To his colleagues, Bayani Abadilla or Ka Bay is the hero of the Filipino people because he was not a simple teacher, poet and journalist; he also went underground to fight Marcos dictatorship and later on became a fighter in the cultural sphere.

            Until his last breath, he served as the associate of the Pinoy Weekly, a progressive weekly newspaper, to wave his struggle for national freedom and genuine democracy. Together with Bienvenido Lumbera, Abadilla worked in Panulat para sa Kaunlaran ng Sambayanan or PAKSA which was formed in 1971. He was a member of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CCP) and the organizer for the Kabataang Makabayan (KM) IN 1970. He was persistent in removing imperialism, feudalism and bureaucrat capitalism in the country. 

            A son of writer Alejandro Abadilla, Ka Bay taught literature and journalism at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) after the Marcos’ era. According to his daughter, Malaya, Ka Bay was always resistant to the idea of leaving Tambunting, an urban community in Manila, because he wanted to be with the poor. National Artist for Literature Bienvenido Lumbera and Ka Bay worked together in Panulat para sa Kaunlaran ng Sambayanan or PAKSA which was formed in 1971.

He succumbed to lymphoma in May 14, 2008.

Source: bulatlat.com

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