STATEMENT OF REP. EDCEL C. LAGMAN
of the First District of Albay & Liberal Party President
on the 51st Anniversary of the Declaration of Martial Law
The atrocities and plunder of the Marcos, Sr. martial law regime and the sacrifices and heroism of its victims and survivors must never be allowed to be swept under the rug of distortion and historical revisionism.
The Filipinos’ memory of this darkest era in our history must be perpetuated to repel any attempt of repetition.
Prior acknowledgement of the horrors of martial law and subsequent punishment of those culpable for the repression and venalities during this tyrannical period must be the conditions precedent to a conscientious reconciliation.
We cannot move forward together without looking back. The ignominy of the past will forever haunt the present if we attempt to consign to oblivion the inordinate transgressions and flagrant misrule of martial law.
We celebrate anniversaries not only to commemorate past achievements but also to condemn past horrors.