“Time to move on from just celebrating the past”, says Abella of Edsa anniversary

February 16, 2017

The Duterte administration will have a "simple" commemoration of the 31st anniversary of the Edsa People Power Revolution on February 25 as the government wants the country to move forward, Malacanang said on Thursday.

There are reports the commemoration of the Edsa People Power Revolution will be held inside Camp Aguinaldo and not at the People Power Monument along Edsa in Quezon City.

"It's time to move on from just celebrating the past, remembering the past and to move on into the whole aspect of nation-building, to give it more positive outlook and to make it, give it a more positive understanding," said Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella when asked why the venue will be in Camp Aguinaldo.

"We think holistically, you know. The whole nation is evolving, we can't get stuck in the past," he added.

The Edsa People Power Revolution led to the ouster of late President Ferdinand Marcos, who ruled the country for about two decades, and catapulted Corazon Aquino to the presidency.

When President Rodrigo Duterte was still campaigning for the presidency, he vowed to allow Marcos' remains to be buried at the Libingan ng mga Bayani, which to the surprise of the Filipino people took place in November last year.

This year's Edsa People Power celebration has a theme, "A Day of Reflection: Celebrating People Power for Nation Building." Celerina Monte/ DMS