The Batasang Pambansa Complex is the
Ultimately, due to lack of funding, the
headquarters of the House of Representatives
of the Philippines. It is located at Batasan
Road, Batasan Hills, Quezon City.
The complex was initially the home of
the Batasang Pambansa, the former parliament
of the Philippines which was established as an
interim assembly in 1978 and finally as an
official body in 1984. Under the
1973 constitution, it replaced the
bicameral Congress of the
Philippines established under the 1935
Commonwealth constitution.
When the bicameral Congress was restored in
1987, the complex was set aside as the home of
the House of Representatives. The Main
Building of the complex is often referred to as
the Batasang Pambansa
Construction[edit]
Following the naming of Quezon City as the
new capital city of the Philippines in 1948, a
cornerstone for a Capitol building was laid on
Constitution Hill, now Batasan Hills, in Quezon
City on October 22, 1949.[1] The location was
part of a larger National Government Center,
which was meant to house the three branches
of the Philippine government (legislative,
executive, and judicial). In 1956, architect
Federico S. Ilustre laid out the master plan for
the location, which was set aside to be the
new home of the Congress (made up of
the Senate and the House of Representatives).
Ilustre had also designed the buildings for the
new legislative center. Public reception to the
building's design was lukewarm, so a newer
design by the National Planning Commission
under architect Anselmo Alquinto replaced the
Ilustre-designed one. By 1963, however, only
the concrete foundations and steel frame were
laid out.
Capitol was never completed. The uncompleted
structure sat in the area for more than a decade
before being torn down.[2]
During the presidency of Ferdinand E. Marcos,
the plans for a legislative complex were revived.
By that time, the 1973 constitution had
replaced the bicameral Congress with
the Batasang Pambansa, a unicameral
parliament. The new complex was accordingly
designed to house only one legislative body.
Felipe M. Mendoza was designated as the
architect of the complex, and its surrounding
area.[3][4]The uncompleted structure for the
Capitol building was torn down to make way for
the new complex. The North and South Wing
Buildings were completed in December 1977.
Meanwhile, the Main Building itself finally
opened on May 31, 1978.[5][6] However, the rest
of the intended government buildings and
public spaces around the complex were never
built.
The legislative body first convened at the Main
Building on June 12, 1978.[7]
Turned over to the House of
Representatives[edit]
However, under the 1987 constitution, the
legislative branch again became bicameral. The
numerically larger House of Representatives
retained the session hall and offices of the
old Batasang Pambansa on the grounds of the
complex. The smaller, newly reinstated Senate
returned to the original legislative building in
Manila (reinstated as capital city in 1976) and
held their plenary sessions there until the
building was turned over to the National
Museum of the Philippines under the
presidency of Fidel V. Ramos. The Senate has
since moved to the GSIS Building on reclaimed
land on Manila Bay in Pasay, holding their
plenary sessions there since May 1997.
Expansion[edit]
Apart from designing the core buildings of the
complex, Felipe M. Mendoza and his office also
allotted a master plan for possible expansion of
the complex.[2] These included:
1. A Senate Building, containing the
Senate Session Hall and Offices, on the
open area at the eastern side of the
Main Building
2. The Library of Congress, Museum, and
Archives on the western side of the
complex
3. Several other ancillary buildings
Plans and scale models for the expansion were
developed in 1978, but were not implemented.
In March 2001, the Ramon V. Mitra Jr. Building
was completed. Currently headquartered in the
building are the Legislative Library, the
Committee offices, the Reference and Research
Bureau, and the Conference Rooms.
The South Wing Annex Building started
construction in 2008 and was inaugurated on
June 29, 2010.[8]
Interior[edit]
Session Hall[edit]
Members of the House of Representatives hold
their plenary sessions at the Session Hall,
located inside the Main Building. Comprising
229 members elected by first past the postand
56 members elected by closed party list, the
legislators debate economic, social and other
issues inside the complex.
The Session Hall is also used for joint sessions of
the Congress of the Philippines, such as election
results, confirmation meetings, and addresses
by the President of the Philippinesor other
guests of honor. The President's annual State of
the Nation Address delivered to a joint session
of Congress is one example of such a speech.
House offices[edit]
Also located inside the Main Building are the
offices of the Speaker of the House of
Representatives of the Philippines and the three
Deputy Speakers. Two executive lounges can
also be found there.
The offices of House Members are found in the
North Wing and South Wing Buildings.
Exterior[edit]
The West Front of the Main Building
Grounds[edit]
The complex is composed of five main
structures and has a total area of 16 hectares.
The Main Building is the central feature of the
complex, and is bounded by the other buildings.
The buildings include:
 Main Building
 North Wing Building
 South Wing Building
  Ramon V. Mitra Jr. Building gym and fitness center, a day care center, and a
clubhouse and fast food center.
 South Wing Annex Building
Security[edit]
Other facilities[edit]
On November 13, 2007, an explosion occurred
Aside from the offices of the House, the on the south wing of the complex killing four
facilities at the Batasang Pambansa include a people and injuring six more. Three of the
medical and dental clinic, 2 banks, a post office,
victims were legislators.
2 telegraph offices, 2 motor pools, a fire station,
a gas station, security barracks for the marines,
parking space for 300 cars and a police
detachment. It also includes recreational
facilities like the tennis and basketball courts, a

THE AYUNTAMIENTO…FINALLY!
CITY OF MANILA JANUARY 10, 2017

For those who have long known the Urban Roamer, either in person or through this site, it is no secret
that for a long while, it has been a source of pining and frustration to get the opportunity to visit this
one particular landmark in the metropolis ever since the completion of its restoration about 3 years ago.
Unfortunately, circumstances were in the way of at least a couple of occasions that would have been the
opportunity for me to get inside the storied structure. Those and the fact that there seemed to be no
clear guidelines in place regarding possible tours inside the structure.

Fortunately, it seems the guidelines have now been set in place and finally, after 3 years, the Urban
Roamer has finally managed to go inside and see what is inside this storied structure known as
the Ayuntamiento de Manila building.

A LITTLE HISTORY

The Ayuntamiento building was, in many respects, Manila’s first city hall. It was originally built to serve
as office of Manila’s city council or, in Spanish, ayuntamiento, hence its name. The council is also
referred to in the language as “cabildo”, which explains the name of one street where
the Ayuntamiento de Manila is located (Calle Cabildo) while the structure the council is housed in was
known as “casas consistoriales”, thus the Ayuntamiento de Manila building is also known as Casas
Consistoriales.

It was mentioned earlier that the Ayuntamiento we see today is a reconstruction. But what many people
do not know is that the present Ayuntamiento is actually Ayuntamiento 4.0. Like the nearby Manila
Cathedral, the Ayuntamiento de Manila went through a number of reconstructions due to natural and
man-made calamities. The first Ayuntamiento was built between 1599 and 1607, when it was
completed. It was already a two-storey structure, with the first floor housing the courts and jail
the administrative offices, a chapel, and archives and the second floor. However, it was severely
damaged, possibly by the earthquakes of 1645 and/or 1658. The city council for the meantime had
to temporarily occupy a house from the Jesuits’ Colegio de Manila while the building was reconstructed.

Recreation of the Sala de Sessiones or the session hall where the city
council of Manila would hold their sessions

Ayuntamiento 2.0 was constructed from 1735 to 1738. From many accounts, the second structure was a
bit closer in design to the Ayuntamiento today with its two symmetrical wings, wrought
iron balconies on the second floor, a covered arcade at the first floor, and a central clock tower above its
facade (which is reminiscent of the modern Manila City Hall in a way). However in 1863, it fell victim to
yet another earthquake. Yes, it was the same earthquake that heavily damaged Manila Cathedral 6.0
and the Palacio del Governador General.
 The atrium of Ayuntamiento 4.0

Plans were soon underway to construct what would be Ayuntamiento 3.0; the task of designing it fell on
Spanish architect Eduardo Lopez Navarro. Construction began on 1879 and was completed sometime
after 1885. While some elements of Ayuntamiento 2.0 were retained like the clock on the facade,
Navarro opted to make the structure more Neoclassical. An atriumwas designed at the center of the
structure and its interiors sported a more elegant staircase decorated with a wrought
iron balustrade and a vestibule with fine black and white marble floor (AKA the Marble Hall) which
would become Manila’s premier venue for political and social events.

The recreated Marble Hall at the Ayuntamiento

Because to its significance as a longstanding civic structure in Manila and in the Philippines, the
Ayuntamiento de Manila served not only as a city council office but also a venue for a number of historic
events and home to a government offices. It was in the Ayuntamiento where the Spanish signed the
terms of surrender to the Americans, effectively handing over the control of the Philippines
to American rule in August 1898 (which was to be finalized in December that year with the Treaty of
Paris) and shut off the Filipinos in the process. leading to the Philippine-American War a year later. It
would then serve as the office of the American governor in the Philippines until 1903 when the office
was moved to Malacañang Palace. By then, the city council of the reestablished and expanded City of
Manila moved outside the Intramuros walls.
The First Philippine Assembly in session at the Marble Hall of the Ayuntamiento

In 1907, the Ayuntamiento served to become the first home of the Philippine legislature, with the First
Philippine Assembly holding their sessions there. When the legislature became bicameral in 1916 with
the enactment of the Jones Law, both houses held their sessions at the building until 1924, when they
moved to the newly-constructed Legislative Building outside the walls. Eventually, the building served
to be the office of the Bureau (now Department) of Justice and the Supreme Court.
Ayuntamiento ruins, 2008 (courtesy of raffy_richard via Photobucket)

Sadly, Ayuntamiento 3.0 was destroyed, this time by war. Save for the shelled out ground level facade,
much of the building, as well as most of Intramuros, laid in ruins thanks to the shelling during the Battle
of Manila in 1945. And while some destroyed landmarks were rebuilt and/or restored such as the walls
and the Manila Cathedral, the old Ayuntamiento de Manila was left in ruins for more than 60 years as its
hallowed interiors were used from time to time as a parking space or even a basketball court. It was a
dire situation to see it in such state during those years. But as they say, hope springs eternal.

A LANDMARK REBORN

Hope came when the Bureau of the Treasury was looking at having an office of its own and decided that
its new home would be the site of the old Ayuntamiento. In 2009, work began in what would become a
significant reconstruction effort that would become Ayuntamiento 4.0. Owing to its rich history, it was
decided that it would be designed to be as close as possible to the design of the old Ayuntamiento (the
3.0 version, that is). As such, elements such as the clock tower, the grand staircase, the old council
session hall (AKA the Sala de Sessiones) and the famed Marble Hall were recreated, albeit with
constraints such as they could not use the old materials used in Ayuntamiento 3.0 and had to settle with
modern alternatives. The project attracted some controversy, not just for the length of time the project
took, but also the amount of the project which was almost Php 1.2B. But as pointed out by the Urban
Roamer in a lengthy piece more than a year ago, there should be no issue with the cost considering
how meticulous and difficult a project like this entails.

The lion sculptures leading to the “grand staircase” recreated

Ceiling paintings at the Sala de Sessiones

Surrounding the new Marble Hall are images of the different

explorers and conquistadors who visited the Philippines and paved way for it to become a Spanish

colony, such as Miguel Lopez de Legazpi who is depicted here

The Ayuntamiento today does have a thing for Spanish explorers and conquistadores of the Philippines,
like this statue of Sebastian Del Cano, the one who managed to complete the circumnavigation of the
globe after Magellan’s death.

Finally, in 2013, the new Ayuntamiento de Manila, Ayuntamiento 4.0, was reborn as the office of the
Bureau of Treasury. The work is by no means perfect, but it cannot be denied that it is a laudable effort
that deserves recognition and emulation, considering the state of awareness regarding our heritage. It
now stands as one of the few notable examples of heritage reconstruction in the country, which
hopefully will be an inspiration for more to do such types of projects here as a way for present and
future generations to appreciate our past anew.
 modern Filipino element at the Ayuntamiento: a reproduction of Juan
Luna’s Spoliarium at the reception area

While it serves as a government office, visitors can get to appreciate the Ayuntamiento de Manila during
tour times on certain days and hours. At this time of writing, the Ayuntamiento is open for tours on
Tuesdays and Fridays (except holidays) from 11 AM-12 PM and 4 PM-5 PM. Visitors can drop by for a
Php 40 entrance fee (Php 10 for students). For more details, contact