Lapu-lapu startled the whole European world when he defeated and killed Ferdinand Magellan in the Island of Mactan. Magellan became the first famous explorer that perished in the hands of an Asian; while Lapu-lapu showed the New World our love for freedom and became the first Filipino hero in our recorded history.
When Jose Rizal wrote his Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, he became a pain in the neck among the Spanish friars and was sentenced to die by musketry in Bagumbayan. He awakened Filipinos’ desire to be free; he was declared our National Hero.
Inspired by the writings of Rizal, Gat Andres Bonifacio, Asia’s first great leader of the proletariat, led Asia’s first revolution against a Western power. His revolt against the West was entirely homegrown and was years ahead of Mao Tse Tung, Che Guevarra and Osama bin Laden’s. He was declared among our heroes.
“This nation can be great again” were the words of former President Ferdinand Marcos when he declared martial law. He declared war against foreign control over our economy; ‘freed’ the masses from the oligarchs; ran after and killed drug lords and gambling lords. Many believed in him, looked up at him as a hero, until he got sick and lost control.
“The Filipino is worth dying for,” said Ninoy Aquino on his return from exile. Ninoy knew what was waiting for him; yet his love for our nation is greater than his love for his own safety. He came and died at the tarmac. Millions were awakened by his death, walked with him to his resting place, and declared him as a hero.
We gave the world the epitome of peaceful revolt through People Power. The Filipinos became the darling of the freedom-loving nations of the whole world. We were declared heroes of Democracy by no less than the President of the United States. Our People Power was emulated by the Chinese, imitated by the East Europeans, and copied by nations chained by the Russian empire. The goodwill we got from the world community and the freedom we won for ourselves were wasted due to our ineptness and corruptibility.
So many heroes in Philippine sports have come and gone; the great Felicisimo Ampon, who won the Pan-American singles championship in Mexico in 1950, was dubbed as “The Mighty Mite” because he was barely five feet tall and was also considered the greatest tennis player in the world, pound for pound.
Pancho Villa, who was born as Francisco Guilledo in Ilog, Negros Occidental, touted as the greatest flyweight of the century by the Associated Press, was also the first world champion from Asia. He was one of only four Asians enshrined into the New York-based International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1994. He was also inducted to the World Boxing Hall of Fame.
Named after a famous Mexican revolutionary leader, 22-year-old Pancho Villa using his whirlwind style knocked out reigning world flyweight champion Jimmy Wilde of England in the seventh round at New York’s Polo Grounds on June 18, 1923.
The whole nation rejoiced when Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao won last Sunday against El Terrible Morales. With this victory, Manny is now added to the ever-growing list of Filipino heroes the nation looks up to for inspiration. How long he can hold on to the crown and glory, only my friend Jojo Acuin can tell.
So many heroes we have, not to mention the 10 million overseas Filipinos we have deployed worldwide. But were they able to change our lives? How many heroes, how many Manny Pacquiaos do we need to be great again? Or haven’t we learned our lessons yet? Haven’t we realized that what we need aren’t heroes that have to be bruised and maimed and killed?
What we need are heroes within ourselves in order for us, for this nation to be great again.
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