Tales heroes’ children tell
Stories of courage and pain
“Do not put to waste the lives of our ancestors, especially the ones who fought to give our country independence.” The quote comes from many people, mostly descendants of our heroes, who every Independence Day, put aside some time to talk to any interested Filipino about what their forefathers had contributed to Philippine Independence.
There are many such stories told and retold by the children and grandchildren of the survivors of the World War II, specifically the Death March and the events leading to that.
One of them, Dr. Romeo Balderrama Jr., said his grandfather, Francisco Sr., and uncles—Herminio, Amado and Jaime – were all arrested by the Japanese soldiers a few days before and were
included in the Death March to Bataan.
"Luckily, Capt. Amado, a doctor, was able to go back to Manila after he was retrieved by my grandmother from the Death March. But, he was taken again by the Japanese after a relative informed the Japanese about his whereabouts. In politics and in times of war, relationship by blood doesn’t count,” he said.
"Survival is the name of the game in politics. Even your relatives can disown you just for their survival, just like what that relative did to my uncle even after my uncle was taken from the Death March by my grandmother.”
The reason was likely that his grandfather and uncle were among the leaders in the revolutionary group of Taguig during that time, he said.
"It was my grandmother, Laureana Pagkalinawan Vda de Balderrama, who initiated the building of the monument of Japanese War Veterans in the Tipas Plaza in front of the Tipas Catholic Church. In it, all the names of the veterans are imprinted. The LGU of Taguig celebrates a memorial every December first of the year,” Balderrama noted.
Balderrama, with the blood line of patriots, was a street parliamentarian during the Marcos dictatorship.
"I was part of the EDSA Revolution myself. I was third year in Medicine when we marched into the streets of EDSA and volunteered as medics and helped those who were in need of medical attention. I experienced being at the frontline of the march days prior to Marcos’ departure to Hawaii,” he said.
He said he values patriotism as part of his life, proof of which was when he returned to the Philippines after his three-year Monbusho Scholarship in Japan from 1992 to 1995.
"I may have opted to stay and work there but I came back to serve my countrymen,” Balderrama said.
Colonel Gustavo Ingles
Another hero of a segment of the fight for independence during that same period was Col. Gustavo “Tabo” Ingles, a Hunters ROTC guerilla who was instrumental in the Liberation of Los Banos as a camp for prisoners of war.
Col. Gustavo, the first chief of intelligence of the Hunters ROTC Guerrillas, died in July 2015 in San Juan City, at 91.
Ingles said his father was among the PMA freshmen of class 1945 who were sent home at the break of war in 1941 because they were "too young and unprepared." His father was part of the group of young PMA students who formed the guerilla organization which became the main anti-Japanese guerrilla group in Luzon.
Captured and tortured
But Col. Tabo was captured and he spent about 10 months in different jails, he said.
“Almost every day, he was tortured—electrocution, water boarding, beaten by a bamboo, and the worst was bamboo sticks placed in his fingers. What was the most gory torture was pulling out his nails,” Ingles said.
But his father never talked about that. He once asked his father what happened to his nails but Col. Tabo just said his hand got caught by a door that suddenly closed.
“What makes a war hero distinct, he is humble. Hindi nagkwe-kwento 'yan., They were honored by a third person. I was struck by the character of my father. He never told us stories, very humble,” Ingles said.
Another attribute of his father was his religious fervor. His comrades called Col. Tabo “Bishop” because of that. Once, he stopped and knelt to pray during an encounter, just to observe the 3 o’clock prayer for the Hour of Mercy. Another time, he was seen praying the rosary during a battle.
“When my mother suffered aneurism and was in coma, he prayed the rosary by her bedside every day,” Ingles said.
Patriotism
Col. Tabo’s patriotism and concern for those in need was absorbed by his son who is now involved in raising funds for calamity victims. He formerly worked with the Asian NGO Coalition, a network of Asian indigenous NGOs in Asia composed of 13 countries.
He is also involved in exposing students to patriotism through the class curriculum. He said the sons and daughters of the World War II veterans are pushing for the inclusion of World War II in the curriculum of tertiary schools.
“We are trying to emphasize to the students that we don't need technology to win, it is just the heart, ‘yung patriotism. Kasi 'yung patriotism, that is never learned in school,” he said.
Balderrama, an advocate and board of director of the “Buy Pinoy Movement Foundation,” called on all Filipinos "not to waste the lives of our ancestors.”
"They offered their lives to our country to give us freedom and democracy. Let us not put this to waste. Be proactive in the present political situation in our country, fighting for our sovereignty, defending our basic human rights and being patriotic in our daily choices, patronizing Filipino products,” he urged.