President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday signed an administrative order that builds an inter-agency committee to commemorate the Philippines' 125th anniversary of independence and nationhood.
Administrative Order No. 8 states that the committee is tasked with facilitating the planning and execution of programs and projects to commemorate the 125th Philippine independence anniversary.
The National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) will chair the committee, with the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) serving as vice chair.
The Department of Tourism, the Department of Education, the Department of National Defense, the Department of Information and Communications Technology, the Department of Trade and Industry, the Department of Budget and Management, the Department of Labor and Employment, the Department of Transportation, and the Metro Manila Development Authority are all members of the inter-agency committee.
From 2023 to 2026, the country will observe the 125th anniversary of Philippine independence in order to "focus on the freedom that our forefathers struggled for towards that which they dreamed for the country and the history that we seek to remember and honor them with."
According to Republic Act No. 10086, or the "Strengthening Peoples' Nationalism Through Philippine History Act," the State shall provide the means to "strengthen people's nationalism, love of country, respect for its heroes, and pride for the people's accomplishments by reinforcing the importance of Philippine national and local history in daily life with the end goal of raising social consciousness."
It is also intended to "reinvigorate government support for historical research, as well as sustain and improve programs for the protection, preservation, and conservation of historical relics and memorabilia, monuments, sites, and other historical resources."
