Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Quezon City
FIFTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session
COMMITTEE REPORT NO. 1488
Submitted by the Committee on Basic Education and Culture on 12 cer 2014 .
RE : HOUSE BILL NO. 5068 o
Recommending its approval with amendments.
SPONSORS : Representatives Escudero and Vergara

Mr. Speaker:

The Committee on Basic Education and Culture, to which was referred House Bill No.
5068, introduced by Rep. Bernardo M. Vergara, entitled:

“AN ACT
DECLARING SEPTEMBER 3 OF EVERY YEAR AS SPECIAL
COMMEMORATIVE DAY TO BE CALLED THE NATIONAL VICTORY AND
LIBERATION DAY OF THE PHILIPPINES”

has considered the same and recommends its approval with the following amendments:

1. On Section 1, line 4, after the word “of”, delete the phrase “Lt. Gen. Tomoyuki

Yamashita, the “Tiger of Malaya”, the";
2 On the same Section, line 5, before the word “all”, delete the phrase “Supreme

Commander of’; .
3. On the same Section, line 5, after the word “forces”, delete the word “of” and in Jiew

thereof. insert the word “IN”;
4. On Section 2, line 8, after the word “effect”, delete the phrase “upon approval” and in
lieu thereof, insert the phrase “FIFTEEN DAYS AFTER ITS PUBLICATION IN THE

OFFICIAL GAZETTE”

and with Reps. Vergara, Escudero, Olivarez, Biazon, Almario, Tinio and Agyao as authors
thereof.

- - ~~ Respectfully submitted,

- - - “(fein 7
SALVADOR H. ESCLDERO III

Chairperson
Committee on Basic Education & Culture


Repubiic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon Gity

FIFTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

HOUSE BILL No. 5063

Introduced by
HON. BERNARDO M. VERGARA

EXPLANATORY NOTE

filed by then Rep. Mauricio G. Domogan and
Rep. Salomon R. Chungalao during ‘the 13" Congress as House Bills Nos.
Ste? and 5213, respectively. The two bills were then consolidated and
Sibstinwed as House Bill No. 5816 par Commities report No. 1951 on 27
Sept. 2006. This Representation is now re-filing the bill with the hope that it
wil see the light of day and be enacted into a law in this 15" Congress,
considering its hestorical impact.

in essence, this bill seeks to officially declare September 3 henceforth
as a specal commemorative holiday to be galled the NATIONAL VICTORY

specal 8
AND LIBERATION DAY in the Philippines.

‘This bal was originally

itis often said that, in many cases, Fipinos celebrate their defeat - fall
of Bataan, fall of Manila, death of Rizal, to cite a few — and not their “Victory
Days". Sepismnber 3 is 2 victory day and much more, 4 liberation day.

itis noteworthy to recali that during the previous day. September 2 of

4945, the brilkent “Tiger of Malaya” and Supreme Commander of all Japanese
forces in the Philippines - Lt Gen. Tomoyulc Yamashita — after being
i nclave in Ifugao by

USAPHIL, Ni forces, finally gave himself up at Kiangan. Ifugao whence he

was whisked ta Baguio City to sign
September 3, thus ending World War Il in the Philippines.

‘on one hand, ended the darkest interlude in
(1941-1945), 8 period when Filipinos were
sufferings characterized by
innumerably brutal and merciless atrocities ‘committed especially against
helpless cnilians. tt ended the painful suppression of alt democratic

The memory of this date,


institubons and processes under the heel of a foreign totalitarian and

militaristic oppressor.

On the other hand, this same date ushered a new era of hope, unity
and an intense feeling of patriotsm. it symbolized the unleashing of the dove
of peace that would bring about the realization of democratic principles of
human nights, of self-respect ‘among free nations of the world, and socio-
economic and political freedom — an aspiration nurtured for the past 350 years

of foreign colonial dominion.
The freedoms, the privileges, the fruits of democracy we now enjoy
should not make us blind to the fact that these were products of blood and
i day of September 3, 1945. The

tears which finally ended on that glorious:
desire to remember such a date should not come to naught.

Cansidering all the foregoing. approval of ure: sty
‘sought. if )

BERNARDO M. VERGARA



Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES .
Quezon City

FIFTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

5063

HOUSE BILL NO.

Introduced by
HON. BERNARDO ML VERGARA

AN ACT DECLARING SEPTEMBER 3 OF EVERY YEAR AS SPECIAL
COMMEMORATIVE DAY TO BE ‘CALLED THE NATIONAL VICTORY AND
LIBERATION DAY OF THE PHILIPPINES

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines
in Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. September 3 of every year is hereby declared as the

NATIONAL VICTORY AND LIBERATION DAY OF THE PHILIPPINES and a

special nonworking holiday to commemorate Filipino victory with the
surender of [LL Gen. Tomoyuki Yamashita, the “Tiger of Malaya’. the 2)

F Supreme Commander ofall Japanese forces @f thd Philippines at Baguio City

on September 3, 1945, thus ending Worid War II in the Philippines

SECTION 2. This Act shail take effect upon approval.

span Fl a ren

Approved,


FACT SHEET

House Bill No, 5068
(As Approved by the Committee)

NATIONAL VICTORY AND LIBERATION DAY

Introduced by. REP. VERGARA

Committee Referral: COMMITTEE ON BASIC EDUCATION & CULTURE (Primary)
Committee Chairperson: REP, SALVADOR H. ESCUDERO tit

OBJECTIVE:
*  Tocommemorate the official end of World War tl in the Philippines

KEY PROVISION:

* Declares September 3 of every year as a special non-working holiday in the
Philippines to be named as National Victory and Liberation Day

RELATED LAW:
+ 1987 Philippine Constitution



Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila
Fifteenth Congress
2 Regular Session
mr me cen RRO
MINUTES OF THE 17 REGULAR MEETING OF THE COMMITTEE ON BASIC ©
EDUCATION AND CULTURE HELD ON 26 SEPTEMBER 2011, 1:00 P.M, AT
CONFERENCE ROOM NOS. 3 & 4, RAMON V. MITRA JR. BLDG. HOUSE OF

REPRESENTATIVES, QUEZON CITY.

I CALL TO ORDER
Representative Salvador H. Escudero IL Chair, Committee on Basic Education and
Culture, called the 17" committee meeting to order at 9:36 am. On motion of Rep.
Almario, duly seconded, the Chair dispensed with the roll call.

Il. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS MEETING

On motion of Rep. Almario, duly seconded, the Chair declared as approved the minutes of
meeting held on 16 August 2011, es presented.

I. DELIBERATION ON HOUSE BILL NO. 5068

‘The Chair presented for committee deliberation House Bill No. 5068, introduced by Rep.
Bernardo M. Vergara, titled: “AN ACT DECLARING SEPTEMBER 3 OF EVERY YEAR AS
‘SPECIAL COMMEMORATIVE DAY TO BE CALLED THE NATIONAL VICTORY AND
[LIBERATION DAY OF THE PHILIPPINES”. He subsequently recognized the bill’s principal

author to sponsor the bill.

Sponsorship Speech of the Author
Rep. Vergara, principal author of HB 5068, stated the following:

House Bill 5068 is a refiled bill having been first filed during the 13% Congress through
House Bill Nos. 5157 and 5213 and authored by former Reps. Domogan and Chungalao,

respectively.

The essence of the bill is to officially declare September 3 of every year as a
commemorative holiday to be called the National Victory and Liberation Day in the
Philippines.

* On September 2, 1945, Lt. Gen. Tomoyuki Yamashita, a brilliant “Tiger of Malaya” and
Supreme Commander of all Japanese forces in the Philippines, after being entrapped in
his formidable defensive enclave in Ifugao by the USAPHIL, NL forces, finally gave
himself up at Kiangan, Ifugao and was whisked to Baguio City to sign the documents of
formal surrender on September 3, 1945, thus ending World War II in the Philippines.

© The memory of this date ended the darkest interlude in the history of the Philippines
(1941-1945) and ended as well the painful suppression of all democratic institutions
and processes under the heel of a foreign totalitarian and militaristic oppressor.

¢ The freedom, privileges and the fruits of democracy we now enjoy should not make us
blind to the fact that these were products of blood and tears which finally ended om that
glorious day of September 3, 1945.

+ The author earnestly sought the immediate approval of House Bil 5068.

Issues/Arguments/Positions Presented _ _

The Chair asked the author that assuming that this bill will be approved into law, how
do we explain the fact that it took us so many decades to recognize this date. He
further said that perhaps the reason behind this proposal lies on the fact that if we
commemorate death and other sorrowful events in our history, we should also
commemorate victorious events in our history to inspire our people.



In.

¢ Rep. Vergara pointed out that if we look at our history books, events like the fall of
Bataan, the fall of Manila, the fall of Corregidor, among others, were commemorated
but the commemoration of this event of national victory and liberation day has been

overlooked.

*¢ The Committee Secretary, upon direction by the Chair, cited some pertinent portion of
the position paper submitted by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines
(NHCP), to wit: “The NHCP finds it appropriate to remember September 3 in this
‘manner for on that day in 1945, at 1210 hours, in a ceremony held at the U.S. High
Commissioner's Residence at Camp John Hay, Baguio, Mountain Province, General
Tomoyuki Yamasaki and Vice Admiral Denhici Okochi, the highest army and navy
officers of Japan in the Philippines, respectively, signed the Instrument of Surrender.
Major Gea. Edmond H. Leavey, the American officer in charge, announced his
eceptance of the surrender, signed each copy, and pronounced the ceremony
concluded. This ceremony ended the war in the Philippines. While we commemorate
the Bataan Death March as “Araw ng Kagitingan,” it is equally important that we
celebrate and honor the end of World War ff in the Philippines, which marked the end
of the unspeakable suffering of our people.”

+ Rep. Tinio suggested reformulating Section 1 of the bill without mentioning the name of
Lt Gen. Tomoyuki Yamashita as the law can stand without having to mention it, thus
amending it as follows: “xex commemorate Filipino victory with the surrender of all
Japanese forces of the Philippines at Baguio City on September 3 xxx".

¢ Rep. Biazon supported the proposal of Rep. Tinio stating that the name of Lt. Gen.
Yamashita should not be mentioned in the law since we might be perpetuating the
name of Tomoyuki Yamashita, thus we should rather forget him. He proposed rather
the term “a defeat of japanese forces in the Philippines” may sufBice.

Rep. Vergara agreed with the proposed amendment of Reps. Tinio and Biazon.

* Upon the request of Rep. Almario, the Committee Secretary read the amended version
of Section I, to wit: “Section 1. September 3 of every year is hereby declared as the
NATIONAL VICTORY AND LIBERATION DAY OF THE PHILIPPINES and a special non-
working holiday to commemorate Filipino victory with the surrender of all Japanese
forces of the Philippines at Baguio City on September 3, 1945, thus ending World War
Hin the Philippines.”

+ On motion of Rep. Almario, duly seconded, the Chair approved House Bill 5068, as
amended.

* On motion of Rep. Olivarez, duly seconded, the Chair declared the following Members
as co-authors of the bill: Reps. Escudero, Olivarez, Biazon, Almario, Tinio and Agyeo.

DELIBERATION ON HOUSE BILL NOS. 4097 & 3409
‘The Chair presented for comumittee deliberation the following bills:

1) House Bill No. 4097, introduced by Rep. Antonio L. Tinio, titled: “AN ACT DECLARING
OCTOBER 5 OF EVERY YEAR AS "NATIONAL TEACHERS’ DAY””

2) House Bill No. 3409, introduced by Reps. Rufus B. Rodriguez and Maximo B. Rodriguez,
Jr. titled: “AN ACT DECLARING OCTOBER 5 OF EVERY YEAR AS THE NATIONAL
TEACHERS’ DAY IN THE PHILIPPINES”

—Sponsorship Speech of the Author

Rep. Tinio, principal author of HB 4097, stated the following:

— % The Unitéd Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Orgafiization (UNESCO) was

the first to recognize the World Teachers’ Day through the signing on October 5, 1966
of the Joint UNESCO-International Labor Organization “Recommendation concerning
the Status of Teachers,” a landmark document that sought to establish international
standards to promote and protect the teaching profession.

eo


.

The “Recommendation” served as the basis for the enactment of R.A. 4670, or the
Magna Carta for Public School Teachers in 1966.
It was only in 1994 when the World Teachers’ Day was first commemorated and

celebrated. A few years ago, the DepEd started commemorating World Teachers’ Day
through various activities. Today, more than 100 countries celebrate World Teachers’

Day.
Various Schools Divisions celebrated Teachers’ Day on different dates, ie. the City of
Manila celebrates Teachers’ Day on December 10, Bacolod celebrates it on the first
Saturday af December.

‘The purpose of the bill is to synchronize our National Teachers’ Day celebration with
World Teachers’ Day and to make sure that the country celebretes as one in
recognizing the valuable contribution of teachers to our society.

The author finally sought the Committee's immediate approval of HB 4097.

Issues/Arguments/Posttions Presented

.

Rep. Almario expressed her support of the bill although she just wanted to make sure
that a similar bill should also be filed in the Senate for immediate passage of the

measure.
Rep. Biazon cited Section 3, paragraphs (a) and (d) of House Bill 3409 and expressed
his concern on whether or not we are also going to mobilize the private sector in this
endeavor.

The Chair responded to Rep. Biazon’s comment by proposing that we should rather
consolidate the two bills and adopt the version of House Bill 4097.

On motion, duly seconded, the Chair approved House Bill 4097, in consolidation with
House Bill 3409.

Il, DELIBERATION ON LOCAL SCHOOL BULLS
‘The Chair presented for committee deliberation the following local school bills:

A

On the Establishment of National High Schools/Elementary School

1) HB 1368, titled, Lacupayan National High School, by Rep. Cerilles
2) HB 1592, titled, Zuyom Natioual High School, by Rep. Gullas

3) HB 3138, titled, Apolonio Samsou National High School, by Rep. Castelo
4) HB 3179, titled, Candungao National High School, by Rep. Aumentado
5) HB 3392, titled, Central National High School. by Rep. Mercado

§) HB 3574, titled, Filinvest Alabang Elementary School by Rep. Biazon

7) HB A764, titled, Sta. Cruz National High School, by Rep. Bravo

8) HB 4986, tiled, Manaybanay National High School, by Rep. Apostol

On the Conversion/Separation of National High Schools

1) HB 2370, titled, Mayag National High School by Rep. Romarate

2) HB 2467, titled. Cate! National Agricultural High School-Anner, by Rep. Deyanghirang

3) HB 2492, titled, San Jose National High School, by Rep. A. Alvarez

4) HB2639, titled, Ls Hervias Natianal High School for Tech/Voc Education, Information &
‘Communication Technalogy, by Rep. A. Golez

5) HB 3483, titled, Anagay National High Schoal, by Rep. Sacdalan. a

6) HB 3491, tilled, Sado National High School by Rep. Agya0

7) HB 3566, titled, Pals-o National High School, by Rep. V. Belmonte

8) HB 3615, titled, Mavaque National Tech. Voc. & Skills Training High School, by Rep. Lazatin

9) HB 4376, titled, 7aloctoc General Comprehensive National High School, by Rep. Agyao __.

10) HB 4709, utled, Don Galo National High School by Rep. Olivarez
11) HB 4995, titled, Moiugan National High School, by Rep. Emano
12) HB 5019, titled, Pag-Oring Nuevo National High School by Rep. D. Arroyo


Action Taken by the Committee
On omnibus motion of Rep. Agyao, duly seconded, there being no objection, the Committee
approved the above-listed eight (8) local school bills on the establishment of national high
schoo!s/elementary school and twelve (12) local school bills on the conversion and/or
separation of ational high schools, subject to style and amendments and subject also to
the submission by the respective authors of the required documents to support the
legislation of the aforesaid bills.

Vv. ADJOURNMENT
On motion, duly seconded, the Chair adjourned the meeting at 2:36 p.m.

hereby certify to the correctness of the foregoing minutes.

NEMESI0 O.|MALATAMBAN UI
Supervising Lagislative Staff Officer II

Noted by;
/

if

MA. JO 0 R. RICAFORT
Commitlee Secretary

Approved by-

AQ. ae
SALVADOR H, ESCUDERO HI
Committee Chairperson