President Rodrigo Duterte said Monday he favored the proposal to rename the Mactan-Cebu International Airport after the celebrated Visayan ruler and Mactan chieftain Lapu-Lapu.
“You know what, Magellan was the first invader to set foot here in the Philippines. It was Lapu-Lapu who fought them. Why is he [Magellan] more honored in this country?” the President said when asked by reporters if he supported the National Historical Commission of the Philippines’ proposal to rename the Mactan-Cebu airport to Lapu-Lapu airport.
“Yes [I will rename the airport after him]. Why would I name it after the ones who were not our blood relative and who only went here [to invade us]?” he told reporters in an ambush interview.
In his speech during the National Heroes Day rites in Taguig City, Duterte expressed disappointment that Lapu-Lapu was not given the proper recognition he deserved for being the first Filipino to resist the Imperial Spanish colonization.
“As a footnote, just a vignette of life, Lapu-Lapu was the first Filipino to kill a foreigner who invaded our country,” Duterte remarked in his speech.
The President said it “deeply pains” him to know that history has forgotten Lapu-Lapu and regarded as a fish despite his earliest display of Filipino nationalism.
“That is why it pains me deeply to see lapu-lapu being eaten every day [and turned into] escabeche, fried, and all sorts of a recipe,” the President said in a jest, garnering laughter from diplomats, government officials, and war veterans present during the commemoration.
He also raised a question why the Lapu-Lapu statue was comparatively smaller than that of Magellan.
“There’s a Lapu-Lapu Hotel, then there’s a fish called lapu-lapu. That’s crazy. This Lapu-Lapu fought for our country. He died, somehow, they say, after that battle. He was able to kill the Supremo of the expeditionary force.”
The President made his remarks after NHCP chairman Rene Escalante suggested to amend the name of Mactan airport in honor of Lapu-Lapu.
Escalante proposed the renaming of the airport in hope of popularizing and immortalizing Lapu-Lapu’s name in the country and overseas.
“In close coordination with local government units and legislators, the NHCP will support the renaming of Mactan International Airport into Lapu-Lapu Airport so his name will be popularized and immortalized here and abroad,” Escalante said.
“We will also propose the creation of a national monument and park for Lapu-Lapu in Cebu,” he added, highlighting that the Mactan chieftain was given least appreciation and focus in history books.
“He [Lapu-Lapu] remains among the least appreciated and studied heroes of the country. In fact, most of our textbooks nowadays have more pages about Magellan the loser than Lapu-Lapu the winner,” Escalante said.
“The NHCP considers the celebration of the fifth centenary of the circumnavigation in the world in 1521 as the perfect opportunity to bring Lapu-Lapu in the limelight. On the part of NHCP, we shall follow the impetus of conducting historical studies and conferences on Lapu-Lapu,” he added.
In order to rename the Mactan-Cebu International Airport, the President needs to issue an executive order to implement the proposal.
When he assumed office, the President expressed his admiration for Lapu-Lapu several times.
In fact, he had signed a law declaring April 27 of every year as a special working public holiday throughout the country and a special non-working holiday in Cebu City.
He also issued an executive order creating the Order of Lapu-Lapu which will only be awarded to government officials and personnel, and even private individuals, to recognize their invaluable service advancing the administration’s initiatives.