28/12/2024
๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐ฉ๐๐ง๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ก๐๐๐๐๐๐ฃ๐จ ๐๐๐๐ฝ ๐พ๐ช๐ง๐๐ ๐ข๐ค๐ช๐ง๐ฃ๐จ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ฅ๐๐จ๐จ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ค๐ฃ๐ค๐ง๐จ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ก๐๐๐ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ก๐๐๐๐๐ฎ ๐ค๐ ๐ฟ๐ง. ๐๐ง๐๐ฃ๐๐๐จ๐๐ค "๐ฟ๐ค๐๐ค๐ฃ๐" ๐๐๐ข๐๐ฃ๐ฏ๐ค ๐
๐ง. '54.
Brod Dodong was considered one of the founding members of Kapatirang Plebeians, established in UP Diliman in June 1954. He was part of the first group of young scholars and intellectuals from the provinces who joined the kapatiran, alongside notable figures such as Zeus Salazar, Cancio Garcia, Hilario Davide Jr., and Romeo Brawner. In his eulogy for Merlin Magallona on January 2022, he recounted his experiences in joining the Kapatiran as such: " [we] yearned to belong [to an organization] but are unwilling to be beaten up in the name of 'brotherhood'. Among them were iconoclasts spurned by the elitist culture of the Greek-lettered societies. We are pretty much an argumentative group. We question everything, from the existence of God to the meaning of the Oblation. In our monthly assemblies, we debated every issue under the sun." With fellow founders Merlin Magallona and Perfecto Fernandez, he contributed to writing progressive articles for the kapatiran's first journal, The Grassroots.
During his tenure as University President, he witnessed the revival of the Kapatirang Plebeians in UP after decades of absence. He served as the guest of honor during the induction of the revival batches of the UPLB Curia on June 14, 2002.
Dr. Nemenzo was a renowned political scientist and scholar at the University of the Philippines, where he rose through the ranks to become university president in 1999. As a leading socialist intellectual, he was a founder and key figure in various progressive political organizations and movements in the country. A staunch advocate of social justice and defender of people's rights, his convictions and activism led to his imprisonment during the dark days of the Marcos dictatorship and Arroyo regime.
May the memory of Francisco "Dodong" Nemenzo inspire us as we continue to serve for truth, justice, and the Filipino people.
Rest in peace, Ad Astra, Brod Dodong.
