Emilio Aguinaldo Shrine, Kawit, Cavite
20 March 2015

President Benigno S. Aquino III graced the opening of the Museo ni Emilio Aguinaldo in Kawit, Cavite where he led the flag raising ceremony and the wreath-laying at the tomb of the first Philippine Republic President General Emilio Aguinaldo. He was joined by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) Chairperson Maria Serena Diokno, Transportation and Communications Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya, Cavite District 1 Representative Francis Gerald Abaya and NHCP Executive Director Ludovico Badoy.

Before entering the museum, President Aquino passed by the new e-learning room that showcases computer units with interactive history lessons. He then received a replica of the “vara de mando” or cane of command that symbolizes Gen Aguinaldo’s authority as the capitan municipal or gobernadorcillo of Cavite El Viejo, the old name of Kawit. After which, he put the cane in a special casing which signaled the formal inauguration of the museum and started the tour.

The Emilio Aguinaldo Shrine stands in a 5,000-kilometer lot and is a two-storey house. At the ground floor where the museum is located, there is an exhibit area where the artifacts, photographs and dioramas on the province of Cavite and its role as the “cradle of the revolution” are located. There is also a mini bowling alley and an indoor swimming pool.

At the second floor, there is the dining room, the sala, the main bedroom and the family wing where the bedrooms of Gen Aguinaldo’s daughters are located. One of the main attractions of the house is the balcony where the Philippine flag was waived during the declaration of the Philippine independence on June 12, 1898.

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