As far as I can remember, Tagaytay was a weekend getaway for me and the family and our friends. It was a picnic place where we feasted on the assortment of fruits we could buy from the roadside.
And then the main attraction was the Taal Volcano where one would take a majestic look at it from a breathtaking ridge. And how could one forget the early morning and midday fog? And oh the horseback rides.
This was the Tagaytay I knew many years ago. As I grew older, it was a place to go for retreats, group sessions, and the seminars at the Development Academy of the Philippines (DAP).
And then, for some brown-nosing reason, someone had this idea to erect a statue of Benigno ‘Ninoy’ Aquino Jr. in an obvious attempt to gain favor from the Aquino family. The statue stands at the rotunda together with a historical marker commemorating the Tagaytay Liberation Day of February 3, 1945 where Commonwealth troops stood their ground there amid the barrage of enemy gunfire.
They were to secure supplies enroute to Manila. Hence, a marker to honor their memory. Yet another memory of a pseudo-hero would stand his ground there as well, perhaps erected to perpetuate the memory of a traitor and tyrant while conspiring with the Communists to topple a democratic regime.
Yes, the statue of Ninoy Aquino is a reminder for us all that not all monuments belong to heroes. Depending on who your sponsor is (I believe he is now a Senator himself), one can rewrite history by displaying hideous statues such as this.
But let me return to the beautiful Tagaytay I knew then. Taal Volcano is the smallest volcano in the world. It is also home to two delectable and rare species of fish, the ‘maliputo’ and the ‘tawilis.’
In spite of the proximity to Manila, Tagaytay has a unique rustic atmosphere and an invigorating cool climate. This is perhaps why many tourists do not only want to visit the place, but also to hold seminars, conferences, and retreats in the city. Complementing the natural endowment are several tourist establishments.
But too many now I think. During the Philippine Revolution of 1896, the ridges and forests of Tagaytay became the sanctuary for revolutionaries, including for those from nearby provinces.
The passage to and from towns via Tagaytay added the word ‘mananagaytay.’ To the native’s vocabulary, it means ‘to traverse ridges.’
At the outbreak of the 2nd World War, the 11th Airborne Division of Lt. Gen. William Krueger’s 8th army airdropped military supplies and personnel on the Tagaytay Ridge prior to the liberation of Manila from the Japanese.
Yes, a more fitting memorial was thus installed in 1951 at the junction of the Manila-Canlubang-Nasugbu roads by city officials in coordination with the National Historical Institute (NHI).
Tagaytay became a chartered city on June 21, 1938 when President Manuel L. Quezon signed Commonwealth Act No. 338, a bill authored by Rep. Justiniano Montano of Cavite. They were the real heroes. So what’s with that statue?
I see ICC
In his book “Notes On The New Society,” the late President Ferdinand E. Marcos listed the following to justify his exercise of emergency powers and eventual imposition of Martial Law: rightist conspiracy, economic dislocation, graft and corruption, the Muslim secessionist movement, Communist insurgency, rising criminality, and increasing social injustice.
They were in some sort of irreconcilable but sometimes harmonious conspiracy to bring him down.
Sounds familiar? Today, a similar tune is being sung by those who are in a hurry to achieve their political ambitions. We have become a country of fifth columnists. Of internal conspirators planning to unseat a democratic president thru oft-repeated lies that he is unfit for the throne because of his alleged drug use, but to this very day, they still cannot confirm this with evidence.
It makes one wonder who really talks and behaves like a drug addict. Bongbong Marcos is always spic and span and unmistakably presidential in his utterances and decorum while the one who came before him is like a sloth on Diazepam.
Plus the fact that there are talks of Rodrigo Duterte’s possible arrest by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
If you remember, it was former Senator Sonny Trillanes who was the first to take notice of Duterte’s crimes back in 2017 with the ICC.
I am told that the warrants are to be served in batches, with Duterte belonging to the first batch, and the second batch would likely include VP Sara Duterte, Sen. Bong Go, and Sen. Bato Dela Rosa.
And lastly, the third batch would be PNP officers who initiated the former president’s bloody war on drugs which never really succeeded.
These days, the opposition is really wondering if PBBM would allow the ICC to come into the country or not. What do you think?
Presidential adviser on POGOs?
People ask who the godfather of POGO is here in the country. I can only ask why was the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) not able to trace where and how the P6.1 plus billion which was used to fund the POGO facilities inside the Baofu compound in Bamban, Tarlac?
And do you remember Michael Yang, the former Duterte presidential adviser and a Chinese mainlander and has reportedly been overstaying in Davao for more than 20 years now?
So many questions that need answers, but as Alice Guo would say, “You’re honor, hindi ko na po maalala.” A word of caution though: bao fu in English means “to retaliate.”
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Factoid: President Jose P. Laurel signed Proclamation No. 29 on September 21, 1944 declaring Martial Law in the country. President Ferdinand E. Marcos signed Proclamation No. 1081 on September 21, 1972 declaring Martial Law in the country.
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