Sen. Leila de Lima —JOSEPH VIDAL
Detained Sen. Leila De Lima urged teachers on Thursday to teach the youth of the truth and hone them to become worthy leaders of the future as she lamented how the “dark days” of martial law returned to the country under President Rodrigo Duterte.
“Kaya naman bilang mga pinuno, guro, at institusyong nagtuturo ng kaalaman sa ating kabataan, tungkulin nating hubugin sila bilang tagapagtaguyod ng katotohanan at maging karapat-dapat na mga pinuno sa hinaharap,” De Lima said in a statement read before the third Advocacy Forum of the Catholic Education Association of the Philippines (CEAP).
(This is why as leaders, teachers, and institutions that teach knowledge to our youth, it is our task to mold them as the bearers of truth and worthy leaders of the future.)
“Labanan natin ang mga kasinungalingang lumalason sa kaisipan ng ating mamamayan, at pangalagaan ang demokrasyang ipinaglaban ng ating mga kababayan, sa ngalan ng isang malayang Pilipinas, ngayon at sa mga susunod pang henerasyon ng Pilipino,” she added.
(Let us fight the lies that poison the minds of our people and guard the democracy that our fellow men fought for, in the name of a free Philippines, today and future generations of Filipinos.)
De Lima again condemned the recent Supreme Court decision to extend martial law in Mindanao as she remembered the Marcos regime where thousands of Filipinos were killed, tortured, and arrested and the country’s foreign debts “ballooned, and poverty worsened.”
“Given this dreadful experience during the dark chapter in our history, we never thought that years later, we would again experience martial law,” she said.
“Despite the pronouncements of the [Armed Forces of the Philippines] and [Philippine National Police] that the situation in Mindanao was under control, Duterte still stubbornly imposed this rule on the island,” she added.
She said it was more “disturbing” that the SC voted 10-5 to extend martial law, which is twice as long as the original extension and translates to 565 days of Martial Law since its first declaration on May 23, 2017.
The SC, she said, should always defend the Constitution at all times.
“Uulitin ko: Hindi pwedeng matapang lamang ang Korte Suprema kapag marunong sumunod sa batas ang ibang sangay ng gobyerno. Bilang Kataas-taasang Hukuman, dapat mas marunong at handang manindigan ang Korte Suprema, sa lahat ng pagkakataon, sa pagtataguyod ng Konstitusyon,” she said.
(I repeat: the Supreme Court should not just be brave if other branches of government know how to follow the law. As the highest court of the land, the Supreme Court should know more and ready to fight, at all times, for the Constitution.) /je