CHRIST THE KING COLLEGE

MAGSAYSAY
BLVD.
CALBAYOG CITY
SY. 2022-2023
SECOND SEMESTER
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Summary Report
Prepared by: Myrich Bart Java Vasquez

Ramon Magsaysay is consistently portrayed as the People's President in

mainstream Philippine history textbooks. His modest upbringing and educational
background stood in sharp contrast to those of his forebears. In fact, the presidents
who came before him were all major figures in Philippine politics during the
American era and were all lawyers from ancient landed elitist families. Magsaysay, on
the other hand, did not get the same benefits. He wasn't a lawyer, didn't belong to the
national elite, used to work for a bus company in his province, and became a skilled
guerrilla fighter during the conflict. He served as the governor of Zambales, was
elected to the legislature, and was chosen by President Quirino to be the secretary of
national defense.For all intents and purposes, Magsaysay was portrayed as a self-
made president who ascended from the ranks of the public through talent alone and
patriotism. Magsaysay acquired fame in his victorious fight against the Huks while
serving as defense secretary. As defense secretary, he was heralded as an anti-
communist hero who stopped the Huk rebellion's rising tide. He was viewed and
portrayed as a "man of action" who would put an end to the corruption and
inefficiencies of the government governed by an oligarchy, therefore he was indebted
to no one because he had no big commercial interests. This perception was confirmed
by American publications, as well as by the Philippine press. Three days prior to the
November 1953 presidential election, journalist Leon O. Ty wrote an article titled "It's
Up to You Now" for the Philippine Free Press. This article serves as an example of
how Magsaysay has been portrayed in the media. The article began with an anecdote
about defense secretary Magsaysay calling a newsman to voice his concerns about
how the Quirino cabinet was governed. The report described how Magsaysay was
concerned about angering the president when he opposed a particular dubious sugar
importation transaction that implicated a particular close friend of the president. After
World War II, Ramón Magsaysay rose to prominence in Philippine politics. He
progressed from running a bus company to leading his country in less than ten years.
Students of Philippine affairs have been left to conjecture about what might have been
a different future course of events in this Southeast Asian country after Magsaysay
passed away in an aircraft crash near the end of his one and only term as president.
This essay contends that the "Magsaysay Myth"—the notion that the United States
planted him in office to alter his nation's politics and government—is
unconvincing.President Dwight D. Eisenhower and other American policymakers
with prior experience in the Philippines were dubious about his ability to bring about
significant change in his nation quickly.