the 4th of July.

No one gets hurt in an insane revelry, and everyone, rich and poor, gets to enjoy the show.

Too many holidays

This last Christmas break in the Philippines must have been a blast for salaried employees, but a bummer for the daily worker.

Except for the big malls and grocery stores, the country was practically shut down from December 25, 2008 through January 4, 2009. (This stands out as another Philippine oddity: most people have lost their respect for holidays, even religious ones; malls open half-day even on Christmas Day and New Year.)

The total official holidays for 2008 was 16 days: EDSA Revolution Day (February 25), Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, April 9 (Fall of Bataan), Labor Day (May 1), Independence Day (June 9, moved from June 12), Ninoy Aquino Day (August 21), National Heroes Day (August 25), All Saints’ Day (November 1), Bonifacio Day (December 1, moved from November 30), Christmas Day, Rizal Day, plus December 26, 29, 31 and the end of Ramadan. In addition, the poor daily workers lost a few days due to typhoons and public transport strikes.

I want to suggest a few changes in Philippine holidays to reduce its number and thereby increase the work force’s productivity. These revisions assume that Filipinos are willing to make a couple of changes in their mindset and values.

First, Filipinos should avoid mixing in their sentimental, melodramatic and defeatist values with their holidays. These are reflected on the Filipino emphasis on celebrating death anniversaries together with birthday anniversaries. Thus, these holidays should be eliminated: Maundy Thursday and Good Friday (the death of Christ); Rizal Day (the execution of the national hero); and Ninoy Aquino Day (the assassination of a modern hero). It’s unimaginable to conceive of an Abraham Lincoln Day to commemorate his assassination! In particular, the death and resurrection of Christ should be celebrated together on Easter Sunday and on every Lord’s Day. Rizal Day should be shifted to his birthday on June 19, observed on the third Monday in June.

As well, it is easily noticeable that Philippine holidays commemorate defeats instead of victories. The Day of Valor, ironically, is the observance of the day of surrender of Bataan and Corregidor!

Second, there are several holidays that should be combined into one holiday, either because the dates are so close together, or the holidays are very similar in what they are commemorating. Two of the holidays, Ninoy Aquino Day (Monday nearest August 21) and National Heroes Day (last Monday in August), are celebrated very close to each other. I propose instead a “Philippine Revolution Day” on the last Monday in August to commemorate the start of the Philippine Revolution with the Cry of Pugadlawin on August 23, 1896. This holiday would inculcate something that is lacking in the Filipino consciousness: the rich heritage of the Philippine Revolution. The so-called EDSA Revolution is of no significance compared with the Philippine Revolution of 1896. In hindsight, it had more negative than positive lasting effects; in fact, it set a disastrous precedent in Philippine politics.

Two other holidays should be combined into a National Heroes Day, which will celebrate all heroes, but especially celebrate Andres Bonifacio’s (November 30) and Ninoy Aquino’s (November 27) birthdays. This day is to be marked on the last Monday in November. Thus, Aquino’s birthday, not his assassination would be remembered. This combined birthday commemoration would be like the American Presidents’ Day every 3rd Monday in February to celebrate George Washington’s (February 22) and Abraham Lincoln’s (February 12) birthdays.

Bottom line, the following is my suggested 9-day holiday schedule, a huge improvement from the 16 holidays in 2008:

New Year (January 1)
Labor Day (May 1)
Independence Day (June 12)
Rizal Day (3rd Monday in June)
Philippine Revolution Day (last Monday in August)
End of Ramadan (variable)
All Saints’ Day (November 1)
National Heroes Day (last Monday in November)
Christmas (December 25)

And here are a few other food for thought:

Why not move Independence Day to January 21, to celebrate the real inauguration of the First Philippine Republic by the First Philippine Congress in Malolos, Bulacan in 1899? We can cite as a parallel to this the Declaration of Independence by the Second Continental Congress of the United States on July 4, 1776. The Declaration of Independence read on June 12, 1898 in Kawit, Cavite, on the other hand, was written by a single individual, and signed by 98 individuals, not ratified by a congress in session.

I’m also for changing the national hero from Rizal to Bonifacio; in the least, Bonifacio and Rizal should be equally designated as national heroes. Rizal may be a genius and a reformer, but he was not a leader of the Philippine Revolution. I do not know of any country in the world that has for its national hero one who was adamantly against a revolution for independence. He disowned it in a manifesto, “From the very beginning, when I first had notice of what was being planned, I opposed it, fought it, and demonstrated its absolute impossibility.” The case could be made that he was a traitor to his countrymen during the last days of his life, when he volunteered to serve as a doctor in the Spanish army in Cuba to avoid being implicated in the revolution. His move was in vain, because he was nevertheless implicated and arrested on his way to Cuba, taken back to Manila, and executed.

The Balintawak Monument should be renovated to make it at least as beautiful, dignified and signified as the Rizal Monument at the Luneta Park.

Finally, the most dimwitted holiday of all was when the Independence Day holiday was moved to June 9, Monday, because June 12, the real day, fell on a Thursday!

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