KIKO VISITS OZAMIZ COTTA SHRINE

MISAMIS OCCIDENTAL - Senate Majority Leader and independent senatorial candidate Kiko Pangilinan today (21 April 2007) visited Lanao del Norte and Misamis Occidental to meet with local officials, confer with local organizations and meet with the people of Mindanao.

Kiko visited the Cotta, an old Spanish Fort which has been declared a historical landmark, and the Miraculous Shrine, the city's pilgrim destination, in Fort Santiago.

"We often become a people of fleeting memory. We are told that we cannot move forward because we don't know our past," Kiko said, "Revisiting historical landmarks like these is a good way of keeping in touch with our heritage and learning from our history."

Kiko also acknowledged former Sen. Jos Ozamis who was martyred during the Japanese Occupation. "We have many unnamed heroes during World War II who have served our country in many ways. Sen. Ozamis is a well-known and well-loved figure here but it is a shame that a shrine is yet to be created in his honor," Kiko said.

Jos Ozmis served as governor, congressman and the first and only senator from the province to date. Ozamiz City was posthumously named in his honor."