President's Updated Profile

Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy (March 22, 1869 – February 6, 1964) was a Filipino general,

politician, and independence leader. He played an instrumental role in Philippine

independence during the Philippine Revolution against Spain and the Philippine-

American War to resist American occupation. In the Philippines, Aguinaldo is considered

to be the country's first and youngest Philippine President, though his government failed

to obtain any foreign recognition.

Manuel L. Quezon (1878–1944) in full Manuel Luis Quezon y Molina, (born August 19,

1878, Baler, Philippines—died August 1, 1944, Saranac Lake, New York, U.S.), Filipino

statesman, leader of the independence movement, and first president of the Philippine

Commonwealth established under U.S. tutelage in 1935.

José P. Laurel (1943 -1945) , in full José Paciano Laurel, (born March 9, 1891, Tanauan,

Luzon, Philippines—died November 6, 1959, Manila), Filipino lawyer, politician, and jurist,

who served as president of the Philippines (1943–45) during the Japanese occupation

during World War II. Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii (December

1941), and the subsequent Japanese assault on the Philippines, Laurel stayed in Manila.

Laurel offered his services to the Japanese, and, because of his criticism of U.S. rule of

the Philippines, he held a series of high posts in 1942–43, climaxing in his selection as

president in 1943. He was charged with dozens of counts of treason, but he never stood

trial; he shared in a general amnesty declared by President Manuel Roxas in April 1948.

Sergio Osmeña (1944-1946), (born Sept. 9, 1878, Cebu City, Phil.—died Oct. 19, 1961,

Manila), Filipino statesman, founder of the Nationalist Party (Partido Nacionalista), and
president of the Philippines from 1944 to 1946. Popularly known as the “Grand Old Man

of Cebu”, Osmeña rose from being a newspaper reporter to the Presidency of the

Philippine Republic in 1944-46. He devoted his short term as president to the restoration

of peace and order, providing health services for the Filipinos, handling issues of

collaboration, re-establishment of foreign relations, and reconstructing cities destroyed by

war.

Manuel Roxas (1946-1948), (born Jan. 1, 1892, Capiz, Phil.—died April 15, 1948, Clark

Field, Pampanga), political leader and first president (1946–48) of the independent

Republic of the Philippines. Roxas contributed greatly to the laying of the foundations of

the Philippine independence, as well as to its attainment. He was among the “seven wise

men “ who drew up the Constitutional Convention and accordingly became the last of the

Commonwealth presidents and the first for the Republic of the Philippines. When Manuel

Roxas started his term as the first president of the third republic, he was left with the post-

war state of the Philippines. Therefore, his inauguration speech centered on the

rehabilitation of the country. In exchange for 800 million dollars of rehabilitation money,

the Bell Trade Act or the Philippine Trade Act was signed. Along with that policy, others

like the General Amnesty and Military Bases Agreement was implemented.

Elpidio Quirino (1948-1943), (born Nov. 16, 1890, Vigan, Phil.—died Feb. 28, 1956,

Novaliches), political leader and second president of the independent Republic of the

Philippines. Quirino’s six years as president were marked by notable postwar

reconstruction, general economic gains, and increased economic aid from the United

States. Basic social problems, however, particularly in the rural areas, remained

unsolved; Quirino’s administration was tainted by widespread graft and corruption. The
1949 elections, which he had won, were among the most dishonest in the country’s

history.

Ramon Magsaysay (1953–1957), (born Aug. 31, 1907, Iba, Phil.—died March 17, 1957,

near Cebu), president of the Philippines (1953–57), best known for successfully defeating

the communist-led Hukbalahap (Huk) movement. He is also credited with restoring law

and order during the Philippine crisis of the 1950s. President Magsaysay’s life is a

testament to man’s ability to harness his greatness of spirit. He was one of the most

outstanding global leaders of his time. President Magsaysay’s life is a testament to man’s

ability to harness his greatness of spirit. He was one of the most outstanding global

leaders of his time.

Carlos P. Garcia (1957-1961), in full Carlos Polestico Garcia, (born November 4, 1896,

Talibon, Philippines—died June 14, 1971, Quezon City), fourth president of the Republic

of the Philippines. He maintained the strong traditional ties with the United States and

sought closer relations with noncommunist Asian countries.

Diosdado Macapagal (1961-1965), (born Sept. 28, 1910, Lubao, Phil.—died April 21,

1997, Makati, Phil.), reformist president of the Philippines from 1961 to 1965. While

president, Macapagal worked to suppress graft and corruption and to stimulate the

Philippine economy. He placed the peso on the free currency-exchange market,

encouraged exports, passed the country’s first land-reform legislation, and sought to curb

income tax evasion, particularly by the wealthiest families, which cost the treasury millions

of pesos yearly. n 1972 he chaired the convention that drafted the 1973 constitution, but

in 1981 he questioned the validity of its ratification. In 1979 he organized the National

Union for Liberation as an opposition party to the Marcos regime.

1917, Sarrat, Philippines—died September 28, 1989, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.), Philippine

lawyer and politician who, as head of state from 1966 to 1986, established an

authoritarian regime in the Philippines that came under criticism for corruption and its

suppression of democratic processes. The legacies of Marcos Martial rule were economic

inequalities esp. the wide gap between the rich and the poor Filipinos; persisting agrarian

problems; maladministration, and corruption in high places; crony capitalism; foreign debt;

and abusive and corrupted military establishment.

Corazon Aquino (1986–1992) in full Maria Corazon Aquino, née Maria Corazon

Cojuangco, (born January 25, 1933, Tarlac province, Philippines—died August 1, 2009,

Makati), Philippine political leader who served as the first female president (1986–92) of

the Philippines, restoring democratic rule in that country after the

long dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos. She restored democracy by abolishing the

legislature, declaring a revolutionary government, and appointing a fifty-member

commission to write a new constitution, approved in 1987.

Fidel Ramos (1992-1998), in full Fidel Valdez Ramos, byname Eddie Ramos, (born

March 18, 1928, Lingayen, Philippines—died July 31, 2022, Makati, Philippines), military

leader and politician who was president of the Philippines from 1992 to 1998. He was

generally regarded as one of the most effective presidents in that nation’s history.

Joseph Estrada (1998-2001) was Elected President of the Philippines in 1998. He is the

13th president of the republic from June 30, 1998, to January 20, 2001. He emerges as

the champion of the masses with his Partido ng Masang Pilipino (PMP) and campaign

cry "Erap para sa Mahihirap". But the administration was tainted with corruption and
inefficiency which led to his impeachment with the so-called "Jose Velarde" account is

the core issue that prompted the occurrence of the EDSA 2 which ousted him.

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (2001-2010) , (born April 5, 1947, San Juan, Philippines),

Filipino politician who was president of the Philippines (2001–10). GMA as a successor

of President Joseph Estrada was elected President in the 2004 Presidential Election

amidst an allegation of fraud with the so-called "Garci tape". Her administration however

was noted for alleviating the effect of the "World Crisis" which induced a worldwide

Economic crisis but somehow mitigated its effect in the country through government

subsidies for basic services. The GMA administration was also noted for its install a

parliamentary type of government through Constitutional amendments which

nevertheless failed despite several attempts.

Benigno Aquino III (2010-2016), in full Benigno Simeon Cojuangco Aquino III, also

called Noynoy, (born February 8, 1960, Manila, Philippines—died June 24, 2021, Manila),

Filipino politician who served as president of the Philippines (2010–16) and was

the scion of a famed political family. Aquino’s chief domestic accomplishment was the

conclusion of a peace agreement with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in October

2012. Economic growth in the Philippines was strong during Aquino’s administration, but

unemployment remained high, and opposition politicians argued that the benefits

chiefly accrued to the country’s elite. Aquino also faced criticism over his government’s

slow response to Super Typhoon Haiyan, which killed some 8,000 people and displaced

more than 800,000 when it hit the Philippines in November 2013. The most

significant foreign policy issue of Aquino’s term in office was China’s

increasingly assertive posture in the South China Sea.

Philippines), Filipino politician who was president of the Philippines from 2016 to 2022. In

his first six months in office, more than 6,000 people were killed in Duterte’s “war on

drugs.” A fraction of those deaths occurred during police operations. The overwhelming

majority were extrajudicial killings by death squads. Metro Manila’s funeral parlours were

strained beyond capacity, and hundreds of unidentified or unclaimed bodies were interred

in mass burials. Human rights organizations and Roman Catholic officials spoke out

against the bloodshed, but Duterte responded by accusing the church of corruption and

the sexual abuse of children. He also declared a state of martial law covering the entire

island of Mindanao. Although government forces retook Marawi and quashed the

rebellion, the declaration was renewed through the end of 2019, making it the longest

period of martial law in the Philippines since the Marcos era.

Ferdinand "Bongbong" Romualdez Marcos Jr. (2022-present), commonly referred to

by the initials PBBM or BBM, is a Filipino politician who is the 17th and current president

of the Philippines. He has had no significant achievements since he sat in position.