148th Birthday of Andres Bonifacio

Today is the 148th birthday of Filipino nationalist and revolutionary Andres Bonifacio. Gat Andres Bonifacio's natal day is a national holiday in the Philippines and because of this, we all are in a rest mode. As a student, much of the writings we read about him was he came from a poor family and with the death of his parents, he had to take the on the lead role to provide for his siblings. He was portrayed to be of that all-brawn and no- brains, impulsive revolutionary who was from Tondo, Manila.

But during my college days, I was glad to have enrolled in Philippine History class where my professor (I forgot his name) would give us a lecture ala-dummies guide book. He would share to us the kept-hidden truths of Philippine history which the Americans maneuvered towards the reverence to the elite, intellectual status of the "other hero".

Thank God our country had him during the revolution. Intellectual and financial superiority is often the root cause of social discrimination. Andres Bonifacio suffered the same tribulations against the rich elite who spoke the colonial language.

If you will ask me, I'd like to have Andres Bonifacio as the our national hero.