Filipino Grievances Against Governor Wood

About the Authors:

Unlike the other primary sources presented above, Filipino Grievances Against Governor
Wood is not a work of an individual author but a collective output of a group of Filipinos politicians
who were forced by circumstances to unite against a common political enemy. The draft of the
document was attributed to two leading lawyers at that time, Jose Abad Santos and Jorge
Bocobo. On November 17, 1926, the upper and lower house of the Philippine legislature
adopted the draft as a joint resolution.

Jose Abad Santos was born in San Fernando, Pampanga. He was the son of Vicente Abad
Santos and Toribia Basco. He was a Pencionado and studied law in Northwestern University in
Evanston, Illinois. After he passed the Bar in 1911, he served as Assistant Attorney at the Bureau
of Justice and later rose to the rank of Attorney General. He was appointed Undersecretary of
Justice in 1921 but gave up the position at the height of the cabinet crisis in 1923. He served as
chief legal counsel of the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Representative and
it was during this time when he joined the Anti-Wood campaign. He was appointed Associate
Justice of the Supreme Court in 1932 and became Chief Justice nine years later. On December
30, 1941, he administered the oath of office of President Quezon and Vice-President Osmena for
their second term. Before Quezon left the country in 1942, he appointed Abad Santos as acting
president of the Commonwealth government. On April 11, 1942, the Japanese army arrested
him in Barili, Cebu and he was subsequently brought to Mindanao. On May 7, 1942, he was
executed in Malabang, Lanao in the presence of his son Pepito.

Jorge Bocobo was born in Gerona, Tarlac on October 19, 1886. His parents were
Tranquilino Bocobo and Rita Teodora Tabago. In 1907, he earned his Bachelor of Law degree
from Indiana University under the Pensionado program of the colonial government. He started
his career as law clerk in the Executive Bureau and in 1911, he began teaching in the U.P. College
of Law. In 1917, he was appointed Full Professor of Law and acting Dean of the College. He was
a close associate of Manuel L. Quezon and served as one of his speech writers. He became
president of the University of the Philippines from 1934 to 1939 and Associate Justice of the
Supreme Court from 1942-1944. He died on July 23, 1965

Historical Context:
From the time the Americans arrived in the Philippines in 1898, Filipinos persistently
demanded to give them independence. American colonial officials did not say no to them
because it would surely derail their effort to pacify them. Instead, they appointed Filipino
politicians to key government positions hoping that by doing so they will forget their desire for
independence. The appointment of Francis Burton Harrison as governor general and the passage
of the Jones Law in 1916 change the political landscape in the Philippines. Jones Law categorically
stipulated that the American government would give the Filipinos independence once they have
established a stable government. No specific date was given but for Quezon and other officials

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the written promise was already a significant achievement. They were further elated when the
Retirement Act was passed in 1915 which offered attractive financial package to Americans who
would voluntarily give up their positions in the Philippines. This paved the way for the
Filipinization of the bureaucracy.

Except for the position of governor general, vice governor, Secretary of Public Instruction
and a few more sensitive positions, all other positions were offered to Filipinos. Local politicians
were allowed to hold cabinet positions and top notch Filipino lawyers were appointed justices of
the supreme court. Moreover, forty-five provinces and more than eight hundred municipalities
were put under Filipino governors and mayors respectively. The Jones law also created a
bicameral congress that gave opportunities to politicians based in the provinces to participate in
policy making. Quezon led the Senate and the House of Representatives elected Sergio Osmena
as their speaker. While holding key positions in the government, Filipinos tried to prove to the
Americans that they are now competent and ready to manage their own affairs. They were
expecting that in the coming years American officials would be convinced that Filipinos are now
compliant with the requirements of the Jones Law and therefore must be given independence.

The defeat of the Democrats in the 1920 presidential election had devastating effects on
the aspiration of the Filipinos to be given independence. Months after President Warren Harding
was sworn into office, he sent Leonard Wood and William Cameron Forbes (Wood-Forbes
mission) to the Philippines to check if the Filipinos have already satisfied the conditions set by
the Jones law. The team conducted an exhaustive investigation and visited 48 provinces and 449
municipalities. The report they submitted was not favorable to the cause of the Filipino
politicians. It exposed the corruption and patronage system that became prevalent in
government owned and controlled corporations during the Harrison era. It singled out
particularly the anomalous transactions in the administration of public lands and the banking
malpractices that resulted to the bankruptcy of the Philippine National Bank (P.N.B.). Quezon
and other members of the Nationalista Party were offended by the report because it insinuated
that Filipino leaders were corrupt and incompetent and therefore do not deserve yet to be given
independence.

After Leonard Wood retired from the U.S. Army in 1921, President Harding appointed him
Governor General of the Philippines. When he was sworn into office in October 15, 1921, Filipino
politicians did not oppose his appointment because they were led to believe that he would go
back to the U.S. after a year to assume the presidency of University of Pennsylvania.
Unfortunately, Wood opted to stay in the Philippines and remained governor general until he
died in 1927. During his governorship, he monitored closely the activities of the local politicians
and corrected some of their misconducts. He also vetoed numerous bills that the Philippine
legislature passed and appointed American military men in key positions under the executive
branch (known as Khaki cabinet). On top of these, he strengthened the powers and jurisdiction
of the governor general which were significantly reduced during the Harrison era. Wood’s
reforms and his reassertion of American sovereignty did not sit well with Quezon and other
Filipino politicians. As years went on the situation went from bad to worse and ultimately

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catapulted in the Cabinet Crisis of 1923.

The anti-Wood sentiment of Filipino politicians ruptured on July 21, 1923 and the event
that triggered it was the decision of Wood to reinstate Ray Conley, the chief of the vice squad of
the Manila police force who was accused of receiving money from gambling lords. The case was
spearheaded by Mr. Almario, the secretary of the City Mayor, who presented a faked telephone
conversation between Conley and some gamblers. When Manila Mayor Ramon Fernandez
referred the case to Gov. Wood, the latter advised the mayor to bring the case in court. The
court acquitted Conley and to save their face, Mayor Fernandez and Justice Secretary Jose P.
Laurel requested Wood to allow them to conduct an administrative investigation on Conley.
Instead of granting their request, Wood created a board composed on the Civil Service Director,
the undersecretary of Justice and an American Colonel of the Constabulary. The board found
Conley not guilty and recommended his reinstatement. Wood personally believes that Conley is
innocent and the charges against him were just fabrications of influential and well connected
personalities who were affected by this anti-gambling campaign. After he was acquitted, Conley
resigned and Wood accepted it. Wood found him innocent of bribery but he found him is guilty
of keeping a mistress and for making false statements.

Manila Mayor Ramon Fernandez and Justice Secretary Jose P. Laurel felt insulted when
they learned that the Board created by Wood acquitted Conley. The decision put them in bad
light because it implied that the case they filed against Conley was weak. As a counter measure,
they explained to the people that Conley was acquitted not because he was innocent but because
he was an American. Fernandez and Laurel tendered their resignation and Senate President
Quezon and Speaker Manuel Roxas also resigned as members of the Council of State in support
of Laurel and in protest of Wood's handling of the Conley case.

Gov. Wood tried to win back the support of those Filipino officials who gave up their
position in his government. His gesture was not reciprocated and this prompted him to accept
their resignation and replace them with their deputies. At the height of the crisis, various
accusations were raised against Wood. Quezon and his allies also sent a cable to President
Harding informing him of the reasons why they resigned en masse. They also told the president
that they were planning to send a delegation to the United States that will explain to him Wood’s
blatant disregard of the rights and privileges granted to Filipinos by the previous administration.
The document that will be presented below basically summarizes the grievances and disgust of
Filipino politicians who were affected by Wood’s reforms and management style.

About the Text:

The document Filipino Grievances Against Governor Wood is an example of a joint

resolution expressing the legislators’ disgust with the way Gov. Wood was running the affairs of
the government. It may also be classified as a protest or a petition letter. Since the persons
behind it and the circumstances surrounding it were highly political, one could expect that it is
loaded with political bias and partisan interest. Readers should be extra careful and should
exercise due diligence in distinguishing what elements are truthful and what are mere black

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propaganda. Some of the issues raised here are partly true but were blown out of proportion in
order to discredit the Wood administration. Wood admitted in his diary that the “Conley case”
was only a pretext and the root cause of his falling out with the Filipino politicians was his refusal
to let Quezon run the government. Lewis Gleeck on his part wrote that the cabinet crisis was
provoked by Quezon who at that time was desperately in need of an election issue that he could
use in his political campaign.

The third paragraph of the document states that what prompted them to write the
resolution was Wood’s issuance of Executive Order No. 37. It abolished the Board of Control that
Gov. Gen. Francis Burton Harrison created during his term. This development stripped the power
of Filipino legislators to oversee the sale and management of government-owned and controlled
corporations. The Board of Control was important to Filipinos because they were given voting
powers and they could even outvote the governor if they will vote as a block. For them, the
Executive Order was illegal because it violates the principle of separation of powers. Moreover,
they claimed that the governor general has no power to abolish it. Aside from E.O. 37, they also
raised more than twenty other abuses and unjust acts of the governor general. They
characterized Wood as “arbitrary, oppressive and undemocratic.” The last paragraph of the
document states that they are issuing it to appeal to the judgment and conscience of the
American people to support their stand and uphold their political rights.

The text that will be presented below is taken from Gregorio F. Zaide and Sonia Zaide’s
Documentary Sources of Philippine History. The document was originally published as Appendix
of Maximo M. Kalaw’s Philippine Government under the Jones Law.

Complete text of “Filipino Grievances Against Governor Wood”

More than a quarter of a century has elapsed since the Philippines came under the
American flag- an emblem of freedom, not of subjugation; a symbol of altruism, not of selfishness
or greed. American sovereignty was implanted in our country with the avowed purpose of training
in us in the art of self-government and granting us independence. Our good, not her gain was to
be America’s aim. Our country was committed to her in trust to be conserved and developed for
the benefit of our people. Believing in the sincerity of America’s purpose, the Filipinos applied
themselves to the task of meeting the conditions exacted of them, anxiously awaiting the day when
America would honor her promise.

The first twenty years of civil government were marked by mutual understanding and loyal
cooperation between American and Filipinos. At the end of that period, when it seemed that the
goal had finally been reached, after the President of the United States had advised the Congress
that the time had come for America to fulfill her sacred pledge, Major-General Leonard Wood
was sent to the Philippines as Governor-General. Cognizant of the part taken by General Wood
in the liberation of Cuba, the Filipino people expected that under his administration the spirit of
cooperation would be maintained and that the work of political emancipation would be complete.
Contrary, however, to our expectations, his conduct of government has been characterized by a
train of usurpations and arbitrary acts, resulting in the curtailment of our autonomy, the
destruction of our constitutional system, and the reversal of America’s Philippine policy.

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 This line of conduct recently culminated in the issuance of Executive Order No. 37, by
which he has attempted to nullify laws creating the Board of Control and assumed functions of the
body. The gravity of this last step is more evident when we recall the series of usurpations
theretofore committed by him.

He has refused to assent to laws which were the most wholesome and necessary for the
public good.

He has set at naught both the legal authority and responsibility for the Philippine heads of
departments.

He has substituted his constitutional advisers for a group of military attaches without legal
standing in the government and not responsible for the people.

He has reversed the policy of Filipinizing the service of the government by appointing
Americans even when Filipinos of proven capacity were available.

He has obstructed the carrying out of national economic policies duly adopted by the
Legislature, merely because they are in conflict with his personal views.

He rendered merely perfunctory the power of the Legislature to pass the annual
appropriation law by reviving items in the law of the preceding year, after vetoing the
correspondent items of the current appropriation act, in flagrant violation of the Organic Law.

He has made appointments to positions and authorized the payment of salaries therefor
after having vetoed the appropriations for such salaries.

He has used certain public funds to grant additional compensation to public officials in
clear violation of the law.

He has arrogated upon himself the right of exercising the powers granted by law to the
Emergency Board after abolishing said board on the ground that its powers involved an unlawful
delegation of legislative authority.

He has unduly interfered in the administration of justice.

He has refused to obtain the advice of the Senate in making appointments where such
advice is required by the Organic Act.

He has refused to submit the Senate appointment for vacancies occurring during the recess
of the Legislature in contravention of the Organic Act.

He has continued in office nominees whose appointments had been rejected by the Senate.

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 He has usurped legislative powers by imposing conditions on legislative measure approved
by him.

He has, in the administration of affairs in Mindanao, brought about a condition which has
given rise to discord and dissension between certain groups of Christian and Mohammedan
Filipinos.

He has by his policies strained relations between resident Americans and Filipinos.

He has endeavored, on the pretext of getting the government out of business, to dispose of
all the companies capitalized by the government worth many millions of the people’s money to
powerful American interests.

He has sanctioned the campaign of insidious propaganda in the United States against the
Filipino people and their aspirations.

He has attempted to close the Philippine National Bank so necessary to the economic
development of the country.

He has adopted the practice of intervening in, and controlling directly, to its minute details,
the affairs of the Philippine Government, both insular and local, in violation of self-government.

He has insistently sought the amendment of our land laws approved by the Congress of the
United States, which amendment would open up the resources of the country to exploitation by
predatory interests.

Not content with these and other arbitrary acts, the Governor-General has recently
promulgated Executive Order No. 37, declaring that the laws creating and defining the powers of
Board of Control which is authorized to vote the stocks owned by the government in certain private
corporations, are absolute nullities. In the same order the Governor-General also announced his
purpose to exercise solely and by himself the powers and duties developing upon said board. This
executive order is purported to be based upon an opinion rendered by the Judge Advocate General
of the United States Army and the conformatory opinion of the Acting Advocate General on
November 7. Despite this fact, he has found it convenient to withhold the publication of his order
until November 10, a few hours after the Legislation had adjourned, thus depriving the Legislature
of an opportunity to consider the matter.

The laws creating and defining the powers of the Board of Control have been in force and
acted upon by the present Governor-General and other officers of the government for a number of
years, and they have neither been repealed by the Legislature, annulled by Congress, nor declared
unconstitutional by the courts. To hold that the Governor-General by a mere executive order can
set them aside, is to subvert the whole system of constitutional government and destroy the theory
of separation of powers which the Governor-General has always been so intent in upholding.

In the face of this critical situation, we, the constitutional representatives of the Filipino
people, met to deliberate upon the present difficulties existing in the Government of the Philippine

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Islands and to determine how best to preserve the supremacy and majesty of the laws and to
safeguard the rights and liberties of our people, having faith in the sense of justice of the people
of the United States and inspired by her patriotic example in the early days of her history, do
hereby, in our behalf and in the name of the Filipino people, solemnly and publicly make known
our most vigorous protest against the arbitrary acts and usurpations of the present Governor-
General of the Philippine Islands, particularly against Executive Order No. 37.

The consciousness of our sacred and inescapable duty to our country and our sense of
loyalty to the people of the United States constrain us to denounce the foregoing acts of the present
Governor-General as arbitrary, oppressive and undemocratic. We appeal to the judgment and
conscience of the American people in justification of our stand and for the vindication of our rights.

Relevance:

Many of the current historical literatures about the American period deal with the first
two decades of American rule. Their favorite topics were the Filipino-American War, McKinley’s
benevolent assimilation policy, the political, economic and social transformations that happened
during the Taft era and the gradual inclusion of Filipino politicians in the colonial bureaucracy
during Harrison’s time. Many of them were written by American historians or by their Filipino
students. Recently, there is a growing interest among Filipino scholars to move away from
American-oriented historiography and rewrite Philippine history from Filipino point of view. They
paid lesser attention to the policies and programs of the colonial administrators and focus instead
on the reactions and achievements of Filipino leaders. This trend paved the way to the growing
interest of Filipino historians to examine the contributions of Manuel Quezon, Sergio Osmena,
Jose P. Laurel, Manuel Roxas and other personalities who joined the campaign for independence.

The struggle for independence is a constant and unifying political issue among Filipinos
during the whole American period. From the time Aguinaldo proclaimed it in 1898 until the
passage of the Tydings-McDuffie Act in 1934, Filipinos demanded it from the Americans using
various means and strategies. Early attempts to win it used violent means but they failed because
they were not able to overcome the superior military firepower of the Americans. During the
middle part of the American period, younger Filipino politicians worked for independence using
the American political system as their platform. They got themselves elected in public office and
campaigned for independence using their respective positions. Americans preferred this kind of
strategy because it is non-violent and easier to manage.

The document presented above shows that by the 1920’s Filipinos had already the
confidence to debate on equal footing with top ranking American colonial officials like Gov.
Wood. Despite his military background and despotic tendencies, Quezon and his allies did not
hesitate to raise their grievances against him. The complaints that they enumerated in the
document clearly show that the root cause of the anti-Wood campaign was the decision of the
latter to lessen the autonomy of the Philippine legislature and the increasing interference of the
governor-general on some functions that were turned over already to Filipino officials during the
Harrison era. Many Filipinos felt upset when all of a sudden they lost control and jurisdiction on

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certain government functions that for several years were already part of their regular function.
They also felt offended when Wood appointed Americans to occupy key positions in the
government even if Filipinos of proven capacity were available. For them, the re-Americanization
of the bureaucracy would make them irrelevant and it would surely delay the giving of
independence. These developments forced Filipinos to set aside their personal and political
interests and formed a united stand against the Wood administration.

The document presented above is also relevant in the study of Philippine history because
it exposes the other side of the Harrison administration. Much of what people know about this
era centered on the Filipinization of the bureaucracy and the gradual ascension of local politicians
to key positions in the government. When Wood came in, he exposed the negative effects of
Harrison’s failure to put up safety measures that will prevent newly appointed and elected
Filipinos from using their position to enrich themselves at the expense of the government and
other people. He did not hesitate to veto the poorly crafted legislative outputs of both houses
of congress and he also publicized the true financial state of the Philippine National Bank and
other government owned and controlled corporation. Wood specifically explained that the
P.N.B. debacle was the result of the illegal transfer of deposit from New York to Manila,
inexperienced management, dishonestly and reckless extension of credit to well connected
Filipino businessmen. It appears that Filipinos hated Wood not because he was pro-American
but because he implemented measures that prevented wasteful politicians from making
extravagant appropriations. It also insinuates that not all critics of Wood’s administration were
clean and with noble intention when they campaigned for Philippine independence. Some were
just employing diversionary tactics to direct the attention of the Filipinos away from their corrupt
practices.