President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. said the 42nd death anniversary of late Senator Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr. said in honoring this day, the Republic signals its readiness to uphold leadership that strives towards wholeness and reconciliation.

In his message, Marcos said that through this observance, “we advance the work of statecraft: disciplined, steady, and shaped by the enduring imperative to choose peace above quarrel, and dignity beyond differences.”

“This day, therefore, becomes an invitation to govern with sobriety, conscience, and foresight. Our commemoration achieves meaning when the lessons of the past are reflected in our actions and in the moral architecture of institutions,” Marcos added.

He said Ninoy Aquino Day brings to light a chapter in our nation’s shared story that continues to echo across generations and public memory.

“The passage of time has allowed the country to approach this event with greater clarity and, therefore, with a deeper perspective. History invites reflection more than reaction and from that reflection arises a clearer understanding of civic duty,” Marcos said.

Marcos shared that as someone raised within a political tradition formed by profound transformation, he has come to understand that history offers less final judgment than continuing instruction.

“It sharpens how we serve, how we listen, and how we bear the weight of an office with a greater purpose moving forward,” Marcos said.

The President had declared August 21 as a special non-working holiday.

Aquino was assassinated at the Manila International Airport, now named in his honor, on August 21, 1983.

Meanwhile, Kiko Aquino Dee, grandson of late Sen. Ninoy Aquino, said there’s no place for reconciliation with the Marcoses “as long as there’s no recognition of the atrocities” committed during the Marcos dictatorship.