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Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Batasan Hills, Quezon City 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL No. _____ 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
Introduced by  
ACT Teachers Party-List Rep. FRANCE L. CASTRO,  
GABRIELA Women’s Party Rep. ARLENE D. BROSAS,  
and KABATAAN Party-List Rep. RAOUL DANNIEL A. MANUEL 
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AN ACT  
DECLARING JULY 7 OF EVERY YEAR A SPECIAL WORKING HOLIDAY 
TO COMMEMORATE THE FOUNDING OF THE KATIPUNAN 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
Most Filipinos know about the Katipunan and its founder, Andres Bonifacio, and 
the very important roles of each in the fight against the brutal Spanish colonial rule and 
the emergence and development of the First Philippine Republic.   
Yet, very few of us know the actual date when Bonifacio and several other 
patriotic “indios” came together to formally organize the Kataastaasang Katipunan ng 
mga Anak ng Bayan, and sealed their membership in the secret revolutionary society by 
signing the pact with their own blood, vowing to end the more than three hundred years 
of Spanish domination over the islands. 
Sadly, that historic day, which led to the dawning of the Filipino nation, has long 
dimmed in the national consciousness.  Thus, there is a need to commemorate the night 
of July 7, 1892, when Bonifacio, Valentin Diaz, Deodato Arellano, Teodoro Plata, 
Ladislao Diwa, and their other compatriots secretly met in a house along 72 Azcarraga 
Street (now Claro M. Recto Street) near Candelaria Street (now Elcano Street) in Tondo, 
Manila.  
Historian Carmen Guerrero Nakpil aptly described that event as “the spark that 
lit the prairie fire.”  It was then when the grievances of the “sacristans, forced laborers, 
farmers, intrepid widows, native priests, galleon builders, and port-sergeants” and the 
aspirations of “Gomburza, the Propaganda Movement, the secret societies, the poets, 
August 12, 2022
10:27 am
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artists, lawyers, polemicists, and the novels of Rizal” were finally crystallized into a 
revolutionary call for a free and sovereign Filipino nation.  It was the Katipunan which 
gave the first concrete embodiment of the Filipino nation, 130 years ago. 
 
 
The ardent patriotism, the selflessness, and the dedicated pursuit of liberty, 
equality, and fraternity in a free and democratic society of the founders of the Katipunan 
must be instilled in the Filipinos of today. 
 
This Bill was first filed during the 14th Congress by Bayan Muna Rep. Satur 
Ocampo as House Bill 5841.  It was then refiled during the 15th to 18th Congresses as 
HB 1631, 1124, 5455 and 2169, respectively. 
 
 
For these reasons, the expeditious approval of this Bill is earnestly sought. 
 
 
 
 
________________________________ 
Rep. FRANCE L. CASTRO 
ACT Teachers Party-List 
 
 
 
 
________________________________ 
Rep. ARLENE D. BROSAS 
GABRIELA Women’s Party 
 
 
________________________________ 
Rep. RAOUL DANNIEL A. MANUEL 
KABATAAN Party-List 
 
 
 
 


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Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Batasan Hills, Quezon City 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL No. _____ 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
Introduced by  
ACT Teachers Party-List Rep. FRANCE L. CASTRO,  
GABRIELA Women’s Party Rep. ARLENE D. BROSAS,  
and KABATAAN Party-List Rep. RAOUL DANNIEL A. MANUEL 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
AN ACT  
DECLARING JULY 7 OF EVERY YEAR A SPECIAL WORKING HOLIDAY 
TO COMMEMORATE THE FOUNDING OF THE KATIPUNAN 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress 
assembled: 
SECTION 1.  Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the “Katipunan Day Act.” 
SEC. 2. July 7 of every year shall be declared a special working holiday to 
commemorate the founding of the Kataastaasang Katipunan ng Mga Anak ng Bayan 
(KKK or Katipunan) by Filipino patriots led by Andres Bonifacio as a secret society 
that fought for the independence of the then-emerging Filipino nation from the clutches 
of Spanish colonial rule. 
SEC. 3. To pay homage and respect to the founders of the Katipunan and to rededicate 
the Filipino nation to the ideals of liberty, equality, and fraternity, all public and private 
offices and facilities are hereby mandated to conduct a flag-raising ceremony where the 
following Katipunan tunes shall be played: “Marangal na Dalit ng Katagalugan,” 
“Alerta Katipunan,” and “Jocelynang Baliuag.”  
SEC. 4. To further ensure the meaningful observance of the holiday, the Department of 
Education (DepEd) and the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) shall ensure that 
appropriate activities are held in schools at all levels to commemorate Katipunan Day, 
as well as its founders and founding ideals.  Such activities shall include the singing of 
“Marangal na Dalit ng Katagalugan,” “Alerta Katipunan,” and “Jocelynang 
Baliuag,” at least three days before the said holiday.   
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SEC. 5. The National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) shall be 
responsible for providing the DepEd, CHED, and the general public with the necessary 
information to ensure a meaningful commemoration of Katipunan Day. 
 
SEC. 6. Funds necessary for the implementation of this Act shall be drawn from the 
yearly appropriations of the agencies concerned. 
 
SEC. 7. Within ninety (90) days from the approval of this Act, the NHCP shall, in 
consultation with the DepEd and CHED, formulate the rules and regulations 
implementing the provisions of this Act. 
 
SEC. 8. This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after publication in a national 
newspaper of general circulation. 
 
 
Approved,