20/09/2025
As the nation marks the 53rd year since Ferdinand Marcos Sr. placed the Philippines under Martial Law, we remember it not as a time of โpeace and discipline,โ but as one of the darkest chapters in our historyโmarked by the plunder of our nationโs wealth, the silencing of voices, and the trampling of basic human rights. Billions were stolen while ordinary Filipinos suffered in silence.
As law students, we are reminded that the 1987 Constitution was born out of this painful history. It was written to ensure that tyranny and betrayal would never again take root in our land. ๐๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐น๐ฒ ๐ซ๐, ๐ฆ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ญ ๐ถ๐ ๐ฐ๐น๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ: โ๐ฃ๐๐ฏ๐น๐ถ๐ฐ ๐ผ๐ณ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐ถ๐ ๐ฎ ๐ฝ๐๐ฏ๐น๐ถ๐ฐ ๐๐ฟ๐๐๐.โ Yet time and again, we see public officials who treat government as their private estateโsquandering public funds, enriching themselves, and forgetting that they are meant to serve, not to rule. The promise that sovereignty resides in the people rings hollow when political dynasties dominate elections, when corruption decides policy, and when public trust is treated as disposable.
Fifty-three years later, the same patterns repeat. Inflation and unemployment burden ordinary citizens while those in power live in comfort. Corruption scandals come and go with little to no accountability. Justice remains elusive for victims of rights violations and worse, our history is being rewritten to erase the crimes of the pastโan insult to those who suffered under the regime.
We refuse to be silent. We know that the law is not just words on paper; it is a living promise of justice, freedom, and accountability. To stay quiet in the face of corruption and historical revisionism is to betray that promise.
๐ข๐ป ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ ๐ฑ๐ฎ๐, ๐๐ฒ ๐บ๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฒ ๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ: ๐ก๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฎ๐ด๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ผ ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฐ๐๐ฎ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ฝ. ๐ก๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฎ๐ด๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ผ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฟ๐๐ฝ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป. ๐ก๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฎ๐ด๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ผ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ฎ๐น ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ผ๐ฝ๐น๐ฒโ๐ ๐๐ฟ๐๐๐.
We call on our fellow Filipinos to remain vigilant, to speak out, and to demand a government that truly serves its people. Let us honor the sacrifices of the past not only with remembrance but with action, holding fast to the words of the Constitution: โSovereignty resides in the people and all government authority emanates from them.โ
๐๐ค๐ง ๐๐ช๐จ๐ฉ๐๐๐ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐๐๐ค๐ช๐ฃ๐ฉ๐๐๐๐ก๐๐ฉ๐ฎ.
๐๐ค๐ง ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ซ๐๐ฃ๐๐๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ ๐ค๐ ๐๐ช๐ข๐๐ฃ ๐ง๐๐๐๐ฉ๐จ.
๐๐ค๐ง ๐ ๐๐ช๐ฉ๐ช๐ง๐ ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฉ ๐๐จ ๐๐ง๐๐ ๐๐ง๐ค๐ข ๐ค๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ง๐๐จ๐จ๐๐ค๐ฃ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ฅ๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ.
๐๐ค๐ง ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ฅ๐๐ค๐ฅ๐ก๐ ๐ค๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ก๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐๐ฃ๐๐จ.