Del Rosario cited the notable developments that has transformed and shaped the country-from the time of the Korean War, to the Vietnam War, until the Americans left the Philippines after the Senate abrogated the Military Bases Agreement (MBA) in September 1991.
“Specifically, Angeles has played a crucial role in the revolutionary government. We have seen in Angeles a lot of progress and we are happy about that. From the fact that we were victims of Mt. Pinatubo to the fact that Clark which has 18,000 jobs in 1991 now has 80,000—that says a lot about Angeles and Angelenos, and often says a lot about the government as a whole,” she said.
However, Del Rosario noted that despite these developments, everyone must do his or her share to sustain the freedom and momentum that we now have.
"Many times, the DFA have been called the premiere department. Why is it so? Because every time a nation is built, it falls on the shoulders of the diplomats to get recognition for the country. It’s also the foreign affairs that acts as the voice of the president abroad, that acts as the voice of the people abroad. We represent you the people, we represent you the government, and we represent the ideals of the nation,” she said.
Del Rosario added that DFA is the first line of defense, explaining that if we go to war, it is because the department of foreign affairs has failed to do its duties—that is to prevent conflict whether in the United Nations or bilaterally.
Speaking outside the mandate of the DFA, the diplomat urged everyone to do the same in ensuring that we represent the ideals of the nation.
“People are always looking at the quality of the human resources. They are always looking at the citizens of the country. They are always looking at the character of the leadership,” she said.
She also stressed that it pays to have integrity and it pays to be honest because people won’t invest in a country which is known for corruption and whose people are not trustworthy.
Another thing that Del Rosario noted in order to sustain the momentum of the country’s progress is to strengthen our study of science and technology.
“We should strengthen our technologies so that we will not get left behind and the time will not come when our fellow Filipinos lose their job and be replaced by robots. Our mindset should always be preparing children now for jobs that do not yet exist so that we will be ready to face the future,” she concluded.
