In the wake of the controversial burial of deposed tyrant Ferdinand Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani (LNMB), a Catholic bishop on Tuesday said a comprehensive account of the Marcos dictatorship should be included in the official curriculum of the Department of Education.

Laoag Bishop Renato Mayugba said the account should include the side of various sectors including the Church, protesters and supporters, so students would fully understand the events during the Marcos regime.

“On that particular issue, of course that is about the Department of Education. The main responsible institution diyan ay ang education. Education and all other stakeholders of education including the Catholic Church and other sectors of civil society have a say on that,” Mayugba said over Church-run Radyo Veritas.

“Kung ididikta natin kung ano ang dapat ituro from a sector whether from that we say anti or pro that is for the educational system, pag-aaralan. Kanya-kanyang expertise,” he added.

Marcos’ secrecy-shrouded interment at the heroes’ cemetery last Friday took the nation by surprise and sparked protests throughout the country. The burial, which came almost 30 years after Marcos was ousted in the historic Edsa People Power Revolution, saw full military honors including a 21-gun salute.

While saying that burying the dead is a corporal work of mercy, Radyo Veritas President Fr. Anton Pascual maintained that Marcos did not deserve to be buried at the heroes’ cemetery because of the atrocities and human rights abuses committed during martial law.

“Let’s us bury the dead as corporal work of mercy. But the church leadership does not concur with the burial of Marcos at the LNMB because of what it stands for—a place of rest for heroes worthy of emulation and role modeling,” Pascual said.

“The former president is deemed not worthy because of his declaration of martial law and the many atrocities and injustices suffered by Filipino with the church in the forefront of the struggle for liberation that culminated in the Edsa people power led by Cardinal Sin,” he added.

Pascual said the quest for justice for the victims of martial law should not be laid to rest following the burial of Marcos at the LNMB.

“The fight for justice still continues for the victims of the Marcos regime,” he said. “We pray for our country for tolerance, peace and forgiveness in order to move forward.” RAM/rga

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