“Proper preparation prevents poor performance” – Anonymous, Military motto on the 5Ps of veteranism
One month before the 2016 Veterans Week starts, Veterans Federation of the Philippines President (VFP) Bonifacio G. De Gracia on Thursday, March 3, 2016, various VFP districts and posts, and the Sons and Daughters Association, Inc. to discuss the area, schedule, possible participants and mechanics of the week-long affair.
At 9:30am in the VFP National Headquarters in Manila, the program that would guide the parties and veterans concerned as customary began with the National Anthem, and then an opening prayer followed by the welcoming of guests with Duty Presidential Secretary Luzviminda C. Marasigan as the emcee. Presenter of the PowerPoint VP-Operations William B. Esplana commenced with the important facts about the event to remember.
The EB members and DPs shall wear their “Class-A Uniform” at all times. The surviving spouses, sons and daughters shall wear appropriate attire as prescribed by the VFP. For appropriate attire, there will be an ‘outfit of the day’ for each day. VFP employees shall serve as marshals, ushers, and usherettes. As for caregivers, a veteran is allowed at least one caregiver, which could either be his son or daughter. Special Commemorative IDs and T-Shirts corresponding to the event shall be given to the organizer of each group.
The IDs and t-shirts shall serve as identification and head count for the food and attendance of every attendee. VP Esplana reiterated that there is a limit on the number of attendees for each event because of a few factors.
He said “First, there are venues that are too far from other VFP districts and posts. For this reason, the posts and districts near the location of the event are more than required to participate. The second important factor was that for the sake of fairness, the ones who could attend the events near their vicinity should give way to the ones who could attend within their vicinity as well. This would ensure that everyone would be given the chance to participate.”
As expected from the crowd that was eager to participate in the essential event of veteranism, there were questions and objections but President De Gracia assured everyone that the VFP acts out with just causes.
The President said “What we have here are just projections, estimates and preparations. As soon as every district and post and even the Sons and Daughters Association, Inc. come up with a number complete with the names, then the Federation will of course cater to the statistics they present.”
For the complete schedule of the Veterans Week, the Public Information Office of the VFP released the following data:
-Day 1 – (A) April 5, 2016 (SUNRISE CEREMONY)
VENUE: Libingan ng mga Bayani
-Day 1 – (B) April 5, 2016 (PARADE & REVIEW)
VENUE: PA Parade Grandstand
-DAY 2 – April 7, 2016 FILIPINO HEROES MEMORIAL (CORREGIDOR ISLAND)
VENUE: CORREGIDOR ISLAND
-Day 3 April 9, 2016 ARAW NG KAGITINGAN
VENUE: Mt. Samat Shrine, Pilar, Bataan
-Day 4 April 10, 2015 PAGGUNITA SA CAPAS
VENUE: Capas National Shrine
-Day 5 April 11, 2016 SUNSET CEREMONY
VENUE: Libingan ng mga Bayani
In conclusion, the VFP National Headquarters is encouraging the public and all parties concerned to coordinate with their finalized roster for the upcoming Veterans Week and to prevent last minute changes.