MECANISMOS DE CONTROL INTERNO

Uncertain about the outcome of the forthcoming peace conference in Paris, General Aguinaldo ordered on August 22, 1898 the transfer of the government's seat of power from Bacoor, Cavite, to Malolos, Bulacan and used the convent of the Malolos Cathedral (now Basilica Minore de la Immaculada Conception) as the Palacio Presidential (presidential palace). Aguinaldo refused to acknowledge American control in the country. He had already been preparing the foundation of a republican state. He wanted a government without foreign supervision. A number of Filipinos had shown support for autonomy.

On September 15,1898, the Revolutionary Congress was inaugurated at the Barasoain Church in Malolos amidst colorful festivities. Outside the church Banda Pasig played the national anthem. Spectators lined the streets as President Aguinaldo, his advisers and members of the Congress walked to the church where the ceremonies were to be held.

The altar of the church was draped for the assembly. General Aguinaldo convoked the constituent assembly in the opening session. He urged the delegates to promulgate a constitution that would be the most glorious expression of the noble aspirations of the Filipino people, a proof that the Filipinos already had the capacity to govern.

President Aguinaldo sat with his cabinet facing delegates on both sides of the aisle. The Congress adopted the parliamentary rules of the Spanish Cortes.

In the afternoon, the Congress elected the following officers: Pedro Paterno - President Benito Legarda - Vice-President Gregorio Araneta - Secretary

Pablo Tecson - Secretary (who replaced Araneta) Pablo Ocampo - Secretary

A total of 93 representatives took part in the Congress, 35 of them were directly elected. Many of them were holders of academic degrees from universities in Europe. The president of the Congress

himself, Dr. Pedro A. Paterno, was a holder of a bachelor's degree in law from the University of Salamanca and a doctorate degree from the Universidad Central de Madrid.

As the delegates converged at Malolos, they made it evident that they wished to enact a constitution and establish a permanent government for the country. The seat of the Revolutionary Congress was fixed at the Barasoain Church.

Mabini argued that under the decree of its creation, the Congress was a mere consultative body. It possessed no legislative powers. It was essential for all powers to be vested in one person or entity to ensure swift action. Felipe C. Calderon contended that it was necessary to show that the Philippines was duly constituted as a State in order to strengthen its claim to recognition of its sovereign status.

President Aguinaldo upheld Calderon's views, evidently considering Congress to be the authoritative spokesman for the Filipino people and the true reflection of their dreams and aspirations.

The committee to draft the constitution was composed of 19 members with Felipe Calderon as the chairman. It studied the three constitutional drafts submitted - the Mabini Plan, the Paterno Plan, and the Calderon Plan.

The Mabini Plan was the Constitutional Program of the Philippine Republic. The Paterno Plan was based on the Spanish Constitution of 1868. The Calderon Plan was a constitution based on the constitutions of France, Belgium, Mexico, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Brazil. After a thorough examination and deliberation, the Committee chose the Calderon Plan and submitted it to the Malolos Congress for approval.

According to Felipe Calderon, the Committee rejected the Mabini draft because it was based on the Statutes of Universal Masonry, abhorred by the majority of the delegates who were Catholics. However, significantly written in Mabini's draft were the provisions advocating women's rights like the exercise of public office, education in any branch of science or of the arts in public institutions, exercise of a profession or industry, right to vote, and exemption from military service and from personal tax. Calderon mentioned that the Paterno draft was also discarded because it was patterned from the Spanish Constitution of 1868.

Other matters were also taken up in the Congress. On September 29, 1898, the Declaration of Philippine Independence made on June 12, 1898 in Kawit was confirmed in special ceremonies. The declaration was not recognized by the United States and Spain since the Spanish government ceded the Philippines to the American government in the 1898 Treaty of Paris in consideration for an indemnity for Spanish expenses and assets lost. In the following month, the Congress authorized the Executive to float a domestic loan of 20 million pesos redeemable in 40 years, to support the new government.

Discussions on the draft constitution lasted until November 29,1898. Article 5, Title III of the draft became the most debatable.

This refers to religion and the separation of Church and State. Tomas del Rosario, one of those who figured prominently in the conference, spoke in favor of the principle of separation of Church and State;

while Felipe Calderon, on the contrary position wanted to make Catholicism the state religion. After the members of the Congress voted for it, the result was a tie.

The second voting resulted to the separation of Church and State, winning by only one vote given by Pablo Tecson. On whether or not Church and State should be united showed the democratic orientation of the delegates. Though the Malolos Congress formally separated church and state - by the narrowest vote possible - the revolutionary experience did not establish a tradition barring Filipino clergy from politics (Wurfel, 1988:8).

A few other amendments was placed in the draft constitution before it was submitted to Aguinaldo for approval. The draft constitution provided for an executive, legislative, and judicial branch of government and the creation of a Permanent Commission acting as a legislative body when the Assembly was not in session.

Finally, on January 21, 1899, President Aguinaldo proclaimed the Malolos Constitution as the fundamental law of the land. Then on January 23, the First Philippine Republic was inaugurated amidst festive ceremonies at the Barasoain Church. It was popularly known as the Malolos Republic.

Amidst the inaugural rites, President Aguinaldo issued a decree granting pardon to all Spanish prisoners of war, except to members of the Spanish regular army. He also gave the Spaniards as well as other foreigners the right to engage in business within the limits of the Republic.

To disseminate the ideals and aspirations of the Republic, publications were made. The Casa Real (Royal House) in Malolos (declared a National Shrine in 1965 by President Diosdado Macapagal by virtue of Executive Act No. 173) became the National Treasury and National Printing Press where the revolutionary organs—La Independencia, El Heraldo de la Revolucion, Kalayaan at Kaibigan ng Bayan—were printed.

The official organ of the Republic was El Heraldo de la Revolucion (Herald of the Revolution), with its first issue on September 29,1898, about four months before the emergence of the Republic. In a special issue of the newspaper was the poem 'A1 Heroes Nacional' (To the National Hero), composed by poet laureate Don Cecilio Apostol and the December 20,1898 decree of President Aguinaldo declaring December 30 as Memorial Day to honor Jose Rizal and many other Filipinos who suffered martyrdom. The name of the newspaper was afterwards changed to Heraldo Filipino, then to lndice Oficial, and finally to Gaceta de Filipinas, with its last issue on October 14, 1899.

Some Filipinos who wrote articles using their nom de plume for the newspaper were Rafael Palma (Dapit Hapon), Cecilio Apostol (Catullo), Fernando Ma. Guerrero (Fulvio Gil), Epifanio de los Santos (G. Solon), and Salvador V. del Rosario (Juan Tagalo).

In the provinces there were many revolutionary newspapers published by patriotic individuals like El Nuevo Dia (The New Day), founded and edited by Sergio Osmena. Its first issue appeared in Cebu on April 16,1900.

In 1899 Jose Palma, the 23-year old brother of Rafael Palma and member of La lndependencia, wrote the poem "Filipinas," which was later adapted as the Spanish lyrics of the national anthem of the Philippines, still at war against the Americans. (The English translation of the lyrics were done by Camilo Osias and M. A. Lane, while in 1951 the Tagalog translation was used).

For Mabini, true independence would not simply mean liberation from Spain but also educating- the people for autonomy and refraining from colonial mentality. Thus, the Malolos Congress had set up educational institutions.

A system of free and compulsory elementary education was provided for by the Malolos Constitution. A college for boys called Burgos Institute was established in Malolos under Enrique Mendiola, with a regular academic course leading to the degree of Bachelor of Arts and special vocational courses in agriculture,

commerce, and surveying. The girls learned their lessons at home under private tutors. They were conferred the degree of Bachelor of Arts after passing the government examination.

The Universidad Literaria de Filipinas (at the convent of Barasoain Church) was also established with Joaquin Gonzales as the first president. Gonzales was subsequently, replaced in September 1899 by Dr. Leon Ma. Guerrero.

The university offered courses in law, medicine, pharmacy, and notary public. However, its existence was short-lived due to Filipino-American conflict, which resulted to the dispersion of its faculty and students.

Military training for officers in the Army of the Republic was offered in the Military Academy of Malolos whose director was Major Manuel Sityar, a former Spanish lieutenant of the Spanish Guardia Civil. Some of its instructors were graduates of the Military Academy of Toledo, Spain like Major Jose Reyes and Major Candido Reyes. President Aguinaldo made efforts to reconcile the new government with the former enemies.

The Filipino army in Luzon included a battalion of Igorot lancers and a company of Negrito archers. There were more soldiers than rifles in the armed forces of the Republic. Those without rifles were armed with bolos, bamboo spears, anting-an tings (amulets), and bows and arrows.

The Republic has a relatively small navy. It consisted of eight steam launchers captured from the Spaniards and several interisland steamers donated by rich families in Batangas. Filipinas, an inter-island steamer owned by Compania General de Tobaccos became the army flagship.

In Mindanao, Spanish colonial rule particularly ended in Butuan, Agusan del Norte with the hoisting of the Philippine flag.

Butuan was then the military capital of the province of Surigao.

Emissaries of the Revolutionary Government led by Wenceslao Gonzales proclaimed a Philippine Republic in Butuan on January 17,1899.

Four flags were hoisted on that day: the tricolor flag of the Philippine Revolution, the white flag of surrender, the national flag of Spain, and the Pontifical flag. These flags were symbols of the forces operating in the Philippines at that time.

The Malolos Republic is the first Republic in Asia. The new government has empowered the people to choose their

representatives to create laws beneficial for the nation. The decisions of the members of the Congress became the cornerstone of democracy. It has manifested the capability of the Filipinos to govern in the midst of turbulent times. At a time when most of Asia was still under colonial power, the Philippines stood out as a beam of hope.

Study Guides

Terms/Concepts to Understand

Marangal na Dalit ng Katagalugan Constituent Assembly

Dictatorial government Separation of Church and State El Heraldo de la Revolucion Pontifical flag

Questions to Answer

1. What is the significance of the proclamation of Philippine Independence in 1898?

2. How was the transition of governance from the Spaniards to the Americans made possible in the Philippines?

3. What has transpired in the Malolos Congress, which brought about the establishment of the First Philippine Republic?

4. Explain, why is the Malolos Republic considered in history as the First Philippine Republic and not the Kakarong Republic nor the Biak-na-Bato Republic?

Chapter VII