Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso marked the 81st anniversary of the Battle for Manila on Tuesday, calling on residents to draw strength from the city’s wartime resilience to face modern threats like climate change and disinformation.

Speaking at St. Paul University Manila, a site that served as a civilian shelter during the 1945 conflict, Domagoso addressed a crowd of diplomats, veterans and government officials. He described the location as “sacred ground” and a reminder of the city’s liberation from Japanese occupation.

“Eighty years ago, the city was devastated, but it was also liberated,” Domagoso said. “The cost was unimaginable: lives lost, families broken, a city reduced to rubble.”

The mayor stressed that the commemoration was intended to honor the past while focusing on the future. He noted that while the city forgives the atrocities of the war, it must never forget them, as those historical lessons should guide current decision-making.

“We do not forget, but we forgive,” he said. “In not forgetting, you will be reminded of what happened in the past so that the decisions we make today will carry the lessons of that story.”

Domagoso paid tribute to the Filipino veterans in attendance, calling them living witnesses to the high price of independence. “Freedom is not free,” he said. “These veterans paid — most of them — the ultimate price.”

Shifting to contemporary issues, the mayor warned that Manila faces new, serious challenges that require the same spirit of bayanihan that rebuilt the city after World War II. He cited climate-driven disasters, public health emergencies, and cyber threats as the primary risks to the city’s social cohesion.

“For a city like Manila — dense, coastal and deeply interconnected — these risks are not abstract; they are part of our everyday governance,” he said.