One of the veteran broadcast journalist Cheche Lazaro looks deeper into the life story of Andres Bonifacio, the father of Philippine Revolution as she revealed on Sunday (November 24) in a segment “Cheche Lazaro Presents Andres Bonifacio: May Pag-asa”, in celebration of his 150th birth anniversary on November 30.
Along with Dr. Jose Rizal, Bonifacio is the second most popular national hero in the country, however his biography has been subject of many speculations and controversies.
To give explanation and light to these arguments, Cheche joins historians and descendants of Katipunan members who worked with or cross the path of Bonifacio to find more accurate picture of the tragic hero his views and the revolution that he led.
From their accounts, which sometimes contradict what is written on history books, they provide a new perspective about Bonifacio as well as the Katipunan.
The documentary also presents information from the Archive General de Madrid, an archive composed of more than a century old documents written in Tagalog and turned over by the Spain to the National Historical Commission of the Philippines, including the correspondence among the Katipunan hierarchy such as Bonifacio, Emilio Jacinto and Dr. Pio Valenzuela that also contains information that would suggest that the Philippine history is erroneous.
It debunks, for example the prevailing belief that Rizal’s La Liga Filipina was a precursor of the Katipunan. Based on the documents, Bonifacio’s Katipunan was already in place with a clear vision and organized system of government guided by strict morals, six months before the birth of La Liga Filipina.
Is there really a need to rewrite Philippine history? What other inconsistencies will the documents reveal?
Never miss the full report in “Cheche Lazaro presents Andres Bonifacio: May Pag-asa” this Sunday (November 24), after “Gandang Gabi Vice” on ABS-CBN’s Sunday’s Best.