PH Embassy Leads Araw ng Kalayaan Celebration with Filipino Community in Abu Dhabi, Highlights Rich Filipino Heritage and Indomitable Spirit of Filipinos in UAE
ABU DHABI 19 June 2024 - The Philippine Embassy in Abu Dhabi, led by Philippine Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates celebrated the 126th anniversary of Philippine independence with a joint-flag raising ceremony with the Philippine Consulate General in Dubai and attended by members of the Filipino community in the UAE on 12 June 2024 at the Philippine Embassy Grounds in Abu Dhabi, UAE.Simultaneously held both in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, the ceremony was streamed on the Embassy and Consulate’s social media accounts.
In the video message, President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr., applauded the dedication of the Filipinos across various sectors, and urges unity in building a just, progressive, and independent Bagong Pilipinas. The message of Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique A. Manalo was read by Ambassador Ver. Labor Attaché Teresa Olgado read the message of Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac and the message of National Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro was read by Defense and Armed Forces Attaché Romeo Maraña III.
KABAYAN Partylist Representative Ron P. Salo was the guest of honor of the Philippine Fiesta or “Pistang Pinoy” themed celebration. Addressing the Filipino community in Abu Dhabi, Rep. Salo asked the members of the community to continue to support one another, celebrate our heritage with the world together, and promote the welfare of our kababayans back home and here abroad. “Let us continue to honor our heroes’ legacy by committing to the ideals of freedom, justice, and democracy,” says Rep. Salo.
In his message, Ambassador Ver emphasized that this year’s celebration is especially momentous, as we also mark the 50th anniversary of Philippines-UAE diplomatic relations. “The strong people-to-people ties between Filipinos and Emirates have always been the cornerstone of the robust and ever-growing partnership between the Philippines and the UAE. On countless occasions, the wise leadership of the UAE has shown how it values the Philippines and the positive contributions of Filipinos in this country since its founding by Sheikh Zayed and all the Emirates’ rulers. As our community thrives in this land that is open, inclusive, and tolerant, and for most of us, embraced as our second home, let us all look towards the future with optimism, armed with lessons from history and together carry our full sense of responsibility for our motherland,” says Ambassador Ver.
At the program, Ambassador Ver officially launched the Embassy’s cashless e-payment transactions with First Abu Dhabi Bank’s digital wallet “PayIt” with the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with FAB PayIt. The use of PayIt wallet shall be at no cost to the Embassy clients and to the Philippine government. FAB PayIt was represented by Mr. Nitin Bhandari, Senior Vice President and Head of PayIt wallet.
This year’s Philippine Independence Day celebration featured musical and cultural performances from The Philippine Global School (TPGS) Chorale and Dance Group, Filipino foods such as balut, sorbetes, Pinoy street foods (kwek-kwek, fishball, sago’t gulaman), and of course, traditional Filipino breakfast. Guests also got to enjoy and experience Filipino traditional games such as piko, patintero, pukpok palayok, and pabitin. END
For more information, visit https://www.abudhabipe.dfa.gov.ph, https://www.facebook.com/PHinUAE/, https://twitter.com/PHinUAE or https://www.instagram.com/phinuae/.