Filipino Grievances Against Governor Wood

Approved
by the
Commission on
Independence
on November
17, 1926
HISTORICAL CONTEXT
Cabinet Crisis 1922
The growing feeling of
dissatisfaction of Filipino
leaders with the attitude of
Governor General Wood,
particularly with regard to the
executive branches of the
government, culminated in the
resignations of the 5 Filipino
Secretaries of Department and
of Senate President Quezon and
Speaker Roxas as members of
the Council of State.

The resignation was accepted

by the Governor General.
 Sequence of Events
• 1923, relations between the Filipino leaders and Wood were cordial
and full of pledges of cooperation
• The leaders turned hostile to Wood since he decided to remain in the
island
• Governor wood was convicted that the withdrawal of the US from the
PH would be disastrous for both nations.
• He opposed the nacionalists which was composed of Quezon, Laurel
and the other members of the Senate.
• On December 13, 1922, Manuel Quezon and Manuel Roxas, the newly
elected speaker, called Wood to tender the official thanks of the
legislature.
• The differences of opinion over closing the branches of the national
bank, and over suspension of penalties for late payment of the land
tax resulted in notes of protest sent to the Wood by Senator Quezon,
but the immediate cause of the wholesale resignations was the crisis
brought about by the case of Ray Conley, suspended secret service
detective accused of bribery and other charges.
• Wood recommended on July 12 that Ray Conley be replaced since he
was a corrupt politician.
• The members of the cabinet, together with Quezon, Osmeña, Roxas
and several members of the legislature conferred in Senator Quezon’s
home and a tentative agreement was made to submit their
resignations.
• Ray Conley accepted bribes from gambling syndicates and was
suspended by Mayor Ramon Fernandez. This case was brought to the
attention of Senator P. Laurel and approved his suspension, however,
Governor Wood did not. This angered the Senate even further and
decided to resign since Wood did not respect the legislative powers
the Filipinos had which was what the Jones law upheld.
• Then, the cabinet finally came to an agreement to resign after
considerable discussion, particularly between Secretaries Laurel and
Santos.
ANALYSIS OF DOCUMENT
 American Flag

"Emblem of Freedom“
"Symbol of Altruism"
 American Sovereignty

• Purpose: Train the country the art of self-

government
• Promise: Independence
• Aim: Our Good
PHILIPPINES AND AMERICA
 Philippines and America
•America promised that our country
would be conserved and developed for
the benefit of people.
•Filipinos were patient & diligent to the
task of meeting the conditions given to
them because they believe that America
will fulfill their promise one day.
•20 yrs of civil government -mutual
understanding & loyal cooperation
PRESIDENT CALVIN COOLIDGE
• 30th President of the USA
(1923-1929)
• Advised Congress of
America to fulfill their
promise since the goal
has been reached (loyalty
from Philippines).
• Asked the Congress to
send Major-General
Leonard Wood to
Philippines as Governor-
General.
Governor-General Leonard
Wood
• Major-General Leonard
Wood arrived in the
Philippine islands in 1903
after his services in Cuba.
He was appointed governor
of the Mero Province,
comprising the southern
islands and Mindanao.
• Aside from being the head
of the civil government, he
is also responsible for five
districts, and the
commanding general of the
troops in the department of
Mindanao and Sulu as well.
 Filipino’s Reality
Expectations
•There was a train of
•Cognizant of General usurpation and
Wood's participation in arbitrary acts
the liberation of Cuba, •Resulted in curtailment
Filipinos expected that of our autonomy &
spirit of cooperation destruction of our
would be maintained. constitutional system
•Political emancipation •Reversal of America's
would be complete. Philippine Policy
ANALYSIS OF
DOCUMENT
 • Executive Order No.
37 was issued.
• Wood attempted to
nullify laws creating
the Board of Control
and assumed
functions of that
body.
Board of Control

•Gravity of last step is more evident when we

recall the series of usurpation committed by him.
ARBITRARY ACTS OF
GOVERNOR WOOD
1. He has refused his assent to laws which were the most
wholesome & necessary heads of department.
2. He has set at naught both the legal authority and
responsibility for the Philippine heads of
departments.
3. He has substituted his constitutional advisers for a
group of military attaches without legal standing in
the government and not responsible to the people.
4. He has reversed the policy of Filipinizing the service of
the government by appointing Americans even when
Filipinos of proven capacity were available.
5. He has obstructed the carrying out of national
economic policies duty adopted by the Legislature,
merely because they are in conflict with his views.
6. He has rendered merely perfunctory the power of the
Legislature to pass the annual appropriation law by
reviving items in the law of the previous year, after
vetoing the corresponding items of the current act, in the
flagrant violation for Organic Law.
7. He has made appointments to positions and authorized
the payment of salaries therefore after having vetoed
the appropriations of such salaries.
8. He has used certain public funds to grant additional
compensation to public officials in clear violation law.
9. He has arrogated unto himself the right of exercising the
powers granted by law to the Emergency Board after
abolishing said board on the ground that its powers
involved an unlawful delegation of legislative authority.
10. He has unduly interfered in the administration of
justice.
11. He has refused to obtain the advice of the Senate in
making appointments where such advice is required
by the Organic Act.
12. He has refused to submit the Senate appointment
for vacancies occurring during the recess of the
Legislature in contravention of the Organic Act.
13. He has continued in office nominees whose
appointments had been rejected by the Senate.
14. He has usurped legislative powers by imposing
conditions on legislative measures approved by him.
15. He has, in the administration of affairs in Mindanao,
brought about a condition which has given rise to
discord and dissension between certain groups of
Christian and Mohammedan Filipinos.
16. He has by his policies created strained relations
between resident Americans and Filipinos.
17. He has endeavored, on the pretext of getting the
government out of business, to dispose of all the
companies capitalized by the government worth
many millions of the people's money to powerful
America interests.
18. He has sanctioned the campaign of insidious
propaganda in the United States against Filipino
people and their aspirations.
19. He has attempted to close the Philippine National
Bank so necessary to the economic development
of the country.
20. He has adopted the practice of intervening in, and
controlling directly, to its minute details, the
affairs of the Philippine Government both insular
and local, in violation of self-government.
21. He has insistently sought the amendment of our
laws approved by the Congress of the United
Stated, which amendment would open up the
resources of our country to exploitation by
predatory interests.
•Wood promulgated the Order,
declaring that the laws creating &
defining powers of B.O.C.
•He also announced his purpose to
exercise solely the powers & duties
developing.
•However, the publication was
moved to November 10, after
Legislature had adjourned.
•The laws defining powers of
B.O.C. were neither repealed by
Legislature, annulled by Congress,
nor declared unconstitutional by
the courts.
 THE PROTEST

“In the face of this critical situation, we, the constitutional

representatives of the Filipino people, met to deliberate upon
the present difficulties existing in the Government of the
Philippine Islands and to determine how best to preserve the
supremacy and majesty of the laws and to safeguard the right
and liberties of our people, having faith in the sense of justice
of the people of the United States and inspired by her
patriotic example in the early days of her history, do hereby,
in our behalf and in the name of the Filipino people, solemnly
and publicly make known our most vigorous protest against
the arbitrary acts and usurpations of the present Governor-
General of the Philippine Islands, particularly against
Executive Order No. 37."
Contribution to the Grand Scheme
of Philippine History
The Document as a Form of Protest

Quote: · “We, the constitutional representatives of

the Filipino people...do hereby, in our behalf and in
the name of the Filipino people, solemnly and
publicly make known our most protest against the
arbitrary acts and usurpations of the present
Governor-General of the Philippine Islands,
particularly against Executive Order No. 37.”
The Document Served as an Impeachment
Request for Governor Wood

Quote: “We appeal to the judgment and

conscience of the American people in
justification of our stand and for the
vindication of our rights.”
 A year after this document was approved,
Governor Leonard Wood died due to surgery
failure.

- Wood died in Boston, Massachusetts after undergoing

surgery for a recurrent brain tumor. He had initially been
diagnosed in 1910 with a benign meningioma brought on by
exposure to experimental weapons refuse.
- This was respected by Harvey Cushing at that time, and
Wood made a full recovery until the tumor later recurred.
- The successful removal of Wood's brain tumor represented
an important milestone, indicating to the public the advances
that had been made in the nascent field of neurosurgery, and
extending Wood's life by almost two decades.
 The long term effects of Governor Wood’s
abusive doings disposal of all companies
capitalized by the government worth many
millions of the people’s money to American
interests attempted to close the Philippine
National Bank so necessary to the economic
development of the country the violation of
self-government Created a divide between
the Christian and the Mohammedan Filipinos.
Contribution to Present Time
•The document is an eyewitness account which
serves as enough proof to show the real
happenings and events during those times.
•It showed that the Philippines is under the US
and that we are fooled by false promises.
•It serves as a reminder to us that we must
learn to stand in our own feet and be
independent.
•We must learn to not easily trust people
because we do not know their real intentions.
•We succumb to forms of oppression that a
higher power has over us.
•Majority of the Filipinos are not aware who
Governor-General Leonard Wood is.
•It showed how important the role of Wood
is in the American colonization period.
•To stop the generalization that the whole
nation of America deceived us.