The Embassy of the Philippines, together with the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) in Amman, Jordan, celebrated the 114th Anniversary of the Proclamation of Philippine Independence on the morning of 12 June 2012 at the Chancery with the theme,“Kalayaan 2012: Pananagutan ng Bayan para sa Tuwid na Daan”.
The celebration began with the hoisting of the Philippine flag on the Embassy rooftop, followed by a short program on the Embassy grounds, where the Independence Day messages of Secretary Rosalinda D. Baldoz, DFA Secretary Albert F. del Rosario, and President Benigno S. Aquino III were read, respectively, by Welfare Officer and POLO OIC Mr. Mario Antonio, Second Secretary Raul C. Abrico, and Charge d’Affaires Emmanuel R. Fernandez. A Holy Mass officiated by Rev. Paul Mankowsky of the Sacred Heart of Parish, Amman, and Fr. Michael Montoya, followed. The program was capped by a song number each from a group of OWWA wards and the Amman PE staff. A simple breakfast consisting of pancit, Spanish bread and other Filipino delicacies was then shared by the Amman PE staff and their families, together with the leaders and members of the various Filcom organizations in Jordan.
A few days earlier (on June 8), the Filcom held its own celebration of the 114th anniversary of the proclamation of Philippine Independence with a grand dinner and program at the Landmark Hotel in Amman. Organized by the Federation of Filipino Organizations in Jordan (FilOrg) headed by Ms. Evangeline Ybo, the celebration included the 5th Anniversary Celebration of FilOrg, the induction of the new set of officers of the different Filipino organizations in Jordan, and the search for “Ms. Fil-Org 2012.” Amman PE participated in the celebration in support of Fil-Org’s initiatives.