NOY LEADS FREDDOM DAY RITES / MAHATHIR AT UST LECTURE: RP DEMOCRACY BREEDS CORRUPTION
[PHOTO - SWEET TASTE OF FREEDOM Two women put the
finishing touches on the Philippine flag made from some 5,000 pieces of "yema"
(caramel) candies at SM City Davao annex on the eve of nationwide celebrations
of Independence Day. The candies will be distributed to mall customers Tuesday.
BING GONZALES/INQUIRER MINDANAO]
MANILA, JUNE 14, 2012 (INQUIRER) Underscoring his
administration's sense of history, President Benigno Aquino will lead Tuesday's
celebration marking the 114th anniversary of Philippine independence at
Barasoain Church in Malolos, Bulacan.
"This is also to emphasize the importance of these places in the role of
gaining our independence," Mr. Aquino's spokesperson, Edwin Lacierda, told
reporters.
The National Historical Commission presented the idea to the President to
mark Freedom Day in historic sites during his term, Lacierda said. Last year,
Mr. Aquino led the celebration in Kawit, Cavite.
"We believe this is one way of imbibing the historical significance of these
places," Lacierda told reporters. "And also it's more fun in the Philippines to
visit the historical sites."
Mr. Aquino will lead the flag-raising and wreath-laying activities at
Barasoain Church, simultaneously with those at the Rizal National Monument at
Luneta in Manila; Emilio Aguinaldo Shrine in Kawit, Cavite; and at the Bonifacio
National Monument in Caloocan City.
Vice President Jejomar Binday will lead the rites in Luneta, Transportation
Secretary Manuel Roxas in Kawit, and Justice Secretary Leila de Lima in Caloocan
City.
Pamintuan mansion
[PHOTO FROM PHILSTAR - On June 12, Angeles City will join the entire
nation in the celebration of the 114th Proclamation of Philippine Independence,
with Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez as guest of honor and speaker. Photo by CLAUDE TAYAG]
Another Cabinet member, Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez Jr., will attend the
rites at the Pamintuan mansion in Angeles City, where the Philippine republic
commemorated the first year of its freedom from Spain 114 years ago.
The President is expected to give a "philosophical" speech, according to
Lacierda. "I believe it is something that lays down also the philosophy of what
he's fighting for. So that's the broad stroke."
From Bulacan, Mr. Aquino will head to Malacañang to lead the traditional vin
d'honneur scheduled at 10 a.m. Tuesday. He will also give an Independence Day
message.
Jimenez's participation in activities at the Pamintuan mansion as announced
by Malacañang is regarded as an official recognition of the June 12, 1899,
event, said Carmen Tayag-McTavish, president of Kuliat Foundation Inc. (KFI).
A year after the centennial of Philippine independence, the KFI started
reenacting excerpts from the outdoor Mass and grand military parade of some
2,000 soldiers (then led by Generals Gregorio del Pilar of Bulacan and Manuel
Tinio of Nueva Ecija), and President Emilio Aguinaldo's speech to the troops.
Aguinaldo speech
[PHOTO -Transportation and Communication Secretary Mar Roxas (middle)
leads the flag raising rites in Aguinaldo Shrine in Kawit, Cavite as the
Philippines celebrates the 114th Independence Day Tuesday. Also in photo are
Cavite Governor Juanito Victor 'Jonvic' Remulla
Jr.]
In the speech found by a US Army historian, Capt. John Taylor, in the
Philippine Insurgent Records, Aguinaldo said: "Let us remember that this day
commemorates the greatest event in our political evolution, the first
anniversary of the proclamation of our independence in Cavite the 12th of June
1898, the date on which the Philippine people, thirsting for liberty, justice
and the exercise of their proper rights, thronged to Cavite, to carry out this
high patriotic manifestation, the beginning of a new era of progress and
well-being for our idolized country, to the cry of 'The Philippines Free and
Independent.'"
"We will be slaves to none, nor will we allow ourselves to be deceived with
soft words," Aguinaldo said.
From the window of the Pamintuan mansion on Miranda and Santo Entierro
Streets, Aguinaldo unfurled the Philippine flag sewn in Hong Kong and used in
the Kawit rites, local historian and KFI trustee Daniel Dizon, 81, said, citing
documented accounts of that event.
The mansion served as the seat of government and presidential palace of the
first republic in Asia, KFI research showed.
But while the then National Historical Institute had installed a marker
recognizing the historical importance of the place, no President or department
secretary had come for the rites.
Traffic rerouted
With Secretary De Lima as keynote speaker, the Freedom Day program at
Monumento Circle will be attended by Caloocan officials led by Mayor Enrico
Echiverri, according to Leuterio Nicolas, the city's public information officer.
Traffic will be rerouted in the area from 6 a.m. to 8 a.m., Police Officer 2
Kennedy Arellano of the city's traffic enforcement unit told the Philippine
Daily Inquirer.
All vehicles coming from MacArthur Highway in Valenzuela City will execute a
counterflow at the eastern portion of the Monumento Circle to get to Monumento,
Edsa or Manila. Public utility vehicles will turn right at A. de Jesus Street in
Caloocan to get to Manila.
Buses coming from Edsa on their way to Monumento and Sangandaan in Caloocan
and Valenzuela will turn right at Gen. Simon Street in Caloocan.
Jeepneys and other vehicles will turn right at MacArthur Highway and left at
Pinagtipunan Circle to reach Gov. Pascual Avenue, both in Malabon. They may
access Monumento and Sangandaan through Samson Road in Caloocan.
Jeepneys plying Gen. San Miguel Street in Caloocan will turn left at Dagohoy
Street and access Caimito Road to get to Pio Valenzuela Street in Valenzuela.
From there, they can reach Monumento.
Private vehicles coming from Gen. San Miguel Street will take A. Mabini
Street in Caloocan and turn left at 10th Avenue to get to Rizal Avenue
Extension. They may access Monumento from there.
Vehicles coming from Manila through Rizal Avenue Extension will turn right at
9th Avenue and left at B. Serrano Street to reach Edsa. To get to MacArthur
Highway, they have to make a U-turn in front of the SSS building from the major
thoroughfare.
Buses and trucks originating from Malabon are advised to turn right at
Dagat-dagatan Avenue, left at C-3 Road, and left upon reaching B. Serrano to
access Edsa or Balintawak.
Manila
In Manila, at least two major roads will be closed to vehicular traffic.
These are portions of Roxas Boulevard, from Katigbak Drive to T.M. Kalaw Avenue,
as well as Ma. Orosa Street, from Padre Burgos Street to TM Kalaw Avenue.
Superintendent Reynaldo Nava, head of the Manila Police District's Traffic
Enforcement Unit, advised motorists traveling through the southbound lane of
Roxas Boulevard from the Del Pan Bridge to turn left to Padre Burgos Street and
straight through Taft Avenue.
Those taking the northbound lane of Roxas Boulevard are advised to turn right
to Kalaw, left to Orosa or go straight to Taft.
Jeepneys coming from the MacArthur, Jones and Quezon Bridges should go
straight to Taft and turn right to Kalaw instead of passing through Orosa.
Cargo trucks traveling through Osmeña Highway should turn right to President
Quirino Avenue, go straight to Nagtahan Bridge, AH Lacson Avenue, Yuseco Street,
cross Jose Abad Santos to Raxabago Street then Capulong Street. Reports from
Christine O. Avendaño, Kristine Felisse Mangunay and Jeannette I. Andrade in
Manila; and Tonette Orejas, Inquirer Central Luzon
FROM THE MANILA TIMES
UNBOUNDED FREEDOM UNDERMINES DEMOCRACY – MAHATHIR
Published : Tuesday, June 12, 2012 00:00 Article Views : 440 Written
by : DANTE "KLINK" ANG 2ND EXECUTIVE EDITOR
[Dante "Klink" Ang 2nd (left), president and CEO of The Manila Times,
talks with former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahatir Mohamed at the Neo-Centennial
Keynote Lecture at the University of Santo Tomas on Monday. PHOTO BY RENE DILAN]
Mahathir Mohamad, the outspoken former leader of Malaysia, may have struck a
chord among those who believe that the Philippines needs a benevolent dictator
in order to realize its dreams of economic development.
In Manila on Monday, the former Malaysian prime minister gave a lecture at
the University of Santo Tomas (UST), where he said that too much freedom
undermined democracy. He added that freedom without limitations led to gridlock
and political instability that also stunt economic progress.
"We applaud democracy as the best system of governance ever devised by man,
but democracy works only when the people understand the limitations of
democracy," Mahathir explained.
"When people think only of the freedoms of democracy and know nothing of the
implied responsibilities, democracy will not bring the goodness that it
promises," he said. "Instead, it will result only in instability, and
instability will not permit development to take place and the people to enjoy
the benefits of freedom and rights that democracy promises."
Reacting to Mahathir's lecture, Nilo Divina, dean of the UST Faculty of Civil
Law, agreed that freedom should not be equated to license. But he added that
dictatorship would not work in the Philippines given its history.
The subject of authoritarian rule is a sensitive topic for many Filipinos,
who still blame the dictatorial rule of the late President Ferdinand Marcos for
many of the political and social problems festering today. Marcos became
president in 1965, when the Philippines was second only to Japan in economic
development. He imposed martial law in 1972 and remained in power until he was
toppled in 1986. By that time, the Philippines was derided as the "sick man of
Asia."
Recently, President Benigno Aquino 3rd was accused of martial-law type
tactics in attacking former Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona, who was
just removed from office. During Corona's impeachment trial, Sen. Joker Arroyo
likened President Aquino to an autocrat who was consolidating power under the
Executive Branch. In the Philippines, each of the three branches of government
has separate but equal powers, which was copied from the United States
constitution to ensure a system of checks and balances.
During the lecture, Mahathir asked, "No doubt democracy is being practiced by
this country, but is it really what democracy is all about?"
"Why did we change from autocracy to democracy? Wasn't it because autocracy
had failed to deliver the good life that we wanted?"
Mahathir, one of the longest-serving modern leaders in Asia, was not the
first to criticize the Philippine political system. In the late 1990s,
Singapore's former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew told a business conference in
Manila that the Philippines had too much democracy, and that it needed more
discipline in order to develop.
Mahathir clarified that he was not against empowering people. "I'm not
against democracy. Malaysia is a democracy, but we apply limits."
Moral, capable leadership Equally important to maintaining order and creating
an environment conducive to development was an honest and capable leadership,
Mahathir said.
"Leadership plays a crucial role," he added. "It must not be corrupt, and it
must have some skill and ideas about administration and the development of the
country."
Mahathir is credited for leading Malaysia into modernization. He opened the
country to foreign investments before it was popular to do so. He also
liberalized trade, reformed taxation laws, privatized state-owned firms, and
embarked on massive infrastructure development program. In 1991, he crafted
Vision 2020, a blueprint for making Malaysia a developed economy and a mature
democracy by the year 2020.
He conceded that the dark side of curtailing freedoms was that power can
corrupt leaders. He said that when leaders become dictators, they cling to power
for fear of retribution once they are out of office. Mahathir was Malaysia's
prime minister from 1981 to 2003, when he voluntarily resigned despite
objections from his party.
"In every country, there are great people who should lead, but seeing the
filth in politics and the fears of those who come into power, they are unwilling
to take the risk," he said.
Still, he added, "The countries of Southeast Asia have great potentials for
growth, prosperity and empowerment. All we need [are] people and leaders who
love their country and their people more than they love themselves."
After the lecture, he told The Manila Times how he resisted the temptations
from corruption while he was in office. He said, "I knew that I was going to die
[someday]. I couldn't take all of those things with me."
Also during Monday's event, UST named Mahathir an honorary professor, which,
according to the university, was given to distinguished individuals who have
achieved extensive international eminence and distinction in his field of
expertise.
In October 2011, UST gave the same title to Dr. Yuan Tseh Lee, the 1985 Nobel
Laureate in Chemistry, and to Rev. Msgr. Marcelo Sanchez Sorondo, chancellor of
the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences and the Pontifical Academy of Science
at the Vatican.
The lecture series was part of the activities that commemorated the 400th
anniversary of the university.
Chief News Editor: Sol Jose Vanzi
© Copyright, 2012 by PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE
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