The Tejeros Convention of 1897.

Introduction of the Controversy

Tejeros convention also referred to as the Tejeros Assembly or Tejeros Congress was held on March 22,
1897, between the Magdiwang and Magdalo factions of the Katipunan at San Francisco de Malabon,
Cavite. The meeting was called to discuss pressing defense issues and craft urgent attack strategies
against the Spaniards but instead, the convention became an election to decide on who the leaders of
the revolutionary movement would be. Despite concerns over the lack of officials and representatives
from other provinces, the elections pushed through. Andrés Bonifacio, the “Supremo,” or Supreme
Leader, of the Katipunan presided over the election. He secured that unanimous approval and the
decision would not be questioned. The results were:

POSITION NAME FACTION

President Emilio Aguinaldo Magdalo
Vice-President Mariano Trias Magdiwang
Captain-General Artemio Ricarte Magdiwang
Director of War Emiliano Riego de Dios Magdiwang
Director of the Interior Andres Bonifacio Katipunan Supreme Council,
Magdiwang ally

When Bonifacio was elected Secretary of Interior, Daniel Tirona contested and argued that a lawyer
should handle the position. Bonifacio felt insulted and demanded an apology from Tirona. Because of
humiliation and anger, Bonifacio declared that all matters convened in the Tejeros Convention were null
and void. Meanwhile, Bonifacio and his men, numbering forty-five, again met at the estate-house of
Tejeros on March 23. All of them felt bad about the results of the previous day's proceedings, for they
believed that anomalies were committed during the balloting.

Sides and/or Evidence of the Controversy

Emilio Aguinaldo really won the Election

One factor that they believed affected Andres Bonifacio from winning the presidency is that two
representatives from Magdiwang Faction run for presidency, Mariano Trias and Andres Bonifacio which
resulted in division of votes from their Faction. As the voting ended, Emilio Aguinaldo of the Magdalo
faction obtained 146 votes, or 57 percent, and won the presidency. Andrés Bonifacio of the Magdiwang
wing garnered 80 votes, or 31 percent, and Mariano Trías also from Magdiwang, collected 30 or 11
percent.

Another factor is that the Caviteño elite could not accept an "uneducated" man even for the minor post
of Director of the Interior. According to Mariano Alvarez’s letter that he send to his cousin, the people
of Imus, Cavite did not vote for Andres Bonifacio because they didn’t want anyone that didn’t come
from Cavite to lead them.
Andres Bonifacio got cheated

Andres Bonifacio stressed out his reason for invalidating the Tejeros Convention through a document
known as “Acta de Tejeros” signed by his supporters. The Acta de Tejeros was a document prepared on
March 23, 1897 which proclaimed the events at the Tejeros Convention on March 22 to have been
"disorderly and tarnished by chicanery." Signatories to this petition rejected the insurgent government
instituted at the convention and affirmed their steadfast devotion to the ideals of the Katipunan.

In addition to Bonifacio's statement voiding the outcome, the probity of the election held was
questioned, with allegations that many ballots distributed were already filled out and that the voters
had not done this themselves. In their memoirs, Santiago Álvarez and Gregoria de Jesús both alleged
that many ballots were already filled out before being distributed, and Guillermo Masangkay contended
there were more ballots prepared than voters present. Álvarez writes that Bonifacio had been warned
by a Cavite leader Diego Mojica of the rigged ballots before the votes were canvassed, but he had done
nothing