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MALACAÑAN PALACE
MANILA

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE PHILIPPINES

[ Proclamation No. 587, June 8, 1990 ]

DECLARING THE YEAR 1991 AS JOSE P. LAUREL CENTENNIAL IN CONSONANCE WITH THE DECADE ON FILIPINO NATIONALISM

WHEREAS, the year 1991 marks the centenary of the birth of the late Jose P. Laurel, eminent jurist, legislator, administrator, writer, lawyer, educator and statesman;

WHEREAS, it is timely and significant to commemorate the occasion with appropriate activities;

WHEREAS, Jose P. Laurel, as a young government official during the American era, displayed his uncompromising character by being the first to resign as Secretary of Interior in Governor General Leonard Woods Cabinet, during the “Cabinet Crisis” of 1923;

WHEREAS, Jose P. Laurels remarkable government service spanned the three branches of our government and the constitutional convention; Senator of the Fifth Senatorial District 1925-1931; Senate Majority Floor Leader; Delegate from Batangas in the 1934 Constitutional Convention; Sponsor of the Bill of Rights in the 1935 Philippine Constitution; Associate Justice of the Supreme Court in the Commonwealth Government; and President of the Japanese sponsored Philippine Republic that was inaugurated on October 14, 1943;

WHEREAS, Jose P. Laurel, as President of the country during the War Years, inspired the fundamental principle of militant nationalism by encouraging the propagation of Tagalog as the national language and by requiring schools to teach Philippine History and character education;

WHEREAS, Jose P. Laurel, the “Grand Old Man of Batangas”, left tangible imprints of human values like resilience without subservience and a high degree of nationalism for our people especially for the youth to emulate;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, CORAZON C. AQUINO, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do hereby declare the Year 1991 as Jose P. Laurel Centennial in consonance with the Decade of Filipino Nationalism, and designate the National Historical Institute and the Jose P. Laurel Memorial (Charitable and Cultural Corporation to take charge of the celebration. For this purpose, the National Historical Institute shall undertake the following activities:

1. Prepare the general program of the centenary and submit a copy of the same to the President of the Philippines;

2. Promote and direct commemorative celebrations throughout the country;

3. Collect, edit and publish the important works, articles and speeches that have not yet been published;

4. Install fitting and inspiring monuments, markers or memorials in honor of Jose P. Laurel;

5. Coordinate with the Bureau of Posts relative to the issuance of commemorative stamps, and cause the issuance of commemorative medals for the Jose P. Laurel Centennial;

6. Undertake the restoration of the old Laurel residence on Peñafrancia Street, Paco, Manila; and,

7. Prepare a documentary film on the life of Jose P. Laurel.

The National Historical Institute may constitute an Executive Committee in undertaking the above-mentioned activities.

The National Historical Institute is hereby authorized to accept or receive donations and other conveyances of funds, materials and service gratuitously for use in the furtherance of its purposes and objectives subject to the provisions of Presidential Decree No. 373.ℒαwρhi৷

The National Historical Institute is likewise empowered to call on any department, bureau, office or agency of the government including government-owned or controlled corporations, for such assistance as it may need in the discharge of its functions relative to the centenary celebration.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the Republic of the Philippines to be affixed.

DONE in the City of Manila, this 8th day of June, in the year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred and ninety.

(Sgd.)  CORAZON C. AQUINO

By the President:

(Sgd.) CATALINO MACARAIG, JR.
Executive Secretary

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