President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s declaration of Feb 24 as the holiday to commemorate the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution was seen to weaken the significance of the historical event, Bayan secretary general Renato Reyes said.
"The bigger concern as well is that this holiday has lost meaning [to] those in power. It remains relevant to people who are struggling for freedom and democracy, but I think the danger is that the occupants in Malacañang would like to dilute [today’s] anniversary,” he said.
Reyes also highlighted in his social media posts how Marcos' proclamation, which surprised everyone, has only made EDSA People Power Revolution Anniversary a "holiday economics" and neglected the historical changes it made.
"The EDSA anniversary has been reduced to "holiday economics" by the Marcos regime. There is no reference to what the people achieved in 1986," he said.
"There is a deliberate attempt to downplay the anti-dictatorship struggle. Long weekend nga, pero hikahos naman ang mamamayan, habang patuloy na pinagtatakpan ng mga Marcos ang kanilang kasalanan sa bayan," Reyes added.
Meanwhile, Marcos explained earlier that the moved holiday is to allow people for a long weekend "provided that the historical significance of the EDSA People Power Revolution Anniversary is maintained."
