Gretchen Ho leaves a meaningful message as she signs off as Bayan Patroller

Joan Leary

<div><i><img src='' alt='051316-GretchenHo_PUSH.jpg' width='400' height='290' align='left' border='0'>Bayan Mo, Ipatrol Mo</i> Ambassador Gretchen Ho expressed her appreciation for the netizens who were active with the 2016 national election. Although she admitted that there were harsh words thrown about on social media, she can’t deny that the Filipino spirit is alive.</div><div><br/></div><div>“Nobody can deny that it's been quite a [chore] looking at our feeds, with everyone quarreling here and there. People believing everything they see online, in a heartbeat. But we also cannot deny that the Filipino spirit is alive more than ever,” she wrote on her Facebook account.</div><div><br/></div><div>Gretchen also stressed that the social media “has helped us to question things, ridicule norms, analyze situations and forced us to put more thought into that ballot.”</div><div><br/></div><div>The student athlete-turned-host also shared that during the whole campaign, she had broken down twice.</div><div><br/></div><div>“The first time was when I came home from a long day's work only to hear the people around me discrediting the work that I do and the institution I work for…Sometimes, all that we come home with is our integrity and our pride knowing that we give the best we can in what we do.</div><div><br/></div><div>“The second time was when our 48-hour election coverage ended,” she added.</div><div><br/></div><div>Gretchen also said that she learned a lot during the campaign. She has been involved in  politics by “staying in tune to the political warfare, reading newspapers, keeping up-to-date online and engaging in conversations with analysts, anchors, millennials and the common Filipino.”</div><div><br/></div><div>In the end Gretchen wrote, “THE FILIPINO SPIRIT IS ALIVE, and we have won! Here's your ?#?BayanPatroller? Gretchen, signing off!”?</div><div><br/></div><div><a href='https://push-data.abs-cbn.com/push/archive/features/58292/gretchen-ho-chosen-as-bayan-mo-i-patrol-mo-ambassador/'>Gretchen was officially announced as Bayan Mo, Ipatrol Mo ambassador last February.</a></div><br/>Read Gretchen’s full message here:<div style='text-align: center; '>  <iframe src='https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fgretch.ho%2Fposts%2F10154884995123712&width=500' width='500' height='728' style='border:none;overflow:hidden' scrolling='no' frameborder='0' allowtransparency='true'></iframe></div>

Gretchen Ho says the Filipino spirit is alive during the campaign period.

Gretchen Ho leaves a meaningful message as she signs off as Bayan Patroller | PUSH.COM.PH