Rizal Day: Marcos urges integrity, Sara cites freedom from 'disunity and evil'MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte touted the legacy of national hero Jose Rizal in separate Rizal Day messages on Tuesday, December 30, urging Filipinos — and public officials — to uphold integrity amid repeated calls for accountability from leaders. “Today, as Filipinos demand integrity and accountability from its leaders, we look up to his life to provide us with guidance and strength,” Marcos said. Duterte, in her own Rizal Day message, framed Rizal’s legacy as a broader struggle for freedom that goes beyond colonial rule, calling it a fight against abuse, division and moral decay. Rizal Day, observed every December 30, marks the 1896 execution of Jose Rizal by Spanish colonial authorities, an event that helped galvanize the Philippine revolution. Rizal’s body of work became mandatory reading in schools under Republic Act 1425, or the Rizal Law, passed in 1956.

Source: Philippine Star December 30, 2025 02:31 UTC