Today in History : February 23rd

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1947: Philippine President Manuel A. Roxas and Archbishop Michael O’Doherty formally agree to the government's acquisition of eight estates owned by the Church for the price of P5,630,000, such estates to be sold later in small lots and at reasonable prices to the tenants.

1986: Shortly after lunch, Enrile and Ramos decided to consolidate their positions. Enrile crossed EDSA from Camp Aguinaldo to Camp Crame amidst cheers from the crowd. In the mid-afternoon, Radio Veritas relayed reports of Marines massing near the camps in the east and tanks approaching from the north and south. A contingent of Marines with tanks and armored vans, led by Brigadier General Artemio Tadiar, was stopped along Ortigas Avenue, about two kilometers from the camps, by tens of thousands of people. Nuns holding rosaries knelt in front of the tanks and men and women linked arms together to block the troops. Tadiar asked the crowds to make a clearing for them, but they did not budge. In the end, the troops retreated with no shots fired. By evening, the standby transmitter of Radio Veritas failed. Shortly after midnight, the staff were able to go to another station to begin broadcasting from a secret location under the moniker "Radyo Bandido" (Bandit Radio). June Keithley, with Angelo Castro, was the radio broadcaster who continued Radio Veritas' program throughout the night and in the remaining days.

1995: UPOU was established by the UP Board of Regents through a board resolution during its 1084th meeting. The Board of Regents recognized the "perennial challenge of providing quality higher education to a growing population" in the Philippines. However, because of limited resources, the residential colleges cannot accept all students who apply for admission to UP and qualify.

Today in History : February 22nd

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1942: World War II: President Franklin D. Roosevelt orders General Douglas MacArthur out of the Philippines as American defenses collapses.

1971: Lea Salonga was born in Manila to Feliciano Salonga and Ligaya Imutan. She spent the first six years of her childhood in Angeles City, Pampanga before moving back to Manila. Lea is a Filipina singer and actress best known for her musical role in Miss Saigon, for which she won the Olivier, Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics, and Theatre World Awards, the first to win various international awards for a single role. She was the first Asian to play Eponine in the musical Les Misérables on Broadway and was the singing voice of Princess Jasmine from Aladdin in 1992 and Mulan for Mulan and Mulan II in 1998 and in 2004, respectively.

1986: Start of the People Power Revolution in the Philippines. Filipinos launched the so-called People Power revolution that led to the ouster of Ferdinand Marcos. At about 15:00, Defense Minister Juan Ponce Enrile barricades himself together with some followers, many of them young colonels, in the Ministry of National Defense in Camp Aguinaldo. The Deputy Chief of Staff of the Armed Force of the Philippines, General Fidel Ramos, joins the forces of Enrile at about 17:00. The event is aired to the public at approximately 18:45. At 21:00, the archbishop of Manila, Jaime Cardinal Sin, through Radio Veritas gives support to the Enrile rebellion. Simultaneously, Agapito Aquino, the brother of the slain opposition leader, forms a people power group that barricades Camp Crame and Camp Aguinaldo, to protect the rebellious military from an attack by Marcos forces. The barricade begins with not more than 20 persons at about 21:30 but soon grows bigger and bigger.

1999: a fire broke outin the University of Bohol or UB. One half of the structures in the University were burned. The three-storey Founders' Hall was built six months after and another three-storey Achievers' Hall was completed one year after the fire.

Today in History : February 21st

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1896: The Supreme Council of the revolutionary organization, Kataastaasang Kagalanggalang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan (KKK), holds elections for the various positions of secretary, warden, guard and patroller, writer or recorder, and assistant writers or recorders; the KKK was founded by Andres Bonifacio in 1892 with the aim of liberating the Philippines from the yoke of Spanish colonial rule, and within around six months after this meeting, the Revolution against colonial Spain will break out in Manila.

1960: Edgardo Migriño Chatto, nicknamed Edgar or Eddie, was born in Malate, Manila, Philippines. He is the son of the late Eladio Chatto and incumbent Balilihan, Bohol Mayor Victoria Migriño Chatto. Representative Edgardo Migriño Chatto, also known as Edgardo Chatto and Edgar Chatto, is a Filipino politician. A lawyer by profession, he is currently a member of the House of Representatives of the Philippines. He is on his third (and by law final) term as representative of the first legislative district of Bohol, Philippines, being elected congressman in the 2001 elections.

1986: Millions of Filipinos started to gather in Ortigas Avenue intersection of Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA) in Metro Manila to overthrow their dictator of more than 20 years, Ferdinand Marcos, who had held power of the Philippines under martial law.

Today in History : February 20th

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1862: Francisco Baltazar died. Balagtas is considered the equivalent of William Shakespeare and the "Prince of Tagalog Poets" for his impact on Filipino literature with Florante at Laura regarded as his defining work. In fact, he is so greatly revered in the Philippines that a tradition held for debating in extemporaneous verse is known as 'Balagtasan'.

1899: The town of Manduriao, Iloilo, in the Philippines falls to the colonizing American forces despite the valiant resistance of Ilongo soldiers under General Martin Delgado; following the occupation of Iloilo by the imperialist forces, Delgado as politico-military governor of the province and army's general-in-chief will engage in efforts aimed at harassing the invaders with the support of combatants and non-combatants alike.

1960: Pierre Patricio Farum y Castro was born in Dumalag, Capiz -- the second son of Emerson Patricio Bereber, a sugar technologist, and Teresita Farum Castro, a public school teacher. As a toddler, he moved with his family to a neighboring town, in Pilar, Capiz. He already took an interest in art at the tender age of five. Teachers discovered his talent during the second grade where he would win an on-the-spot art contest. Later in high school, he would win second place in another art contest sponsored by the Boy Scouts of the Philippines-Region VI. Pierre Patricio Farum is a self-taught Filipino artist

1963: Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corporation was established. It is located along Ortigas Avenue Extention, Cainta, Rizal, Philippines. The company is currently headed by Mr. Kengo Takase.

Today in History : February 19th

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1888: Aurora Antonia Aragón de Quezon was born to Pedro Aragón and Zeneida Molina, in the town of Baler in Tayabas province. Aurora Antonia Aragón de Quezon , usually known simply as Aurora Quezon, and sometimes as Aurora Aragón-Quezon, was the wife of Philippine President Manuel Luis Quezon and the First Lady of the Philippines from 1935 to 1944. Though she is recognized as the second First Lady of the Philippines, she was actually the first spouse of a Philippine president to be called as such, the honorific being unknown during the presidency of Emilio Aguinaldo, and thus not applied at that time to his wife Hilaria.

1898: Filipina revolutionary and patriot Delfina Herbosa marries fellow Katipunero Jose Salvador Natividad; she is the niece of national hero Jose Rizal and, together with her future revolutionary general husband, fought various battles against the Spaniards during the Philippine Revolution. Delfina Herbosa helped Marcela Mariño Agoncillo in making the filipino flag in hongkong.

2006: A massive rock slide-debris avalanche occurred in the Philippine province of Southern Leyte that caused widespread damage and loss of life. The deadly landslide followed a ten-day period of heavy rains and a minor earthquake of magnitude 2.6 on the Richter scale. The official death toll stands at 1,126.

Today in History : February 18th

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1903: Tiburcio T. Hilario, patriot during the Philippine Revolution and the Filipino-American War, dies from scarlet fever, a rare disease in the Southeast Asian country; elected revolutionary governor of his province and known as the "Brains of the Revolution in Pampanga," Hilario is a cousin of the "Great Propagandist," Marcelo H. del Pilar.

1912: Concepcion Cuenco Manguerra was born on February 18, 1912 in Cebu City, Philippines, the fourth child of Mariano Jesus Cuenco and Filomena Alesna Cuenco. The Cuenco family is a well-known political family in Cebu, Philippines. Since the 1800s, the Cuenco name has been part the colorful history and lore of this island in Southern Philippines. Members of the Cuenco family have been involved in Philippine politics, literature, journalism, as well as the Catholic religion.

1962: Pedro Adigue, Jr became a professional boxer. Adigue was a world champion boxer from the small town of Bontod in Palanas, Masbate, the Philippines. After 14 bouts (11 wins, 1 loss and 2 draws), he fought Carl Peñalosa for the Philippine lightweight title but lost on points.

1981: Pope John Paul II beatified Lorenzo Ruiz on February 18, 1981, in the first beatification to occur outside of the Vatican. Lorenzo Ruiz was canonized on October 18, 1987, and was the first Filipino saint. St. Lorenzo Ruiz was the son of a Chinese father and Filipina mother; both were Catholic.

Today in History : February 17th

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1905: While the Philippines was under American colonial rule, an officer's school of the Philippine Constabulary was established at the Walled City of Intramuros in Manila on February 17, 1905.

1945: The eastern side of the Spanish wall of Intramuros in Manila, Philippines is bombed as the American forces continue to take over the Japanese positions in the Battle for Manila during World War II; the battle will end by March 3, with the American forces routing the Japanese and reclaiming the capital city of its Southeast Asian colony.

1985: Anne Ojales Curtis-Smith, also known as Anne Curtis was born in Yarrawonga, Victoria, Australia. Anne Curtis is the eldest daughter of Carmen Ojales, a Filipina and James Curtis-Smith, an Australian lawyer. She has 2 siblings, a sister (Jasmine) and a brother (Thomas), who are currently living in Australia with her mother. At age 13, they had their vacation in the Philippines but it later became permanent through Anne's discovery by a talent manager while eating at a fast food chain with her dad and her mom in 1997. Anne is a Filipino-Australian actress, model, television host, and VJ.