by Franklin P. Gumapon
DIPOLOG CITY, Dec. 30 (PIA) - - Philippine Commission on Women (PCW) Executive Director Emmeline L. Versoza has urged the Filipino women to take an active role in nation building.
Speaking at this morning’s program commemorating the 115th anniversary of Dr. Jose P. Rizal’s martyrdom held at the public plaza, Versoza talked about the role played by the hero’s mother in rearing him to become a man of consequence.
“Rizal’s mother, Teodora Alonso, was well-educated, cultured, hardworking and affluent,” said Versoza adding that she was the hero’s first teacher.
In her speech, the PCW chief emphasized the indispensable roles of women in society saying, “In every man’s success, there’s a woman behind.”
Versoza also urged the public to consider the reasons behind the greatness of Rizal a challenge to strive for the good of the country.
It can be recalled that Rizal found a special place in the hearts of the people of Zamboanga del Norte more particularly those living in Dipolog and Dapitan. After he was banished by the Spaniards to Dapitan in 1892-1896, Rizal’s memories remain alive in these two places.
While in Dapitan, Rizal had frequented the neighboring villages of Dipolog and Katipunan. Matter-of-factly, he was the one designing the altar of the Holy Rosary Cathedral, a Roman Catholic Church situated at the heart of Dipolog. He also owned a farm in Katipunan, the first town going south from Dipolog.
Rizal, who had fought the Spaniards that colonized the Philippines for 333 years, was the seventh of the 11 children of Francisco Mercado and Teodora Alonso. He was executed at the Bangumbayan, now Luneta, on Dec. 30, 1896. (FPG/PIA-Zamboanga del Norte)