Anything under the sun
Pres. Manuel A. Roxas
Last April 15, we honored President Manuel A. Roxas and strangely, many, especially the students, were asking me who was he? Aside from being the first president of the present Republic of the Philippines, they santily k ow who is Manuel A.Roxas.
Well, here's a brief narration of who was he. In public service, he started at the very bottom of the political ladder as town councilor of Capiz (now Roxas City). Successively, he became governor of Capiz, assemblyman, Speaker, senator, Delegate to the 1935 Constitutional Convention, President of the Senate and lastly, President of the Philippines.
On the side, he was a bar topnotcher in 1916, a leader of the Osmena-Roxas (Os-Rox) Independence Mission to the United States, Secretary of Finance and Philippine Army brigadier general during World War II.
Before the war, he attended the School for Reserve Commission (SRC) together with some assemblymen and was commissioned a lieutenant colonel (reserve) in the Philippine Army.
At the outbreak of the war, he immediately reported for duty to President Manuel L. Quezon and was assigned to Mindanao. When President Quezon invited him to go in exile to the United States, Roxas refused saying he wanted to be with the people. Likewise, when General Douglas McArthur asked him to go to Australia, he refused for the same reason.
While in Mindanao, Roxas was promoted to brigadier general -- the first ever reservist general of the Philippine Army.
After the fall of Bataan and Corregidor, he refused to surrender but the Japanese threatened to kill the high ranking Filipino surrendered officers if he would not surrender. The execution of Chief Justice Jose Abad Santos in Cotabato, Mindanao could have been a signal to Roxas to surrender. Under these circumstances, he surrendered in Mindanao.
When the Japanese "granted" Philippine independence in 1943, Roxas was offered a cabinet portfolio but he refused feigning sickness. Actually, he was involved secretly in supporting the guerrilla.
Born on January 1, 1892, in Capiz town, President Manuel A. Roxas died on April 15, 1948 at Clark Field, Pampanga after delivering an impassioned speech for democracy.
NOW AVAILABLE - Volume 1 and 2 of Intereting Facts about West Visyas by the writer. Volume 1 is about the historical journey of the ten Bornean datus of Panay centuries ago who were the ascendants of the present West Visayans. Volume 2 dwells on the culture (government, religion, education, etc.) and history of the pre-Spanish Malays, Negritos and Indonesians in West Visayas.