Commonwealth

THE
COMMONWEALTH
GOVERNMENT
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Start here
Introduction
What is a commonwealth?
Independence Missions
Jones Law of 1916
OsRox Mission
QuAquAl Mission
Tydings-McDuffie Act
1935 Commonwealth
Constitution
Threats on Philippine Independence

Stuck in Poverty
Threat of Japan
Filipino Freedom: The Philippine
Independence Act
Bottom Line
The Filipino people took

the penultimate step to
independence with the
inauguration of the
Commonwealth of the
Philippines
The creation of the Commonwealth was envisioned

under the Tydings-McDuffie Act, as a ten-year
transitional government in preparation for full
Philippine independence and sovereignty, which was
scheduled for 1946.
On September 16, 1935

A million Filipinos had trooped to the polls
to elect their two highest officials the
President and Vice President. This was
the first time in the history of the nation that
a Filipino would finally sit as Chief
Executive and hold office in
Malacaan Palace.
Senate President Manuel L. Quezon

and his running mate Senate
President pro tempore Sergio
Osmea were elected as President
and Vice President, while
voters elected representatives for the
new unicameral National
Assembly and for local positions.
(click above image to play video)
What is a commonwealth?
One dictionary defines it as
A group of sovereign state and

their dependencies associated by
their own choice and linked with
common objectives and
interests.
This suggests that a commonwealth

relationship is voluntary. But the PhilippineAmerican Commonwealth was obviously not
based on a voluntary history: a bloody war of
domination which killed hundreds of
thousands of Filipinos had been required to
forge a bond between the Philippines and the
United States.
The Commonwealth was the culmination of

efforts to secure a definitive timetable for the
withdrawal of American sovereignty over the
Philippines.
JONES LAW OF 1916

Its in this law that the pledge of eventual
independence was made (once
Filipinos were ready for selfgovernance)
It led to the creation of an all-Filipino
legislature composed of the Philippine
Senate and House of Representatives
JONES LAW OF 1916

However;
the Chief Executive (Governor-General)
Public Instruction (precursor to Department of
Education)
and half of the Phil Supreme Court
were reserved for American officials appointed

by the President of the United States
Independence Missions
From1919 onwards these were periodically
sent to the U.S. Congress and the White
House to lobby for and negotiate
independence
See other reference (tagalong dubbed research)
OSROX MISSION (OSMEA AND ROXAS)
successfully lobbied for the enactment of

the Hare-Hawes-Cutting Act, which was
passed over President Herbert Hoovers
veto in 1932. This was, however,
rejected by the Philippine Legislature.
QUAQUAL MISSION
(QUEZON, BENIGNO AQUINO SR., AND

RAFAEL ALUNAN)
negotiated the Tydings-McDuffie followed by the

recognition of the independence of the Philippines
by the United States.
Tydings-McDuffie Act
a.k.a. Philippine Independence Act
sets the 10-year transition period to be
known as the Commonwealth of the
Philippines
established the parameters for the
preparatory period
1935 Philippine Commonwealth Constitution
a constitution was needed for the soon-to-beproclaimed Commonwealth. A constitutional

convention was convened in Manila in July
1934, and the document was written with an
eye to meeting the approval of the United
States Government as well, so as to ensure
that the U.S. would live up to its promise to
grant the Philippines
1935 Philippine Commonwealth Constitution (cont)
The completed constitution was

overwhelmingly approved by
plebiscite in March 1935, and
then signed into law by President
Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Aside from the certification, the United States also

reserved certain powers:
Currency
Coinage
Imports
Exports, and
Immigration laws ; needs approval.
intervene in the processes of the Commonwealth of
the Philippines
decisions of the courts of the Philippines were also
subject to review by the Supreme Court of US
It provided for a presidential

system of government with
a unicameral legislature. It
had the power to enact laws
for the Philippines, known
as Commonwealth Acts,
through the National
Assembly.
The small vault where the 1935

Philippine Constitution was kept ...
It was meant to lay down the foundations for an

independent, fully-functional state. Its priorities could
be seen in the first laws enacted by the new National
Assembly:
Commonwealth Act No. 1 established the
Philippine Army and a national defense policy;
Commonwealth Act No. 2 established the
National Economic Council;
Commonwealth Act No. 3 created the Court of
Appeals
In 1940
The Constitution was amended to permit the
reelection of the president and the vice president,
to restore the Senate and thus shift the legislature
back to the bicameral system, and to establish a
national electoral authority, the Commission on
Elections. The proposed amendments were ratified
in a plebiscite held on June 18, 1940
Storm clouds on the horizon

However, the future of the commonwealth was in
doubt due to various external factors: the fear of
war in Asia, questions about American
commitment to the future Republic of the
Philippines, and a global economic crisis due to
the Great Depression. In the Philippines itself,
there were problems resulting from agrarian
unrest and power struggles between Osmea and
Quezon.
Stuck in Poverty
Although the Philippine economy was growing, wealth was
divided very unequally:
landlords grew rich at the expense of peasant farmers who found
were unable to repay loans for seed or lease money made by the
landlords.
Productivity remained low as peasants tilled land owned by absentee
landlords or by the Church, who demanded 50 or even 70 percent of
the crop as rent and payment for seed.
By 1941, 80%of Luzon farmers were hopelessly indebted to their
landlords. The absence of social reforms caused resentment amongst
the poor and encouraged anti-government insurgencies.
The Threat of Japan

One of the biggest concerns at
this time was the threat
apparently posed by Japan, the
Philippines neighbor to the
north.
Japan had become increasingly
aggressive since invading
Manchuria in 1931.
Japanese strategic planning during this

period had several goals:
Victory over China which would offer resources
and a large labor force for Japans growing
industrial machine;
Invasions of French Indochina, the Dutch East
Indies, and British Malaya.
Attacking the Philippines and Guam so as to lure
the United States fleet across the Pacific to
defend its colonies; then, destroy the American
fleet in a decisive battle.
The Threat of Japan (cont)

On December 24, 1941
President Quezon and his war cabinet evacuated to the island
stronghold of Corregidor in Manila Bay
Months later
left for Australia, en route to the safety of the United States
President Quezon continued to represent
of the Philippines in Washington, D.C in
with an extended term in 1943 by virtue
No. 25 of the United States Congress,
August 1, 1944
the Commonwealth
the same capacity,
of Joint Resolution
until his death on
The Threat of Japan (cont)
Osmea ascended as President upon the death of

Quezon. He gave his inaugural address in Washington,
D.C., making him the only Philippine President thus far to
deliver an inaugural address outside the Philippines
On April 23, 1946

The first postwar election was held,
in which Manuel Roxas and Elpidio
Quirino were elected President and
Vice President over re-electionist
Osmea and his running mate,
Eulogio Rodriguez, Sr.
on May 28, 1946
Roxas took his oath of office as the
third and last President of the
Commonwealth of the Philippines in
front of the ruins of the Legislative
Building in Manila.
President Osmea and President-elect

Roxas descend the steps of Malacaan
Palace. They are followed by Vice
President-elect ElpidioQ uirino, who will
become a president of the Third Republic.
Philippine Independence Act

pursuant to this, the Commonwealth of the Philippines
became the Republic of the Philippines the Third
Republic
On July 4, 1946
Roxas would again take his oath as President, this time
as President of the newly-inaugurated and independent
Republic of the Philippines
The Congress of the Commonwealth then became the
First Congress of the Republic, and international
recognition was finally achieved as governments entered
into treaties with the new republic
See other reference (tagalong dubbed research)
BOTTOM LINE:
Many of todays institutions in our government trace their

origins to the Commonwealth. These include:
Executive Office (1935)
Court of Appeals (1935)
Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office
KomisyonngWikang Filipino (1936)
National Bureau of Investigation (1936)
Department of Budget and Management (1936)
Government Service Insurance System (1936)
Department of National Defense (1939)
Department of Health (1940)
New Bilibid Prisons (1940)
Presidential Communications Operations Office (from the
Department of Information and Public Relations, 1943)
Executive Office (1935) (cont)

Boy Scouts of the Philippines
Girl Scouts of the Philippines
National Food Authority
National Economic Development Authority (originally National
Economic Council, 1936)
Bureau of Immigration and Deportation
ROTC system
Bureau of Aeronautics (1936 ;now the CAAP)
Philippine Military Academy
Philippine Air Force
Articles of War (AFP)
Comelec
Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces
Chartered Cities:
Cebu City (1937)
Bacolod (1938)
Quezon City (1939)
Davao City (1936)
Cavite City (1940)
Iloilo City (1937)
San Pablo City, Laguna (1940)
Zamboanga City (1936)
Policies:
All Filipino Supreme Court (1935)
State of the Nation Address (1935)
Minimum Daily Wage (1936)
THE END

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What was the Tydings-McDuffie Act?

What was the Tydings-McDuffie Act?

Who were elected as the first President and Vice President of the Commonwealth?

Who were elected as the first President and Vice President of the Commonwealth?

THE

Threats on Philippine Independence

The Filipino people took

The creation of the Commonwealth was envisioned

On September 16, 1935

Senate President Manuel L. Quezon

(click above image to play video)

One dictionary defines it as

A group of sovereign state and

This suggests that a commonwealth

The Commonwealth was the culmination of

JONES LAW OF 1916

JONES LAW OF 1916

were reserved for American officials appointed

OSROX MISSION (OSMEA AND ROXAS)

successfully lobbied for the enactment of

(QUEZON, BENIGNO AQUINO SR., AND

negotiated the Tydings-McDuffie followed by the

1935 Philippine Commonwealth Constitution

a constitution was needed for the soon-to-beproclaimed Commonwealth. A constitutional

1935 Philippine Commonwealth Constitution (cont)

The completed constitution was

1935 Philippine Commonwealth Constitution (cont)

Aside from the certification, the United States also

1935 Philippine Commonwealth Constitution (cont)

It provided for a presidential

The small vault where the 1935

1935 Philippine Commonwealth Constitution (cont)

It was meant to lay down the foundations for an

1935 Philippine Commonwealth Constitution (cont)

Storm clouds on the horizon

The Threat of Japan

Japanese strategic planning during this

The Threat of Japan (cont)

The Threat of Japan (cont)

Osmea ascended as President upon the death of

On April 23, 1946

President Osmea and President-elect

Philippine Independence Act

See other reference (tagalong dubbed research)

Many of todays institutions in our government trace their

Executive Office (1935) (cont)

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