By Argyll Cyrus B. Geducos
President Duterte has signed Republic Act No. 11014 declaring Jan. 23 as a special working holiday in the country to commemorate the declaration of the First Philippine Republic.
Duterte signed “The First Philippine Republic Day Act” last Thursday.
The First Philippine Republic was declared on January 23, 1899 at the Barasoain Church in Malolos, Bulacan.
Under the new law, the National Historical Commission, in coordination with the Department of Education, were tasked to plan and implement activities for The First Philippine Republic Day.
The two government offices are also mandated to ensure that the significance of the historical event will continue to “inspire and instill a sense of pride for the rich and noble history of the Filipino nation.”
RA No. 11014 was passed in the House of Representatives and the Senate on Oct. 19, 2016, and Jan. 29, 2018, respectively. It will take effect 15 days after its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.
The First Philippine Republic or the Malolos Republic was a developing revolutionary government in the Philippines which was formally established with the proclamation of the Malolos Constitution on Jan. 23, 1899 in Malolos.
The Malolos Republic was dissolved when President Emilio Aguinaldo was captured by American forces in Palanan, Isabela on March 23, 1901.
It was established only a month after Spain sold the Philippines to the United States in the for $20 million under the 1898 Treaty of Paris and a month before the Philippine-American War.
The Philippine Republic is considered as the first constitutional republic in Asia as it was the first to frame a comprehensive Constitution duly approved by a partially elected Congress.
