AS the country marks its 123rd Independence Day on Saturday, Malacañang expressed optimism that the Philippines would become “victorious” in its battle against the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.
Presidential Communications Secretary Martin Andanar enjoined his fellow Filipinos to value the “firm foundations” set by the country’s forefathers as “we collectively rise and recover from the challenges and difficulties it has brought to our nation.”
He noted that “it is when all of us play our part in this collective fight, by following all the health protocols and participating in the national vaccination program of the government, that we can be dutiful and steadfast citizens, as expected of us by our ancestors.”
“Let us strive to enrich ourselves with the firm foundations and aims set by our forefathers of a united, prosperous, and proud nation, so that their sacrifices are not to be made vain,” Andanar said in a statement.
“May we emerge victorious from the fight against Covid-19 and become stronger from it as we look toward the brighter prospects ahead,” he added.
One of the most significant dates in the Philippines’ history is June 12 because it marks the country’s independence from Spanish rule.
It was on June 12, 1898 when the first Philippine president Emilio Aguinaldo and Filipino revolutionary forces raised the Philippine flag and played the national anthem for the first time to celebrate the nation’s freedom.
In his Independence Day message, Presidential peace adviser and vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. acknowledged that despite the freedom the country was currently enjoying, there were still challenges that needed to be faced.
Galvez said that the country’s freedom “is once again endangered not by a foreign nation who wants to rule over us, but by a pandemic that has upended all aspects of our daily lives.”
“For more than a year, we have fought valiantly to keep this unseen enemy from claiming the things that matter the most to us — our livelihoods and our loved ones. It has been a long and difficult battle. Many of us have lost our jobs, our possessions, and the people who matter to us the most,” he said.
However, Galvez said that during these challenging times, “heroes have emerged and are putting their lives on the line so that their fellow Filipinos can be protected from the disease and receive vital services.”
“These are the brave men and women who serve in hospitals, health centers, government offices, fast food stores, factories and checkpoints amid the threat of the disease,” he said.
Galvez then urged Filipinos to pay tribute to the country’s doctors, nurses, soldiers, factory workers, government personnel, riders, soldiers and policemen amid the fight against the pandemic.