Aug. 5 burial day declared special holiday

Go and see Cory for the last time on Wednesday.

Malacañang has declared the funeral of Corazon Aquino on Wednesday a special nonworking holiday to allow more Filipinos to pay their last respects to the country’s democracy icon, who died on Saturday.

“It is but proper for a grieving people to be given the opportunity to honor and show their respect, appreciation and gratitude to the beloved former President in their own respective ways,” President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said in Proclamation No. 1851.

Ms Arroyo earlier signed Proclamation No. 1850 declaring a period of national mourning from Aug. 1 to Aug. 10, with all Philippine flags flying at half-staff.

She herself decided to cut short her visit to the United States so she could arrive in time for the funeral, according to acting Executive Secretary Gabriel Claudio.

The President is scheduled to arrive “before the break of dawn” on Wednesday.

Ms Arroyo will arrive in Manila just a few hours before Aquino is laid to rest beside her husband, former Sen. Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr., at the Manila Memorial Park in Sucat, Parañaque City.

The President has opted to leave New York on Monday on a flight that would take her back to Malacañang by 3 a.m. on Aug. 5, barely in time for the burial set at 10 a.m.

Except for a Mass to be held in Malacañang upon her arrival, it remained unclear whether Ms Arroyo would attend the burial.

“If the funeral is at 10, the President and her party have time to visit the remains of the former President,” Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said at a briefing at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City.

Chartered flight

Ermita said Ms Arroyo, who scrapped her scheduled meetings in Chicago, San Francisco and Guam, would take a chartered flight out of New York.

After refueling in San Francisco, she would fly nonstop to Manila.

Whether Ms Arroyo would actually attend the funeral or just show up at Manila Cathedral where Aquino’s remains will lie in state starting on Monday, Claudio said: “We don’t know that yet.”

If she would show up at the cathedral, Ms Arroyo would be paying her last respects to a fellow leader who had openly criticized not a few of her policies.

Against Charter change

Already in her sick bed, Aquino issued a strongly worded statement condemning administration lawmakers’ efforts to amend the 1987 Constitution—crafted a year after she took office following a people power revolt—through House Resolution No. 1109.

The statement was read by Aquino’s grandson at a rally against Charter change on Ayala and Paseo de Roxas avenues in Makati City on June 10.

HR 1109 seeks to convene a constituent assembly with the House of Representatives and the Senate acting as one body to amend the Constitution.

Critics claimed that amending the Constitution would pave the way for a shift to a parliamentary form of government and allow Ms Arroyo to hold on to power by running for her district in Pampanga and become prime minister.

Awkwardness, feeling of grief

Asked if there would be any discomfort on the part of Ms Arroyo should she attend the funeral, Claudio told the Philippine Daily Inquirer: “Any feeling of awkwardness, assuming there is, can be overcome by the sincere feeling of grief that the President shares with the rest of the nation.”

He said the passing away of Aquino should be observed “in the spirit of unity and brotherhood among Filipinos.”

“If it would not be presumptuous on my part, we hope that this event would serve as an occasion for Filipinos to be one,” he said.

Claudio said the Palace also would not mind if the Aquino family turned down its offer of a state funeral. He said Malacañang made the option available, but it was still up to the family to decide.

Private wake, funeral

The Aquino family has decided to hold a private wake and funeral.

The Palace deferred to the family’s wish to keep the interment as simple as possible and to forgo the granting of state honors in Malacañang that would have meant a lying in state at the Palace.

Speaking with the government-run Radyo ng Bayan, Claudio said Aquino had “a special place in the history of democracy and the struggle for freedom, not only in the Philippines but throughout the world.”

Debt of gratitude

“All of us who now enjoy the blessings of freedom in a democratic environment and system owe a debt of gratitude to President Cory beyond words,” he said.

While awaiting Ms Arroyo’s arrival, the Palace lined up activities on Monday to honor the late president.

Claudio will deliver a message for Aquino at the flag ceremony in front of the Mabini Hall in Malacañang at 8 a.m. The event will be followed by a Mass and a novena for the eternal repose of the former president.

Claudio encouraged other government agencies to hold similar activities to honor the value and contributions of Aquino to Philippine democracy.