Aguinaldo, Ifugao celebrates 42nd foundation day

Aguinaldo, Ifugao – After a long hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the municipality of Aguinaldo headed by Mayor Gaspar Chilagan Jr. once again comes to colors and festivities as it celebrates its 42nd Founding Anniversary on Tuesday, September 20, 2022.

The celebration kicked off with a civic parade participated in by municipal officials and employees, the municipality’s 16 barangays, schools, Philippine National Police Aguinaldo and other national line agencies.

With its theme, “Reminisce the Past, Nurture the Present and Ensure the Future", Mayor Chilagan in his welcome remark said the celebration is a time for thanksgiving with all the blessings accorded to their municipality resulting in the attainment of success and development.

He likewise paid tribute to the past leaders of the municipality as the product of their sacrifices is now being enjoyed by the current generation.

Meantime, Department of Agriculture-Cordillera - Agricultural Program Coordinating Officer Charlemagne Monayao who represented DA-CAR Regional Director Cameron Odsey, officials and personnel of the municipal LGU, and various national-line agencies graced the celebration.

Highlights of the event

As part of the celebration, men and women from Aguinaldo engaged themselves in different indigenous games - ‘Hanggo’ (arm wrestling), ‘in-innat’ (tug of war), ‘Strongest Man’, and ‘ag-agto’ race or a race done while carrying a basket in the head, among others.

Before the celebration ended, the municipal local government unit recognized previous appointive and elective Officials with the awarding of certificates.

History of Aguinaldo

Accordingly, Aguinaldo which was once called Bunhian zone was still part of the municipality of Mayoyao.

It was in the early 1970’s that some political leaders of the Bunhian Zone which includes Barangay Bunhian, Galonogon, Ubao, Ta-ang, Jacmal, Damag, Talite and Itab, all of eastern Mayoyao urged the separation of Aguinaldo from Mayoyao.

The then Congressman Romulo Lumauig, as a response, filed House Bill No. 2073 in congress sometime in 1971 but was turned down by then House Speaker Montaño.

Lumauig thought of changing the name of Bunhian Zone to Aguinaldo in honor of the late Emilio Aguinaldo who passed by the area while escaping to Palanan. This resulted in a positive response from Montaño.

The first reading of the bill was approved but its second reading did not push through with the declaration of Martial Law making the bill and other pending bills put to waste.

“Excerpt from an article published on the Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP) of Aguinaldo”

Five years later, President Marcos decreed that an election be held under martial law. By then President Marcos organized his Kilusang Bagong Lipunan (KBL) party where the younger brother of Romulo B. Lumauig, Gualberto B. Lumauig ran and was elected assemblyman in 1978 under the block voting system according to party.

Not long in 1980 after the Local Election in January, Atty. Marcelo Homecgoy who was defeated by Mario Chilagan as mayor in Mayoyao was invited by assemblyman Lumauig for a conference at the Banaue Hotel.

Homecgoy was asked to go down to Manila on February 1980 to be the Technical Assistant of the said assemblyman. Indeed, that chance was on its course when Atty. Homecgoy reminded Lumauig to revive the proposed creation of Aguinaldo as a separate municipality.

Homecgoy, therefore, was tasked to research further and on March 29, 1980, parliamentary Bill No. 963 was filed by Assemblyman Gualberto B. Lumauig proposing the creation of Aguinaldo as a distinct and independent municipality from the mother municipality of Mayoyao.

On August 19, 1980, parliamentary Bill No. 963 has undergone its crucial 2nd reading in the Batasang Pambansa as Batas Bilang 86. The bill was immediately forwarded to Malacañang and President Ferdinand Marcos approved and signed into law Batas Pambansa Bilang 86 on September 20, 1980 and was inaugurated on March 28, 1981 at the Bunhian Elementary School now Aguinaldo Central School.

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