1908 Proclamation Calling for the Election of a Replacement Municipal Councilor in Bauan

In 1908, one Antonio Loualhati¹ was duly elected Municipal President², his election having been certified by the Municipal Board of Canvassers. However, due to “incurable ill health,” he had to inform the Office of the Governor General that he needed to decline acceptance of the office of Municipal President. Thus, then-Governor General James F. Smith had to issue an unnumbered proclamation calling for special elections to select a replacement.

As it happened, one Jose Montenegro, a duly elected Municipal Councilor likewise certified by the Municipal Board of Canvassers also informed the office of the Governor-General that he was, in fact, ineligible to run for office for some unknown reason and, thus, was also declining the position. Thus, Smith had to issue another unnumbered proclamation³ calling for special elections to select a replacement councilor in addition to the replacement of Loualhati.

BY THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL OF THE PHILIPPINE
ISLANDS—A PROCLAMATION.

Whereas the provincial board of Batangas and the municipal president of Bauan report that Jose Montenegro, councilor-elect for the municipality of Bauan, Province of Batangas declines to assume said office by reason of ineligibility:

Now, therefore, the proclamation heretofore issued on January twenty-second, nineteen hundred and eight, calling a special election for president in said municipality, is hereby amended to read as follows:

"Whereas, at the election held on November fifth, nineteen hundred and seven, in the municipality of Bauan, Province of Batangas, Antonio Loualhati and Jose Montenegro received a plurality of the votes legally cast and were certified by the municipal board of canvassers to have been elected municipal president and municipal councilor, respectively, of said municipality; and

"Whereas the said Antonio Loualhati has notified the Governor-General and the municipal council of Bauan that he declines the office of municipal president of Bauan on the ground that he is suffering from incurable ill health; and

"Whereas the Governor-General deems the reason given by Antonio Loualhati sufficient to warrant his declination of the office of municipal president of said municipality; and

"Whereas the provincial board of Batangas and the municipal council of Bauan have notified the Governor-General that the said Jose Montenegro declines to assume the office of municipal councilor of the municipality of Bauan for the reason that he was at the time of his election and now is ineligible to the said office, and it appearing that there are no officers-elect to assume said offices;

"Now, therefore. I, James F. Smith, Governor-General of the Philippine Islands, in pursuance of section four of Act Numbered fifteen hundred and eighty-two do hereby call a special election to be held on Tuesday, April twenty-first, nineteen hundred and eight, in the municipality of Bauan, Province of Batangas, for the purpose of electing a municipal president and a municipal councilor of said municipality. The successful candidates at this election will take office immediately after they have been declared elected by the proper board of canvassers.”

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the Government of the Philippine Islands to be affixed.

Done at the city of Manila twentieth day of March, nineteen hundred and eight. (108609-a36)

[SEAL]

JAMES F. SMITH
Governor General

By the Governor-General

F. W. Carpenter, Acting Executive Secretary

¹ The contemporary spelling of Loualhati is probably Lualhati.
² “Municipal President” in the present day will be the town or city mayor. Wikipedia.
³ “Proclamations (1908),” online at the Internet Archives.