José Dira Avelino Sr.(August 5, 1890 – July 21, 1986), was the firstpresident of the Senateof theThird Republic of the Philippinesand the second president of theLiberal Party.He was Senate Presidentpro temporeto PresidentManuel Quezonprior to the establishment of theCommonwealth.
José Avelino | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 3rdPresident of the Senate of the Philippines | |
| In office May 28, 1946 – February 21, 1949 | |
| Preceded by | Manuel Roxas |
| Succeeded by | Mariano Jesús Cuenco |
| President pro tempore of the Senate of the Philippines | |
| In office June 2, 1935 – November 15, 1935 | |
| Preceded by | José Clarín |
| Succeeded by | Senate abolished(Next held byElpidio Quirino) |
| Senator of the Philippines | |
| In office May 25, 1946 – December 30, 1951 | |
| In office June 5, 1928 – November 15, 1935 | |
| Preceded by | Pastor Salazar |
| Succeeded by | District abolished |
| Constituency | 9th senatorial district |
| Secretary of Public Works and Communications | |
| In office 1939[citation needed]– 1941 | |
| President | Manuel L. Quezon |
| Preceded by | Mariano Jesús Cuenco |
| Succeeded by | Basilio Valdes(as Secretary of National Defense, Public Works, Communications and Labor) |
| Secretary of Labor | |
| In office November 15, 1935[citation needed]– November 1938[citation needed] | |
| President | Manuel L. Quezon |
| Preceded by | Ramon Torres |
| Succeeded by | Hermenegildo Villanueva |
| Member of theHouse of RepresentativesfromSamar's1stdistrict | |
| In office June 6, 1922 – June 5, 1928 | |
| Preceded by | Pedro Mendiola |
| Succeeded by | Tiburcio Tancinco |
| Personal details | |
| Born | José Dira Avelino August 5, 1890 Calbayog,Samar,Captaincy General of the Philippines |
| Died | July 21, 1986(aged 95) Manila,Philippines[citation needed] |
| Political party | Liberal(1946–1986) |
| Other political affiliations | Nacionalista(1928–1946) Democrata(1922–1928) |
| Spouse | Enriqueta Casal |
| Children | 5 |
| Relatives | Paulo Avelino(great-grandson) Coritha(grand daughter) |
| Alma mater | Ateneo de Manila(AB) University of Santo Tomas(LL.B) |
Early life and career
editAvelino was born in a town calledCalbayoginSamarto Ildefonsa Dira and Baltazar Avelino. Avelino was educated at theAteneo de Manila,where he received hisBachelor of Artsdegree, and theUniversity of Santo Tomas,where he graduated with hisBachelor of Laws.Calbayog became a city in 1948 at Avelino's instance, when as president of the Senate he pulled together three contiguous municipalities (Oquendo, Calbayog and Tinambacan) and made it into the 19thcity of the Philippines,July 15, 1948, the date President Elpidio Quirino signed Republic Act No. 328.
Personal life
editAvelino was married to Enriqueta Casal and had four sons (Jose Jr., Enrique, Antonio, Baltazar II) and has one daughter named Pilar. He is the great-grandfather of actorPaulo Avelino.
National politics
editHe served asSecretary of Laborand later asSecretary of Public Works and Transportationunder PresidentManuel L. Quezon.As Secretary of Labor, Avelino accomplished something unprecedented in the Philippines and perhaps the world – he unified the labor unions by organizing them into two commissions: the National Commission of Labor (NCL) and the National Commission of Peasants (NCP) – and he was designated chairman of these two commissions. To quote theManila Bulletin:"The new Secretary of Labor José Avelino became not merely the head of the Department of Labor in the government but the head of labor organization, the head of labor in fact."
Avelino is known as the Father of thePhilippine Workmen’s Compensation Law;one of the most famous bills which he authored during his term in Senate, which focused on creating a contingency insurance fund for workers as a way to protect the workers from the various economic problems that plagued the post-war economy.
Avelino also founded the first labor union in Eastern Visayas, Gremio Obrero de Stevedores, and considered to be a founding member of the Liberal Party. He was instrumental in the passage of the Social Security System and pushed for the establishment of publichigh schoolsin every province in the Philippines. The final office held by Avelino before retiring wasAmbassador Plenipotentiaryunder PresidentElpidio Quirino.
An LP stalwart, Avelino was infamously quoted as saying "What are we in power for?" which was said during a party caucus in Malacañang. The whole statement being:[1]
"Why did you have to order an investigation Honorable Mr. President? If you cannot permit abuses, you must at least tolerate them. What are we in power for? We are not hypocrites. Why should we pretend to be saints when in reality we are not? We are not angels. When we die we will all go to hell. It is better to be in hell because in that place there are no investigations, no secretary of justice, no secretary of the interior to go after us."
The above account is disputed by historian Quintin Doroquez.[2][3]Doroquez claims that Avelino was willfully misquoted as corrupt by Celso Cabrera, a newsreporter who did not speak Spanish.[3]Doroquez claims that Congressman Faustino Tobia of Ilocos Norte confessed to the Avelino family later that the entire quote was fabricated and that the original context of Avelino's comment at the said party caucus on January 15, 1949, was the failure of the Quirino administration to deal with the problems of the country.[3]According to Doroquez, Congressman Tobia offered the following paraphrase as closer to what Avelino actually said in Spanish at the meeting.[3]
"Señor Presidente, ¿no es la verdad que sin hacerlos vigorosamente es traicionar y negar esencialmente nuestros deberes como sirvientes públicos? ¿Para que esta el nuestro mandato del pueblo?"[3]
Doroquez provided a translation of Congressman Tobia's paraphrase.[3]
"Mr. President, is it not the truth that not addressing vigorously these problems [i.e., of losing the Liberal Party's insight into the postwar reconstruction, the country’s peasant plight that is fueling the Huk's insurgency, and the moral discipline of those who use their position or influence in government to advance their selfish ends, like appointing less qualified men from the opposition party] is to betray and negate fundamentally our duties as public servants? What for is our mandate from the people?"
In any case, the quote "What are we in power for?" was the quote attributed to Avelino and reported inThe Manila Chroniclewhich was owned by the Lopez family, the family of then-senatorFernando Lopezwho later would be chosen as Quirino's running mate and be elected as hisvice president.[3]
Avelino ran for thePhilippine presidencyin the1949 election,where he became third in a race between incumbent presidentElpidio Quirinoand former presidentJosé P. Laurel.Avelino tried to divide the Liberal Party votes for Quirino by declaring his faction asthe other wing of the Liberal Party,but the latter still won with 50.93% of the votes. Avelino garnered a mere 11.85%. His vice presidential mate, Vicente Francisco, garnered a far lower percentage (1.73%).
Later life
editAvelino retired from public life and devoted himself to the practice of law. Avelino died at the age of 95 on July 21, 1986.
References
edit- ^Dante, Simbulan (2006).The Modern Principalia: The Historical Evolution of the Philippine Ruling Oligarchy.University of Hawaii Press. pp. Chapter 5, Page 161.ISBN9715424961.
- ^Doroquez, Quintin L. (3 November 2007)."Remembering Jose Avelino: A heartbeat away from the presidency (Part 1)".Gugma Han Samar.Retrieved9 June2015.
- ^abcdefgDoroquez, Quintin L. (3 November 2007)."Remembering Jose Avelino: A heartbeat away from the presidency (Part 2)".Gugma Han Samar.Retrieved9 June2015.