“WE should not allow the death of our heroes to end in vain.”
This was the pronouncement of Cebu City Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella as the City Government yesterday commemorated the 119th anniversary of the Battle of Tres de Abril.
“This plays an important role in the nation’s history as this served as the battlecry of the subsequent battles against foreign subjugation,” he said.
Labella, who is chairman of the Cultural and Historical Affairs Commission (Chac), said the revolution in Cebu led by Pantaleon “Leon Kilat” Villegas signified the unity among Cebuanos during the Spanish Period.
To spread awareness, especially among the youth, he said Chac will be making representations with the National Historical Commission of the Philippines to seek the declaration of the Battle of Tres de Abril as a national holiday.
He pointed out that the people are now “breathing freedom and democracy” because of the 2,500 rebels led by Leon Kilat who triumphed over their Spanish colonizers despite having inferior weaponry.
“This is one of the few battles in which the Filipinos won against their colonizers. We should make the commemoration nationwide to further spread awareness,” Labella said.
The vice mayor, though, said that while the country is now free of colonizers, the people are facing a tougher battle.
He referred to the perennial political and social problems many Filipinos, especially the poor and marginalized, are battling against.
Like the valor shown by Leon Kilat, he urged the youth to also invest time in creating initiatives that will be helpful to society.