Marcos admin can’t erase Edsa Revolt’s memory 鈥� Aquino’s grandson
Ninoy and Cory Aquino Foundation Executive Director Kiko Aquino Dee addresses reporters during the launch of the PNoy: Filipino photobook on February 24, 2025, at the Aquino Center and Museum in Tarlac City. Jown Manalo/黑料社
MANILA, Philippines – President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s administration is failing to make Filipinos forget the Edsa People Power Revolution, according to the grandson of democracy icon and late Senator Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr.
Kiko Aquino Dee, executive director of the Ninoy and Cory Aquino Foundation, made the statement when asked if there was a danger of people forgetting the significance of the Edsa revolution, which toppled Ferdinand Marcos Sr.’s 20-year dictatorship on February 25, 1986.
Since 2024, February 25 has ceased to be a special non-working holiday in the Philippines.
READ: Feb 25 school holidays: Protesting ‘distortion of history’
Article continues after this advertisementWith this, Aquino Dee acknowledged the risk of historical distortion.
Article continues after this advertisement“I think the current administration is really… I think that’s what they’re trying to do. But at the same time, I think they’re failing by a significant degree,” he told reporters on Monday during the reopening of the Aquino Center and Museum in Tarlac City.
“Because, if you recall last year, Edsa [People Power commemoration] was also made a non-holiday. It was a Sunday, but what happened? People used that as an opportunity, not just to recall Edsa, but also to protest the sort of secretive charter change that was trying to be pushed on us last year,” he added.
“And then this year, it’s similar. The administration pushed a really bad budget for 2025. At the same time, [Vice President] Sara Duterte is evading accountability for all of her impeachable offenses,” he pointed out.
He also said the Edsa revolution remains a symbol for Filipinos to hold leaders accountable.
“So we want to use Edsa to call out our leaders and say that, ‘Look, if you keep doing what you want, or if you keep doing things that only align with your self-interest, there is a consequence for that’,” he explained.
READ: LIST: More schools suspend classes for Edsa People Power anniversary
Aquino Dee also noted how many schools across the country canceled classes on February 25, demonstrating that the administration’s efforts to discredit the Edsa revolution are not entirely effective.
“The schools see what the Marcos Jr. administration is trying to do. And it’s not terribly… not really hidden. I mean, Marcos Jr. seems like he doesn’t acknowledge or recognize that what his father did was wrong,” he said.
“And to make that consistent or coherent, he needs to manipulate the story of Edsa. He needs… that has to disappear somehow. So he will really attempt to distort what happened,” he added.
READ: Aquino Museum in Tarlac reopens ahead of 39th Edsa anniversary
Aquino Dee also pointed out that the Chinese New Year in 2024 fell on a Saturday, but it was declared a holiday, unlike the Edsa revolution’s anniversary which fell on a Sunday.
“That’s why it was not declared a holiday because they said it wasn’t needed since it was the weekend. Never mind that the Chinese New Year weekend was still declared a holiday,” he said. “This year, the excuse is that it’s a working holiday. Whatever that means. It’s the first of its kind. So it’s clear that there’s an effort to set aside February 25.”
“The karma being faced by Marcos is that his attempts to set it aside actually call more attention to it,” he added.
READ: ‘PNoy: Filipino’ photobook unveiled ahead of 39th Edsa anniversary
Aquino Dee also noted that the schools’ decision to cancel classes may not be outright political, but it still sends a message.
“I think the schools [are] canceling, though it’s not outright political that way… but they also see that there’s something wrong,” he said.
READ: PUP student regent calls for walkout on Edsa anniversary
