Rivalry in Katipunan

On March 22, 1897, two rival factions of the Katipunan, Magdalo and

Magdiwang met at the administration building of the friar estate in Tejeros, San

Francisco de Malabon in Cavite. The meeting had clear objectives: the planned

defense of the liberated territory of Cavite against the Spanish, and the election of a

revolutionary government. The meeting was presided over by Andres Bonifacio as

he was the leader of the Katipunan. Although Bonifacio did not take sides in any

faction, it was thought that Magdiwang was more supportive of Bonifacio than

Magdalo, whose leaders were composed of disgruntled members of the rich

principalia, including Emilio Aguinaldo.

Before the election was started, Bonifacio told everyone that whoever won

any position must be respected. Daniel Tirona, who was known as his foe, was

assigned to distribute the ballots. However, a friend of Bonifacio, Diego Mojica,

warned him that those ballots already had a name on it. He put this aside and

continued the election.

Ironically, after the elections, the Supremo of Katipunan lost the leadership to

Emilio Aguinaldo who was voted as president. Severino de las Alas, who was

nominated as vice president, suggested that Bonifacio should take the position since

he got the second highest vote. No one agreed with this statement and instead,

Mariano Trias was declared as the vice president. However, as a sign of respect for

the Katipunan founder, he won the last and lowest position as Director of Interior.

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 The following were elected as officials of the new revolutionary government

via secret balloting:

President: Emilio Aguinaldo

Vice President: Mariano Trias

Captain General: Artemio Ricarte

Director of War: Emiliano Riego de Dios

Director of Interior: Andres Bonifacio

Daniel Tirona questioned the credentials of Bonifacio and said that a lawyer

must be nominated in which he stated that a certain Jose Del Rosario should take

the position. The insult set off Bonifacio, who declared the meeting invalid and then

walked out with his men. For Bonifacio and his men, he was still the president. But

for elites who joined the convention, Aguinaldo is the new president.

Bonifacio made his way to Naic, Cavite, where he would write the Acta de

Tejeros, signed by himself and 44 important officers of the Katipunan. The Acta de

Tejeros was a document proclaiming the Tejeros Convention as invalid because of its

lack of due process, and also because of the chicanery that marred its elections. It

was seen as Bonifacio’s outraged yet calculated move against Aguinaldo’s capturing

of the Katipunan. Unbeknownst to them, it was this very declaration that would cost

Bonifacio his life, charging him with treason in a kangaroo court composed of

Aguinaldo’s loyalists.

On April 19, 1897, a month after the Acta de Tejeros was signed, Bonifacio

once again took things a step further by issuing the Acta de Naik. The document

proclaims that some leaders of the Katipunan, implying Aguinaldo, had betrayed the

Revolution and had committed treason. It was signed by 41 men, which surprisingly

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 included two of Aguinaldo’s most senior generals: Pio del Pilar and Mariano Noriel,

and Mariano Trias, who was thought to not had signed the document because he

was elected Vice President at the Tejeros Convention and had sworn his oath of

office with Aguinaldo. Other important signatories in the Acta de Naik include staunch

Aguinaldo men like Artemio Ricarte, Antonio Guevara, and Severino de las Alas.

Upon learning from Lazaro Makapagal the maneuverings of his own men,

Aguinaldo would nonchalantly appear at the Naik hacienda where Bonifacio was

reading out loud reports. Procorpio Bonifacio, brother of Andres, saw Aguinaldo and

told everyone in the room. Bonifacio, in response to the intrusion, told Aguinaldo to

“come and sit, listen to our reports,” to which Aguinaldo responded with “If I were

needed here, you would have invited me.” With that, he left the room, leaving

everyone stunned. This bold act by Aguinaldo persuaded Pio del Pilar and Mariano

Noriel to go back to Aguinaldo’s camp.

In April 1897, Aguinaldo ordered the arrest of Bonifacio after he received a

letter alleging that Bonifacio had burned down a village and ordered the burning of

the church of Indang after townspeople refused to give him provisions. Many of the

principal men of Indang, among them Severino de las Alas, presented Emilio

Aguinaldo with several complaints against Bonifacio that the Supremo's men stole

carabaos (water buffalos) and other work animals by force and butchered them for

food. On April 25, a party of Aguinaldo's men led by Colonel Agapito Bonzón and

Major José Ignacio "Intsik" Paua caught up with Bonifacio at his camp in barrio

Limbon, Indang. The unsuspecting Bonifacio received them cordially. Early the next

day, Bonzón and Paua attacked Bonifacio's camp. Bonifacio was surprised and

refused to fight against "fellow Tagalogs", ordering his men to hold their fire, but

shots were nevertheless exchanged. Bonifacio was shot in the arm by Bonzón, and

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 Paua stabbed him in the neck but was prevented from striking further by one of

Bonifacio's men, who offered to die in Bonifacio's place. Andrés's brother, Ciriaco

was shot dead, while his other brother Procopio was beaten, and his wife Gregoria

was allegedly raped by Bonzón. From Indang, a half-starved and wounded Bonifacio

was carried by hammock to Naic.

Bonifacio's party was brought to Naic initially and then to Maragondon, Cavite,

where he and Procopio stood trial on May 5, 1897 on charges of sedition and

treason against Aguinaldo's government and conspiracy to murder Aguinaldo. The

jury was composed entirely of Aguinaldo's men and even Bonifacio's defense lawyer

himself declared his client's guilt. Bonifacio was barred from confronting the state

witness on the charge of conspiracy to murder on the grounds that the latter had

been killed in battle. However, after the trial the witness was seen alive with the

prosecutors.

The Bonifacio brothers were found guilty despite insufficient evidence and

recommended to be executed. Aguinaldo commuted the sentence to deportation on

May 8, 1897 but Pío del Pilar and Mariano Noriel persuaded him to withdraw the

order for the sake of preserving unity. In this, they were seconded by Mamerto

Natividád and other bona fide supporters of Aguinaldo. The Bonifacio brothers were

executed on May 10, 1897 in the mountains of Maragondon.

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