COMMISSION ON

INDEPENDENCE, FILIPINO
GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD

FAZ, SHIELA MARIE

FERMIN, REINALYN
BSMA 1-10
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD

It is approved by the
Commission on
Independence on
November 17, 1926
 FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD
Gregorio Zaide (Gregy)
● Filipino Historian, author,
politician from town of
Pagsanjan, Laguna
● Born: May 25, 1907
● Died: October 31, 1988
● Studied in UP (M.A. 1931)
● Studied in UST (B.A. and PhD
of Philosophy, 1934)
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD
MAJOR-GENERAL LEONARD WOOD
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD
⬜ Arrived in the Philippine islands in 1903 after
his services in Cuba.
⬜ Was appointed governor of the Mero Province,
comprising the southern islands and Mindanao
⬜ Aside from being the head of the civil
government, he is also responsible for five
districts, and the commanding general of the
troops in the department of Mindanao and
Sulu as well.
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD
AMERICAN FLAG

“Emblem of Freedom”
“Symbol of Alturism”

AMERICAN SOVEREIGNTY
Purpose: Train the country the art of self-
government
Promise: Independence
Aim: Our Good
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD

PHILIPPINES AND AMERICA

> Promised that our country would be conserved and
developed for the benefit of people.
> Filipinos were patient & diligent to the task of meeting
the conditions given to them because they TRUST in the
Americans.
> 20 years of civil government – mutual understanding &
loyal cooperation.
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD
EXPECTATION
⬜ Cognizant of General Wood’s participation in
the liberation of Cuba, Filipinos expected that
spirit of cooperation would be maintained.
⬜ Political emancipation would be complete.
REALITY
⬜ There was a train of usurpation & arbitrary of
acts
⬜ Resulted in curtailment of or autonomy &
destruction of our constitutional system
⬜ Reversal of America’s Philippine Policy
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD
ANALYSIS OF DOCUMENT
⬜ Issuance of Executive Order No. 37
⬜ Wood attempted to nullify laws creating the
Board of Control and assumed functions of that
body.
⬜ Gravity of last step is more evident when we
recall the series of usurpation committed by
him.
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD
ARBITRARY ACTS OF WOOD
⬜ He has refused his assent to laws which were
the most wholesome & necessary heads of
department.
⬜ He has set at naught both the legal authority
and responsibility for the Philippine heads of
department.
⬜ He has substituted his constitutional adviser
for a group of military attaches without legal
standing in the government and not
responsible to the people.
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD
ARBITRARY ACTS OF WOOD
⬜ 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 duty adopted by the
Legislature, merely because they are in conflict
with his personal views.
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD
ARBITRARY ACTS OF WOOD
⬜ He has rendered merely perfunctory the power
of the Legislature to pass the annual
appropriation law by revving items in the law
of the preceding year, after vetoing the
corresponding items of the current
appropriation act, in the flagrant violation for
Organic Law.
⬜ He has made appointments to positions and
authorized the payment of salaries therefore
after having vetoed the appropriations of such
salaries.
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD
ARBITRARY ACTS OF WOOD
⬜ He has used certain public funds to grant
additional compensation to public officials in
clear violation law.
⬜ He has arrogated unto 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.
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD
ARBITRARY ACTS OF WOOD
⬜ He has refused to obtain the advice of the
senate in making appointments where such
advice 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.
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD
ARBITRARY ACTS OF WOOD
⬜ 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 created strained relations
between resident Americans and Filipinos.
⬜ He has endeavoured, 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
America interests.
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD
ARBITRARY ACTS OF WOOD
⬜ He has sanctioned the campaign of insidious
propaganda in the United States against
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.
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD
ARBITRARY ACTS OF WOOD
⬜ He has insistently sought the amendment of
our laws approved by the Congress of the
United States, which amendment would open
up the resources of our country to exploitation
by predatory interests.
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD
CONTRIBUTION TO THE GRAND SCHEME OF
PHILIPPINE HISTORY
⬜ The document as a form of protest (Zaide writes
for the constitutional representatives of the Filipino
people)
⬜ The document served as an impeachment request
for Governor Wood
⬜ The document was approved by the Commission
on Independence on November 17, 1926
(Appointed: October 14, 1921 until August 7, 1927)
⬜ A year after this document was approved,
Governor Leonard Wood died due to surgery
failure.
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD
“We, the constitutional representatives of
the Filipino people... Do hereby, in our
behalf and in the name of the Filipino
people, solemnly and publicly make
known our most protest against the
arbitrary acts and usurpations of the
present Governor-General of the
Philippine Islands, particularly against
executive Order No. 37.”
FILIPINO GRIEVANCES AGAINST
GOVERNOR WOOD
“We appeal to the judgment
and conscience of the
American people in
justification of our stand and
for the vindication of our
rights.”
⬜ The long term effects of Governor
wood’s abusive doings disposal of all
companies benefited by the
government worth many millions of the
people’s money to American interests
attempted to close the PNB which is
important to the economic
development of the country.
⬜ The violation of self-government
created a divide between the Christian
and the Mohammedan filipinos.
 RELEVANCE TO PRESENT TIME
⬜ The document is an eyewitness account
which serves as enough proof to show the
real happenings and events during those
time.
⬜ It showed that the Philippines was under
(indirectly) the US and that we were fooled
by false promises.
⬜ It serves as a reminder that we must learn to
stand in our own feet and be independent.
We must learn to not easily trust people
because we do not know their real
intentions.