HALLMARK OF NATIONAL SOVEREIGNTY

President Ferdinand E. Marcos

84TH FOUNDATION DAY OF THE MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

Thank you very much, General Romulo, Mrs. Romulo.
I greet the Chief Justice and Mrs. Fernando, the Deputy Ministers of Foreign Affairs,
Minister Collantes and Minister Castro, our Prime Minister principally who, in the hierarchy of the
Philippine government, up to now is doubted as to whether he follows the President or the
Speaker. I announce that in formal ranking, he is next in rank to the President.
I guess the first place to make such an announcement would be the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs where protocol is always the only rule and standard. I mean, perhaps this is where you
abandon everything provided you can maintain protocol.
I also greet the former secretaries of the Department of Foreign Affairs. I note the
presence here of our foreign ministers and secretaries – old, no, not old, young, I beg your
pardon. I was going to say old hands in international relations. And I think Secretary Felixberto
Serrano was a head of Secretary Salvador P. Lopez. We also have former Secretary of the
Department of Foreign Affairs under my first presidency, Secretary Narciso Ramos. We have also
under the new dispensation of new breed of Ministers of Foreign Affairs, the ministers coming
from the Batasang Pambansa and known as the Ministers of State for Foreign Affairs.
I greet all the foreign guess, Your Excellencies of the Diplomatic Corps, the members of
the Cabinet, the members of the Supreme Court, Court of Appeals and the other courts of the
judiciary, members of the Batasan, and my fellow administrators in government.
It is, of course a distinct honor for me and for the First lady to join you here today and,
in the name of our people and government, to extend to you the congratulations and best wishes,
to extend our hand to the officials and staff of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, whose 84th
foundation day we commemorate today. Eighty-fourth, which happens to be the length of the life,
I think, of someone who leads the Ministry.
When I was invited to attend the 84th anniversary, I inquired repeatedly: are you sure this
is not a birthday celebration? But of course, that story to the effect that General Romulo was a
boy scout during the time of President Aguinaldo is apocryphal.
Allow me to extend to you the apologies of the First Lady who asked me to explain that
she was held back by the medical practitioners who don’t know very much about the stamina of
the First Lady. Frankly, I really don’t know whether they would allow her to come this morning or
not. I realized this when they started convoking and looking sad that may not be able to come
over and attend these ceremonies. And this is why I hurried over to come and start the
ceremonies immediately. But we didn’t take into consideration the will power of someone who
can travel to Saudi Arabia and comeback in two days.