MANILA, Philippines – Manila Mayor Isko Moreno lent his voice to the call of key artists and historians for the establishment of a new Department of History and Culture.

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“It’s high time for us to create a department of national history and culture na pagsama-samahin ang mga ahensiya na ito, bureau, maging isang department na, na walang gagawin kung ‘di ipaalala sa mga susunod na henerasyon kung sino tayo as Pilipino, ano tayo as bansa, at sino ‘yung mga tao at mga ninuno natin na nagpursigi at nakamit natin ‘yung kalayaan ng ating bansa,” said Moreno, a presidential candidate, on Monday, December 13, after a flag-raising ceremony at Manila City Hall.

(It’s high time for us to create a department of national history and culture that brings together all the agencies, bureaus into one department which has no other task but to remind the next generations who we are as Filipinos, what we are as a country, and who are our ancestors who fought for our country’s freedom.)

The department would subsume existing agencies like the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA), National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP), National Museum, National Library, Cultural Center of the Philippines, and others.

The proposed department would be a much-needed boost to efforts in the country to preserve history, culture, and arts for Filipinos to benefit and learn from, said the presidential bet.

“Kasi napapansin natin na parang napapabayaan na natin ‘yung ating kasaysayan. Dapat nga halos lahat ng nangyari sa ating bansa huwag nating ikubli so that the next generation can decide and learn from the things in the past,” he said.

(Because I noticed that it seems we’re neglecting our history. Everything that happened in our country should not be kept in the dark so that the next generation can decide and learn from the things in the past.)

Call of key artists, historians, culture advocates

Moreno’s proposal has been the longtime call of several key personalities in Philippine arts, culture, and history.

National Artist for Literature and former NCCA chairperson Virgilio Almario has supported the creation of such a department.

“First of all, we need a body which can organize and supervise cultural activities throughout the country,” Almario said back in 2017, as quoted by the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

House Deputy Speaker Loren Legarda, back in 2016 when she was a senator, filed a bill to create a culture and arts department, headed by a secretary and consisting of five undersecretaries for the Arts, Cultural Heritage, Cultural Dissemination, Cultural Communities and the Traditional Arts, and International Linkages.

“We need an empowered agency that will adequately support the preservation, enrichment, and dynamic evolution of a Filipino national culture based on the principle of unity in diversity in a climate of free artistic and intellectual expression,” Legarda said in a press release back then.

NHCP Chairman Rene Escalante also backs such a department proposed anew by Moreno.

“I support it,” he told Rappler on Monday.

He explained that the NCCA, though meant to be the overarching body for protecting and promoting Philippine culture and arts, is based on a charter that is “outdated.” Creating a bigger culture and history department would mean better access to Malacañang for the future secretary of culture and history and also a bigger budget.

Many countries in the world have a ministry of culture but it often includes other portfolios. In Korea and Vietnam, for example, there is a Ministry for Culture, Sports, and Tourism. Some countries, like the United States and the Philippines, lack a dedicated ministry or department.

In other countries, ministries of culture often include the education portfolio. This was the case in the Philippines in the 1970s when there was a Department of Education and Culture which became the Ministry of Education and Culture, during the Marcos regime. In 1987, under Corazon Aquino, it became the Department of Education, Culture, and Sports (DECS).

In 2001, the administration of cultural and sports policies was removed by law and DECS became the Department of Education or DepEd. Culture and arts became the purview of the NCCA while sports was made the responsibility of the Philippine Sports Commission. – Rappler.com