If Rizal were alive today, he’d focus on education, says great-grandniece

On Jose Rizal's 118th death anniversary, his great-grandniece said that if the Philippines' national hero were alive today, he would place his focus on the education of Filipino youth.

In an interview on GMA News TV's News To Go on Tuesday, Gemma Cruz Araneta—also known for being the first Filipina to win Miss International—said that her famous relative was a champion of education.



"Sabi nga niya, dapat ang edukasyon natin ay siyentipiko at pag-aaral natin ng kasaysayan ay mabuti ang ating pagsusuri. 'Yung bang critical analysis of history," she said.

Rizal was executed in Bagumbayan (present-day Rizal Park) on December 30, 1896. To commemorate the day, President Benigno Aquino III and Vice President Jejomar Binay attended flag-raising rites at the Rizal Monument Tuesday morning.

Photobomber

Araneta, who is the great-granddaughter of Rizal's sister Doña Maria Mercado, also expressed her displeasure over the rise of the Rizal Monument "photobomber" Torre de Manila. The planned 47-storey condominium building, currently under construction, can already be seen behind the monument. As of December 19, work was ongoing on its 32nd floor.

"Wala na ba tayong pagkagalang sa ating mga bayani? Wala na ba tayong pinagpipitagan? Ang Diyos na ba natin ay pera lamang?" she said.

She also criticized the building's developer DMCI Homes, noting that Rizal Park was the execution site of dozens of Spain's political enemies during the colonial era, including Filipino priests Mariano Gómez, José Burgos, and Jacinto Zamora.

"'Yung malaking kumpanya na nagtatag niyang photobomber na 'yan? Hindi ba nila inisip na sagradong teritoryo ito? Hindi lang naman si Rizal ang namatay dito, bakit naman nila ginawa iyon," she said.

Because of the construction of the building, Rizal Monument was named one of the threatened heritage sites in the world by the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) last November.  — Trisha Macas/BM, GMA News