Marcos Burial To Libingan Ng Mga Bayani: What’s Next To It?
Moves – right and left – are being made – for and against the burial of the Late Pres. Ferdinand Edralin Marcos to the Libingan ng mga Bayani in Taguig. The so-called Marcos burial, how is it gonna affect us?
To many, it is a start to moving on from the dark pages the dictator has put in History books but to the majority, it is splashing fuel to the flame.
President Rodrigo Duterte has given a green light to bury Marcos’ still-preserved remains to the Heroes’ Cemetery, a move that has enraged the many who has experienced, mostly the bad, of the Marcos regime especially in the 1970s.
Before even talking about how the simple burial can affect the nation, let us peep into the rules in availing a spot in the “dignified” cemetery.
According to the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) regulation, the remains of the following deceased persons are “qualified, and therefore authorized”, to be buried at the LNMB:
a.) Medal of Valor Awardees;
b.) Presidents or Commander-in-Chief, AFP;
c.) Secretaries of National Defense;
d.) AFP Chiefs of Staff;
e.) Generals/Flag Officers of the AFP;
f.) active and retired military personnel of the AFP, to include active draftees and trainees who died in line of duty, and active reservists and CAFGU Active Auxiliary (CAA) who died in combat operations or combat-related activities;
g.) former members of the AFP who laterally entered or joined the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and the Philippine National Police (PNP);
h.) Veterans of Philippine Revolution of 1890, World War I, World War II, and recognized guerillas;
i.) government dignitaries, statesmen, national artist and other deceased persons whose interment and re-interment has been approved by the Commander-in-Chief, Congress or the Secretary of National Defense, and
j.) former Presidents, Secretaries of Defense, dignitaries, statesmen, national artists, widows of former Presidents, Secretaries of National Defense and Chief of Staff.
Yes, Marcos is ‘qualified’ to be awarded a square in the cemetery but after his ‘special time’ on September, what has the nation to face?
A month before the Marcos burial to the LNMB, the leftists are already sharpening their arrows along with protests and rallies feelers.
House Resolution No. 197, filed by the seven lawmakers from the Makabayan bloc, called the “hero’s burial” to be accorded Marcos “a grave travesty of justice and monumental historical distortion tantamount to declaring as a hero a dictator that committed gross crimes against humanity, plunged the nation deeper into debt and foreign control, and plundered the nation’s resources”.
Marcos’ rumored daughter, Senator Grace Poe, cited Republic Act 10368 which recognizes the human rights victims during Marcos’ declaration of martial law.
Duterte, the man who can make everyone obey his orders, is a sacred cow in this issue. Now that whatever he says becomes a law and his suggestions become guidelines, his reputation and trust rating shall remain on their spots.
The heart- and head-aching of Marcos burial is that it becomes a dark precedent. We have four former presidents who are still alive – but not any longer – they also shall die.
Please click next page to know more.