Last December 26 was actually the 101st birth anniversary of one of the most colorful figures in postwar years of the City of Manila, and the Philippines as a whole. His name is Arsenio H. Lacson.
Born in Talisay in the province of Negros Occidental, he was once actually a boxer, lawyer, World War II guerilla, dabbled as a journalist and broadcaster, elected as congressman of Manila’s 2nd district, then eventually becoming mayor of the City of Manila from 1951 to 1962. He was actually the first elected mayor of the city, as before that, Manila mayors were actually appointed by the President of the Philippines.
While it is true that Intramuros is known as the “Little Vatican” because of the presence before of 7 churches in the Walled City and the fact that it is until now the seat of Roman Catholicism in Manila, and perhaps the country as well, this entry would not be about any of these churches. The “Roma” here would refer to the plaza, Plaza Roma, considered to be the “plaza mayor” or the main plaza of the city in the olden times.
Surprising as it may seem, there is not really much documentation about that prominent figure in Philippine history that is Andres Bonifacio. In fact, there is only one known photograph of him that exists, and he is wearing not a camisa but a coat and tie. It is the scantiness of information about him, along with the circumstances of his life and death, that the Bonifacio legend began to grow shortly after his infamous death in 1897.
the Cry of Balintawak monument which now stands in the UP Diliman campus became associated with Bonifacio even though the figure in question is not really him
For a people seeking a tangible symbol of sorts to identify themselves with, a puzzle arose as to how to depict a man like Andres Bonifacio. Thus was born the popular perception of Bonifacio as a man crying out in defiant anger, armed with a bolo on one hand and ready to charge. This image of Bonifacio became the prevalent depiction in many works of art about him that arose over the years, In one prominent example, a monument erected in memory of the First Cry of Balintawak which depicted a man with an unbuttoned camisa and holding a bolo and a flag was associated with Bonifacio even though it was not actually depicting the man.
