Diosdado Macapagal

Diosdado Pangan "Apung Dadong" Macapagal Sr. (; September 28, 1910 – April 21, 1997) was the ninth president of the Philippines, serving from 1961 to 1965. He served as the 5th vice president from 1957 to 1961 under Carlos P. Garcia. He also served as a member of the House of Representatives, and headed the Constitutional Convention of 1970. He was the father of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, who followed his path as President of the Philippines from 2001 to 2010. Diosdado Macapagal Sr is one of the few presidents with doctoral degrees, earning a Doctors of Civil Law degree and a PHD in Economics degree from University of Santo Tomas.

Known as "The Poor Boy From Lubao", he was a native of Lubao, Pampanga. Macapagal graduated from the University of the Philippines and University of Santo Tomas, both in Manila, after which he worked as a lawyer for the government. He first won the election in 1949 to the House of Representatives, representing the 1st district in his home province of Pampanga. In 1957, he became vice president under the rule of President Carlos P. Garcia, whom he later defeated in the 1961 election.

As president, Macapagal worked to suppress graft and corruption and to stimulate the growth of the Philippine economy. He introduced the country's first land reform law, placed the peso on the free currency exchange market, and liberalized foreign exchange and import controls. Many of his reforms, however, were crippled by a Congress dominated by the rival Nacionalista Party. He is also known for shifting the country's observance of Independence Day from July 4 to June 12, commemorating the day President Emilio Aguinaldo unilaterally declared the independence of the First Philippine Republic from the Spanish Empire in 1898. He stood for re-election in 1965 but was defeated by Ferdinand Marcos.

Under Marcos, Macapagal was elected president of the 1970 constitutional convention that would later draft what became the 1973 Constitution, though the manner in which the charter was ratified and modified led him to later question its legitimacy. He died of heart failure, pneumonia, and renal complications, in 1997, at the age of 86.

Macapagal was also a poet in the Spanish language, though his poetic oeuvre was eclipsed by his political biography.

Early years

thumb|left|Baptismal record of Diosdado Macapagal issued at the [[San Agustin Church (Lubao)|San Agustin Parish Church on October 12, 1910.]]

Diosdado Macapagal was born on September 28, 1910, at Barrio San Nicolas in Lubao, Pampanga. He was the third of five children in a poor family. His father was Urbano Romero Macapagal, a poet who wrote in the local Kapampangan language, and his mother was Romana Pangan Macapagal, daughter of Atanacio Miguel Pangan (a former cabeza de barangay of Gutad, Floridablanca, Pampanga) and Lorenza Suing Antiveros. Urbano's mother, Escolástica Romero Macapagal, was a midwife and schoolteacher who taught catechism. He is also related to well-to-do Licad family through his mother Romana, who was a second cousin of María Vitug Licad, grandmother of renowned pianist, Cecile Licad. Romana's own grandmother, Genoveva Miguel Pangan, and María's grandmother, Celestina Miguel Macaspac, were sisters. Their mother, María Concepción Lingad Miguel, was the daughter of José Pingul Lingad and Gregoria Malit Bartolo.

thumb|Diosdado Macapagal Birthplace House in [[Lubao, Pampanga, where Macapagal was born]]

Diosdado's family earned extra income by raising pigs and accommodating boarders in their home. He finished his pre-law course at the University of the Philippines Manila, then enrolled at Philippine Law School in 1932, studying on a scholarship and supporting himself with a part-time job as an accountant. While in law school, he gained prominence as an orator and debater. However, he was forced to quit schooling after two years due to poor health and a lack of money. He also received financial support from his mother's relatives, notably from the Macaspacs, who owned large tracts of land in barrio Sta. Maria, Lubao, Pampanga. After receiving his Bachelor of Laws degree in 1936, he was admitted to the bar, topping the 1936 bar examination with a score of 89.95%.

Early career

thumb|left|Macapagal (right) and Governor [[Jose B. Lingad (left), before Macapagal leaving to Washington in 1948.]]

After passing the bar examination, Macapagal was invited to join an American law firm as a practicing attorney, a particular honor for a Filipino at the time. He was assigned as a legal assistant to President Manuel L. Quezon in Malacañang Palace. During the Japanese occupation of the Philippines in World War II, Macapagal continued working in Malacañang Palace as an assistant to President José P. Laurel, while secretly aiding the anti-Japanese resistance during the Allied liberation country from the Japanese.

House of Representatives (1949–1957)

thumb|left|Macapagal (center) with Pampanga Governor [[Jose B. Lingad (right) and President Elpidio Quirino (left) in 1949]]

On the urging of local political leaders of Pampanga province, President Quirino recalled Macapagal from his position in Washington to run for a seat in the House of Representatives representing the 1st district of Pampanga. The district's incumbent, Representative Amado Yuzon, was a friend of Macapagal, but was opposed by the administration due to his support by communist groups. After a campaign that Macapagal described as cordial and free of personal attacks, he won a landslide victory in the 1949 election.

Presidency (1961–1965)

thumb|Official Malacañang Portrait by Romeo Enriquez

thumb|Macapagal [[Inauguration of Diosdado Macapagal|swears in as President of the Philippines at the Quirino Grandstand, Manila on December 30, 1961]]

In the 1961 presidential election, Macapagal ran against Garcia's re-election bid, promising an end to corruption and appealing to the electorate as a common man from humble beginnings. He defeated the incumbent president by a 55% to 45% margin. The Bible that Macapagal used was later used by his daughter Gloria when she took her oath as Vice President in 1998 and as President in 2004.

Administration and cabinet

Major legislations signed

Republic Act No. 3512 – An Act Creating A Fisheries Commission Defining Its Powers, Duties and Functions, and Appropriating Funds.
Republic Act No. 3518 – An Act Creating The Philippine Veterans' Bank, and For Other Purposes.
Republic Act No. 3844 – An Act To Ordain The Agricultural Land Reform Code and To Institute Land Reforms In The Philippines, Including The Abolition of Tenancy and The Channeling of Capital Into Industry, Provide For The Necessary Implementing Agencies, Appropriate Funds Therefor and For Other Purposes.
Republic Act No. 4166 – An Act Changing The Date Of Philippine Independence Day From July Four To June Twelve, And Declaring July Four As Philippine Republic Day, Further Amending For The Purpose Section Twenty-Nine Of The Revised Administrative Code.
Republic Act No. 4180 – An Act Amending Republic Act Numbered Six Hundred Two, Otherwise Known As The Minimum Wage Law, By Raising The Minimum Wage For Certain Workers, And For Other Purposes.

Domestic policies

Economy

In his inaugural address, Macapagal promised a socio-economic program anchored on "a return to free and private enterprise", placing economic development in the hands of private entrepreneurs with minimal interference.

thumb|left|Macapagal inaugurating the Masalip Dam in [[Tubao, La Union in 1962]]

Before and after independence there was free enterprise in the Philippines under Presidents Manuel Quezon, Sergio Osmeña and Manuel Roxas. In 1950, President Quirino deviated from free enterprise launching as a temporary emergency measure the system of exchange and import controls. The controls system was carried out by President Magsaysay and Garcia. It is a major development of land reform in the Philippines,

In comparison with previous agrarian legislation, the law lowered the retention limit to , whether owned by individuals or corporations. It removed the term "contiguous" and established the leasehold system. The share-tenancy or the kasama system was prohibited. It formulated a bill of rights that assured agricultural workers the right to self-organization and to a minimum wage. It also created an office that acquired and distributed farmlands and a financing institution for this purpose. The major flaw of this law was, however, that it had several exemptions, such as ort (big capital plantations established during the Spanish and American periods); fishponds, saltbeds, and lands primarily planted to citrus, coconuts, cacao, coffee, durian, and other similar permanent trees; landholdings converted to residential, commercial, industrial, or other similar non-agricultural purposes. Early on in his presidency, Macapagal honored several individuals who returned lost wallets and checks to emphasize the virtue of honesty. He also publicized the assets, liabilities, and net worths of his cabinet officials to demonstrate his administration's transparency efforts; while government officials are required to submit statements of assets and liabilities, no law at the time necessitated them to be publicized.

The administration also openly feuded with Filipino businessmen Fernando Lopez and Eugenio Lopez, Sr., brothers who had controlling interests in several large businesses.

Stonehill controversy

The Administration's campaign against corruption was tested by Harry Stonehill, an American expatriate with a $50-million business empire in the Philippines. Macapagal's secretary of justice, Jose W. Diokno investigated Stonehill on charges of tax evasion, smuggling, misdeclaration of imports, and corruption of public officials. Diokno's investigation revealed Stonehill's ties to corruption within the government. Macapagal, however, prevented Diokno from prosecuting Stonehill by deporting the American instead, then dismissing Diokno from the cabinet. Diokno questioned Macapagal's actions, saying, "How can the government now prosecute the corrupted when it has allowed the corrupter to go?" The change became permanent in 1964 with the signing of Republic Act No. 4166. For having issued his 1962 proclamation, Macapagal is generally credited with having moved the celebration date of the Independence Day holiday. Years later, Macapagal told journalist Stanley Karnow the real reason for the change: "When I was in the diplomatic corps, I noticed that nobody came to our receptions on the Fourth of July, but went to the American Embassy instead. So, to compete, I decided we needed a different holiday."

American historian Joseph Scalice alternatively argued that Macapagal's decision to move Independence Day from July 4 to June 12 stemmed from the souring of relations with the United States. On July 29, 1961, Carlos P. Garcia authorized the importation of 4.5 million kilos of US Virginia tobacco. On December 23, 1961, the Philippine Supreme Court ruled against a suit by local Virginia tobacco growers that prayed for the blocking of the importation. However, after becoming president, Macapagal declared the importation illegal and instructed the Bureau of Customs to destroy the US tobacco shipments impounded in the docks of Manila.

US House Committee on Agriculture Chair Harold D. Cooley threatened to block a bill remunerating $72 million worth of war damages to the Philippines if the tobacco cannot be imported. Macapagal offered a compromise in which every kilo of imported US tobacco would be exchanged for four kilos of exported Philippine tobacco. Despite the Philippine Supreme Court overturning Macapagal's order and directing that the tobacco be allowed entry to the country, the war damages bill was terminated by the US House of Representatives on May 9, 1962.

Together with the Stonehill scandal, the Americans' refusal to pay war damages led to Macapagal canceling a state visit to the US. In 1962, he instead met with Francisco Franco in Spain, where Macapagal delivered a speech about the Philippines having "historic ties" with its "mother country".

Foreign policies

thumb|Macapagal (center) during a visit in [[Brazil in 1960]]

North Borneo claim

thumb|right|President Diosdado Macapagal on the bridge of the [[USS Oklahoma City (CL-91)|USS Oklahoma City in 1962]]

On September 12, 1962, during Macapagal's administration, the territory of eastern North Borneo (now Sabah), and the full sovereignty, title and dominion over the territory were ceded by heirs of the Sultanate of Sulu, Sultan Muhammad Esmail E. Kiram I, to the Republic of the Philippines. The cession effectively gave the Philippine government the full authority to pursue their claim in international courts. The Philippines broke diplomatic relations with Malaysia after the federation had included Sabah in 1963. It was revoked in 1989 because succeeding Philippine administrations have placed the claim in the back burner in the interest of pursuing cordial economic and security relations with Kuala Lumpur. To date, Malaysia continues to consistently reject Philippine calls to resolve the matter of Sabah's jurisdiction to the International Court of Justice. Malaysia saw the claim made by the Philippines' Moro leader Nur Misuari to take the Sabah case to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) as a non-issue and thus dismissed the claim.

MAPHILINDO

In July 1963, President Macapagal convened a summit meeting in Manila in which a nonpolitical confederation for Malaysia, the Philippines, and Indonesia, Maphilindo, was proposed as a realization of José Rizal's vision of bringing together the Malay peoples, who he saw was artificially divided by colonial frontiers.

The US government's active interest in bringing other nations into the war had been part of US policy discussions as early as 1961. President Lyndon Johnson first publicly appealed for other countries to come to the aid of South Vietnam on April 23, 1964–in what was called the "More Flags" program. Chester Cooper, former director of Asian affairs for the White House, explained why the impetus came from the United States instead of from the Republic of South Vietnam: "The 'More Flags' campaign ... required the application of considerable pressure for Washington to elicit any meaningful commitments. One of the more exasperating aspects of the search…was the lassitude …... of the Saigon government. In part ... the South Vietnam leaders were preoccupied with political jockeying. ... In addition, Saigon appeared to believe that the program was a public relations campaign directed at the American people."

Personal life

First marriage

In 1938, Macapagal married Purita de la Rosa. They had two children, Cielo Macapagal-Salgado (who would later become vice governor of Pampanga) and Arturo Macapagal. Purita died in 1943. His first grandchild, Ria Macapagal-Salgado, was born in 1961 to Cielo and Gene Salgado.

Second marriage

On May 5, 1946, Macapagal married Eva Macapagal, with whom he had two children, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (who would later become president of the Philippines) and Diosdado Macapagal, Jr.

Faith

Macapagal was a regular attendee of the Good Friday procession in his hometown of Lubao, Pampanga. He was also a regular participant in the annual silent retreat at the Sunnyside Villa of the Society of the Divine Word in Baguio beginning in 1954 and continuing into his presidency in the 1960s.

Legacy

On September 28, 2009, Macapagal's daughter, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, inaugurated the President Diosdado Macapagal Museum and Library, located at his home town of Lubao, Pampanga.

President Benigno S. Aquino III declared September 28, 2010, as a special non-working holiday in Macapagal's home province of Pampanga to commemorate the centennial of his birth.

He is featured in the 200-peso note of the New Design Series (June 12, 2002 – 2013) and New Generation Currency (December 16, 2010–present).

Several structures were named after Macapagal, including Diosdado Macapagal Boulevard and Macapagal Bridge

File:Diosdado Macapagal International Airport.jpg|Diosdado Macapagal International Airport in Clark, Pampanga

File:Diosdado Macapagal 2010 stamp of the Philippines.jpg|Diosdado Macapagal 2010 stamp of the Philippines

File:Diosdado Macapagal monument (Pampanga Capitol).jpg|Macapagal monument in Pampanga Capitol

Pres. Diosdado P. Macapagal Bust in Tenement, Taguig, Feb 2026.jpg|Mcapagal bust at Tenement, Taguig

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Museum and library

These house the personal books and memorabilia of Macapagal.

File:Genealogymacapagaljf.JPG|Macapagal Clan

File:FDiosdado Macapagaljf.JPG|Façade of the House

File:Macapagalmuseumjf.JPG|Bust (sculpture) of Macapagal in museum-library

File:Macapagalmuseum2jf.JPG|Museum and library

File:Macapagallibraryjf.JPG|Oil portrait of Macapagal

File:Amacapagallibraryjf.JPG|Second floor of the Museum