Pagulayan, Lilli Pearl A. Seat No.

7-4 MW 9:00-10:30am

Jose Rizal is the best the Filipino could be says Conrado de Quiros. According to
him, Jose Rizal richly deserves to be our national hero. Bonifacio does too. In this
statement we would wonder why cant we have two national heroes standing side by
side, a question also asked by Conrado.
Most people preferred Rizal over Bonifacio to be our national hero because he is
an extraordinary indio. Hes rebellion was acceptable because he was an ilustrado and
rejected armed struggle. He represented one thing the Spaniards hated, and feared,
most- a proud and capable indio. Rizal was a certifiable genius who put that genius to
work for his country. He is the First Filipino because no one had a keener sense of
Philippine history and sense of Filipino Identity. A very popular statement by Rizal which
highly promotes nationalism- Ang hindi lumingon sa pinangalingan, hindi makakarating
sa kanyang pinaroroonan. He firmly believes that people who do not have their own
language smelled like stale fish.
There is an unending controversy on who shall be our national hero. Shall it be
Jose Rizal or shall it be Andres Bonifacio? In my opinion, I favor the ways of Rizal in
fighting for our country. I really believe that pen is mightier than sword. His writings
opened the eyes and enlightened the minds of the Filipinos to fight for their freedom. It
united the Filipino people against the Spaniards. Also, because of his writings the
Filipino spirit was born. Jose Rizal used his brilliant mind to fight the Spaniards which
they thought no indio had. He showed the Spaniards what Filipinos are really capable
of. But, without Bonifacio putting it into actions all Rizals thoughts will be put into waste.
Thus, we cannot neglect the braveness and courageousness Bonifacio had shown for
our country. Letting the Spaniards know that we Filipinos arent afraid of them and we
are ready to die for our country. I really commend that. These two heroes had a different
way in fighting for the democracy of our country. Nonetheless, they both lived and died
for our country and they both deserve to be our national hero. In answering who shall be
our national hero is like asking Brains or Blood? Will our country survive without a
brain or without blood? Both are essential for our countrys freedom but we only have to
have one national hero and that is Jose Rizal although we really have to acknowledge
the great work of Andres Bonifacio for the freedom of our country. Jose Rizal is our
national hero but it cannot be denied that we have to give equal honor to Bonifacio and
other heroes who also sacrificed their lives for what we have now which is democracy.