Today in History : January 31st

On this date in...

1916: Act No. 2572 was passed witch merged the Philippine Library with two other government institutions: the Division of Archives, Patents, Copyrights and Trademarks (later to become the National Archives, the Copyright Office of the National Library and the Intellectual Property Office) and the Law Library of the Philippine Assembly, forming the Philippine Library and Museum.

1945: Josefa Llanes Escoda, founder of the Girl Scout of the Philippines, is executed together with other Filipinos who have resisted Japanese Occupation during World War II.

Today in History : January 30th

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1894: Andres Bonifacio, leader of the secret Philippine revolutionary society Katipunan (KKK), declares that the organization's administrative judges should strictly adhere to and implement regulations in the bid to enlarge KKK membership.

1980: Local elections are held in conjunction with a plebiscite to amend the constitution. The constitional amendment sets 70 years as retirement age for members of the Supreme Court as well as judges of inferior courts.

1987: Executive Order 121, otherwise known as the Reorganization Act of the Philippine Statistical System, was passed. It declared that the National Statistics Office (NSO) shall be the major statistical agency responsible for generating general purpose statistics and for undertaking such censuses and surveys as may be designated by the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB).

Today in History : January 29th

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1899: Philippine President Emilio Aguinaldo promulgates the country's first constitution, referred to as the Malolos Constitution; it is Asia's very first democratic constitution but which, sadly, will soon be overrun by American colonization of the archipelago.

1987: Philippine military commanders headed off an attempt by troops still loyal to former President Ferdinand E. Marcos to take over two key Manila military bases, killing one rebel soldier and wounding 16 others during the attempted coup, the military chief of staff, Gen. Fidel V. Ramos. More than 200 heavily armed rebel troops were still in control of Channel 7, Manila's largest television station, and radio station DZBB well into this afternoon, but the military said the stations' power had been cut off.

1991: The Philippine National Police, which was a result of a merger of the Philippine Constabulary and the Integrated National Police, was activated. Its national headquarters are based at Camp Crame, Quezon City, in the National Capital Region.

Today in History : January 28th

On this date in...

1861: Julián Felipe was born in Cavite City, Cavite. He is the composer of the Philippines national anthem Lupang Hinirang. A dedicated music teacher and composer, he was appointed by Emilio Aguinaldo as Director of the National Band of the First Philippine Republic. He died in Manila on October 2, 1944.

1919: The Lodge received its Charter, during the Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge of the Philippine Islands, which was signed by the new Grand Master, MW Bro Milton E. Springer and the Grand Secretary MW Bro Newton C. Comfort. The authorized name became Pampanga Masonic Lodge No. 48.

1947: Jan 28. President Roxas issues an amnesty proclamation to collaborators and releases Claro M. Recto, Jose P. Laurel, Benigno Ramos, Jose Vargas, and Jose C. Zulueta, among others.

1948: Philippine President Manuel Roxas grants amnesty to everyone accused of collaboration with the Japanese during World War II; the beneficiaries include President Jose P. Laurel and his entire cabinet that served during the Japanese Occupation period.

Today in History : January 27th

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1872: Gov.-Gen. Rafael de Izquierdo bestows praise to the Catholic religious orders after the Spanish colonial forces quelled the Cavite mutiny staged by Filipino rebels in the province.

1961: Willie Revillame (Wilfredo Buendia Revillame) was born. He is a Filipino actor and tv host. He is currently the host of ABS-CBN's noontime variety show Wowowee.

1987: 70 soldiers of the Blue Thunder Command, headed by Col. Bertuldo dela Cruz, attack Villamor Air Base. Simultaneously, some 600 rebel soldiers under the leadership of Col. Oscar Canlas seize channel 7 and radio station DZBB. The two groups attempt to overthrow the Aquino government.

Today in History : January 26th

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1821: The first of the royal decrees allowing Filipino deputies to be elected to the Spanish Cortes are made; this was later stopped in 1837 when the Cortes held a secret session ending representation by deputies from the Philippine colony.

1880: General of the Army Douglas MacArthur was born. He is an American general, United Nations general, and Field Marshal of the Philippine Army. He was a Chief of Staff of the United States Army during the 1930s and later played a prominent role in the Pacific theater of World War II.

1930: Philippine National Artist Napoleon Abueva was born in Bohol more popularly known as Napoleón Abueva. He is a sculptor given the distinction as the Philippines' National Artist for Sculpture. He is also entitled as the "Father of Modern Philippine Sculpture". He is the only Boholano given the distinction as National Artist of the Philippines in the field of Visual Arts.

1970: Pres. Ferdinand Marcos gave his State of the Nation Address in Philippine Congress. After his speech, he was about to board a helicopter with his wife Imelda Marcos when a group of students started throwing things at the President. Then a cardboard coffin and placards were dumped on him.

1994: Ms. Apostol, the INQUIRER founding chair, retired and Ms. Marixi R. Prieto took over her post. A group led by Eduardo Espiritu, former PNB president bought Ms. Apostol's shares in the company. Previously, a group headed by Ms. Prieto had bought into the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Inc.

2005: Judge Rogelio Pizarro of the Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 222 issued a writ of preliminary mandatory injunction "commanding and directing" the PBA to allow Taulava "to play in the current All Filipino Conference and succeeding Conferences of the PBA" during the term of his contract.[1] This was after Taulava passed citizenship papers that should've allowed him to play in the league

Today in History : January 25th

On this date in...

1898: The Spanish colonial government promulgates a proclamation granting amnesty to Filipino revolutionary leaders as part of the Biak-na-Bato truce agreement during the Philippine Revolution.

1933: Corazon Aquino was born. She was the 11th President of the Philippines and the first woman to hold such office. Aquino was also the first popularly and democratically-elected female president and head of state in Asia. Aquino is best remembered for leading the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution, which toppled the authoritarian regime of the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos and restored democracy in the Philippines.