Ilonggos commemorate Graciano Lopez Jaena Day
Ilonggos commemorate today the 151st birth anniversary of Ilonggo hero Graciano Lopez-Jaena with a series of activities that will kick off early Tuesday morning.
Mia Lopez-Cruz, a granddaughter of Lopez-Jaena, said that there will be a floral offering at the hero's monument erected in his birth place in Fajardo Street in Jaro district in this city at about 6:45 a.m. to be followed by a foot parade and a brief ceremony.
She said that Lopez-Jaena's birth commemoration is one of the important events here in Iloilo city and the province considering that the hero is one of the triumvirates who fought for democracy with national hero Jose P. Rizal and Marcelo H. Del Pilar.
Graciano Lopez-Jaena was the founder of La Solidaridad, a publication that espoused the abuses of the Spanish colonizers in the Philippines that ignited the spirit of nationalism by Filipinos.
He was exiled in Spain where he died on Jan. 20, 1896.
Recognizing Lopez-Jaena's heroism, Presidential Decree No. 53 has been issued declaring holiday in Iloilo city and the province so Ilonggos could spend time to venerate the hero. (PNA)