Negros Occidental officials yesterday stressed the need to keep the spirit of the EDSA people power revolution alive, especially among the younger generation who know little about it.

On Feb. 22 to 25, 1986, more than two million Filipino civilians gathered at EDSA to call for the ouster of the dictator, Ferdinand Marcos, that culminated in his escape to Hawaii.

It was a historic, bloodless uprising that led to the restoration of our democracy 28 years ago, Negros Occidental Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr. said.

“The EDSA Revolution made us doubly proud as Filipinos. Our late President Cory Aquino became an icon of democracy and was credited for inspiring other countries that were under the grip of dictatorship. We provided that elusive hope to many,” he noted.

But sadly, it appears that the spirit of EDSA and the fervor that drove the Filipino people to fight for freedom is slipping away, he said.

“We are backsliding as a nation as we continue to face today similar issues of corruption, ineptness and poverty, among others,” he said.

The governor said that, as the nation yesterday celebrated the 28th anniversary of EDSA Revolution, it should be institutionalized into the nation’s history to forever remind the new generation of Filipinos about what it stood for.

Former Negros Occidental Gov. Rafael Coscolluela said he thinks the spirit of EDSA is dead. A lot of young people know very little about what happened and have no sense of attachment to the spirit of EDSA, he said.

“We need to communicate to the younger generation and make them aware of why EDSA happened, in order to avoid a repeat of the past,” he said.

“Much of the young generation have turned off from everything political, they are fed up with the old people like us. We’ve messed up and the young generation feels that it is hopeless…which is sad because EDSA had redeeming values,” he said.

EDSA brought out a sense of nationalism that we should try to develop today, he said. “We take pride in many things Filipino, but we don’t take pride in our being good Filipinos…the sense of citizenship is something we should have carried over from EDSA,” he said.

Meanwhile, Negros Occidental Vice Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson led the 28th year of commemoration of the EDSA People Power Revolution, at the Capitol grounds in Bacolod City, with the turnover of insurance claim checks to 21 beneficiaries, totaling P984,706.

He emphasized the need for the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution to be taught in schools to the younger generation.*CPG

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