WE WENT TO the opening of “War of Our Fathers” exhibit of the Philippine Veterans Bank at SM City Lipa last Tuesday night thinking we’d be seeing Batangas Gov. Vilma Santos there. But it turns out she was busy with another appointment and just sent a representative. Presented with the Provincial Government of Batangas and the City of Lipa, the exhibit is really impressive. It’s a pity that it will only be there until today as SM Lipa has a busy sked. From there, it’ll go to Greenbelt in Makati and we urge you to go there and see it for yourself. It’s very informative and educational, especially for today’s younger generation who have forgotten about the heroism of our countrymen in fighting the Japanese in the resistance movement during World War II. The old fotos in it are truly very rare and some of them gave us goosepimples, showing how our people were abused and oppressed by the invading Japanese forces. Fotos on the infamous Death March and the atrocities committed against our fathers who were brutally murdered should make us realize how much we should value our freedom. The exhibit was brought to Lipa as it’s the 66th anniversary of the liberation of Lipa, an important corridor in Southern Luzon during the war where the Japanese built an airfield. Lipa was completely devastated by American air and artillery bombardment during its liberation.
It’s a pity that only a handful of people were around to look at the exhibit at the time we were there. Maybe, if their forever young lady governor was around, more Lipenos would have come as she’s a real crowd drawer. We want to commend the Veterans Bank under Pres. Ricardo Balbido Jr. for this world class project that helps foster awareness on the vital role played by Pinoy Freedom Fighters in the war. The exhibit has been shown to various cities in the country, even in Nanjing, China, and has won the prestigious Anvil Award of Excellence by the Public Relations Society of the Philippines and the Gold Quill Merit Award by the IABC Philippines.
