Daly City holds first flag-raising in honor of PH independence

Flag raising guests include Philippine Consulate General Officials led by newly-arrived Philippine Consul General Henry S. Bernsurto, Jr. and Daly City Officials led by Mayor David Canepa, Council members, Commissioners of Daly city as well as Filipino American community leaders. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

DALY CITY, California — For the very first time, Daly City on June 9 held a Philippine flag-raising ceremony at City Hall to commemorate the 116^th Anniversary of the Proclamation of Philippine Independence.

Mayor David Canepa and Philippine Consul General Henry Bensurto, Jr.- in his first official event after arriving in San Francisco to assume his post,  raised the Philippine flag. Officials from the Philippine Consulate and Daly City and members of the Filipino American community attended the event.

“I am very touched by this event, which demonstrates how the Daly city government led by Mayor Canepa values the Filipino American community in the city,” remarked Consul General Bensurto.

He expressed the hope that  “the commemoration of Philippine Independence day overseas, such as this event in Daly City, would evoke a strong sense of patriotism among overseas Filipinos, particularly in the context of what is happening in the Philippines” and it leaders’ attempts “engage other countries in positive” and peaceful relations.

Mayor Canepa said the event was “Daly City’s way of honoring and giving value to its Filipino and Filipino-American residents for having a strong commitment to family, service, faith and hard work, and echoes the belief on the valuable contributions of the Filipinos and Filipino Americans to their communities.”

Daly City is one of the U.S. cities with the highest population concentration of Filipinos and Filipino Americans. Of its 103,621 residents,32,720 or nearly a third are Filipino.