MEMORIES: Life and Time of Pastor Rudy Bernal, His Glimpses on History & the Struggle for Freedom

MEMORIES: Life and Time of Pastor Rudy Bernal, his Glimpses on History & the People’s Struggle for Freedom

Chapter 5 – My Elementary  Studies &  Experiences  on the First Philippine  National Elections

In 1949, when I was 8 years old,   I   got my first experiences  in national and local elections.  It  was  in Cawayan, Carles, the northernmost town of  Iloilo province  in Panay Island, Central  Philippines.  I was  in  Grade 11 at Cawayan Elementary School. The previous year, in Grade 1,  I studied at Abong Elementary School, about two kilometres north  from our home in Cawayan.

In  Grade 11,  I still   do not know how to read and write. But I can memorize the whole book of “Pepe & Pilar” the book for Grade 1 and Grade 11.  “Pepe and Pilar” I think, has  some 30  pages. I can read the whole  book  if I could see the  pictures on the other side of  page of the book.   I can also   count  from 1 to 100.  I do not know the letters and the numbers when asked. Our teacher in Grade 1 was  Mrs Candilaria  Ocena, a beautiful and  quite fat  lady.  She tried to teach me  to  read  and write  but I failed to learn.  She   succeeded teaching me  to  speak and to memorize numbers. She also taught us to dance, a lovely dance “Itik-itik”. She walked  every day, about two kilometers morning and afternoon from her home to and back.   But we were happy with Mrs. Occena teaching us.

My father, I think  saw that I do not know how to read, though I could memorized. He asked  me to read the story on the book.  My  father want me to learn to read. But his methods made me   more  hard headed and miserable.  One day, he  asked me to read the  bookl   I read it loud. I read  it will.  Then, he covered the pictures on the  page of the book.  Without the picture,  I do not know how to read it anymore.  My  father  got a spoonful  of salt and made me eat it.  He said swallowing salt will make me learn fast.  I  swallowed  the  spoonful of salt.  I left a kind of stirring in my  throat. My father asked me to read the book again with the pictures open.  And I read it fast.  He asked me to read again with the  pictures covered.  I still cannot read.  And I was made to eat   another  spoon of salt.  

It was  when  in Grade 111, that  I started to learn to read. My teacher,  Mr. Crisanto Bartolome  was a graduate of  Iloilo School of Arts and Trade (ISAT), in Iloilo City. He was also well known carpenter.  His way of teaching enabled me to open my mind and learned to read.  Soon, I   began  to learn to read and write.  Now, I know that teaching was an art. The way  of teaching,  helped  much young children to learn.  Challenging and motivation  play a big role in  teaching  children.

Mr. Crisanto Bartolome  got a consonant from among the alphabets  and  and  a vowel.  When he taught me to write my name, he got  consonant “r”  then put a vowel “o”, got another consonant “d” and put another vowel “o” then another  consonant “l”, another consonant “f” and another  vowel “o”.  Then he read slowly my name. “Rodolfo”. I tried to remember it. I spelled  it.  And read again and again.  That was how I learned to read and wrote   my    name.  It was simple. Just get a consonant. Add a vowel. Another consonant and add another vowel. Soon, I learned the  magic and power of words. Some consonants plus one of  the 5 vowels, when combined and  turned  into words,  become powerful force in life, in war,  in  politics,  in business  and  the works for peace, development, freedom, justice and liberation.  

A few months  after I learned a little of consonants and vowels, I  wrote  my  first love letter to my classmate. My classmate was lovely. She was petite, brown skin  with straight hairs. Like me, she also  watch  her father’s   carabao   when we have no classes.  Sometimes, we ride together on the carabao while we graze them.  I want to tell her I love her. By then, I do not know yet much  about  love for  girls. But  at  times, when I looked at a girl, I feel something  scratching in my breast.  I wrote my first love letter to my classmate. We often played    games with other classmates.  

I sat and wrote  her  my  love letter.  I got a consonant. Then add a vowel.  And so on.   I wrote  my  first  love letter  to her. It was a good feeling, writing  my  first love letter at Grade 111.   My letter reads      “I lab yo”.  Soon I leaned to write with correct spelling.   From that first love letter, I wrote lots of things. And writing became part of  my life, my ministry as a Baptist pastor  and my future.  Today, I still write.  But not love letters anymore. I wrote love letters to my wife. But I stopped writing her a love letter  when I became a widow.  I would like, in the future  to write stories, beautiful love stories for friends to read.

  I  learned,  the  presidential and local elections  in 1949 will be held on November. Less than a yrar ago, sometimes in  1948,  I learned that  President Manuel Roxas who comes from Capiz province,    died of heart attack.  I heard he was preparing to  speak in a big meeting. But he felt the pain in his heart. And he died. The Philippines lost the first elected President  after the US-Japanese war.  Elpidio Querino,  the Vice President  took over the presidency.  President  Quirino   ran  for  President in the election of  November 1949.  The country will elect  the President, Vice President  and  Congressmen. I cannot remember if Senators were elected also that time. But the  Mayors, Vice Mayors and Councilors were also elected. 

 Three   political parties  contested the  elections  that year. I have not seen any  candidate for President, Vice President and Senators visited our village.   I have not seen any   candidate for   Congressman and governor.    But I saw some of their posters and sample ballots. I have also seen some of their pictures. I saw many of there   leaflets.  I learned of the  presidential and  vice presidential candidates campaign thru   small planes,  Piper Cabs,  with a banner of  the candidates’ name  tied on the tails of the plane  that  flew  100 meters up on the air  during the election  campaigns. 

 On  big red or black  letters, the   name of the candidates  flew,     attached to  the   tail of the planes.  It    clearly.  tells the name  of the candidate and the office he was running. Like this one,    attached  on the tail of the plane, 100 meters above us.  It said   “AVELINO FOR PRESIDENT”  In another airplane it said  “Querino for President.”

The small planes flew  from Iloilo City  to Carles  about 168 kms. And  turn around, passing under route, perhaps to Roxas City to Aklan and Antique to Iloilo City.    Posters and Sample Ballots were  dropped from the planes. We ran to retrieve some of them and gave to our parents.  We bring  some leaflets  home. We need candidates leaflet  also  to light firewoods in our stoves. This  was  how the campaigns for President, and  Vice President and Senators reached  our village.

About 3  months  before  election,  the candidates for mayor, vice mayor and the  8  councilors running for  office organized themselves for  visiting homes. There  were  three political parties in Carles.  The candidate for mayor and 4 candidates for councillor were  in one team.  The Vice Mayor and 4 candidates for councilors  go in another team.  They  divide  the village for the two  teams  They start early,  at  8:00 AM.  They went visitations house to house,  until late  in the evenings.

At one time, at  10:00 A.M. the candidates arrived. father and mother were at home.  They talked to my parents. I listened as the candidates talks. The candidates for councilors smiles to my parents and whispered. During  the campaign period, they visited  house to house  campaigning with different families.  The 3  mayoral  and vice mayoral candidates  and their councilors visited the houses.

  And they attached  some posters  in homes.  During those times, there were no radio. And no cars in our village.  Very few bicycles.  There was only one bus that carries passenger from Carles to Balasan. Often, we just walked.  The candidates running for office  just walked.  They walked  to reached   homes before the sun goes  down.  

As I reflect today, I think, it was hard job to visit families the whole day, asking each to vote for you. For it needs strength to ask people to vote for you, as you are better man than the other for the position. Campaigns today, in the electronic age, is much, much easier. You do not need to be really honest, for a candidaates face is away, a thousands miles away.  It hard to be elected mayor, vice mayor or councilors in our town. They  walked whole day telling people to vote for them.

Campaign rallies were held in our villages by the 3   political parties two  months before the 1949 election. The people gathered late in the evening, after the sun has  gone down.  A kerosene lamp,  called “hazag” which was pumped with air gave a powerful light. About 4 of this “hazag” were used that evening. And each  candidates spoke about  15  minutes each. The  mayor and vice mayor candidates, spoke longer, about 30 minutes each. There  were no loud speakers. But the voices of the candidates were strong.   They asked the people to vote for them.

  There were  some 40 villages in the Carles municipality. About 24 of the  villages were in the islands. 16 villages in mainland of Carles.  It was harder  campaigning in the islands. But the  candidates   rode sail boats  to each of the islands during the campaigns. And they went house to house  visiting families in the island villages trying to win their votes.  I cannot remember anymore the names of the candidates for Mayor, Vice Mayor and the  Municipal Councilors.

The candidates for Presidents were  Elpidio Querino, (Querino Wing) of the Liberal Party, Jose P. Laurel, Nationalist Party and Jose Avelino (Avelino Wing)  of the Liberal Party. Running for vice Presidents were Fernando Lopez, Liberal Party (Querino Wing), Manuel Briones, (Nacionalista Party) and Vicente Francisco, Liberal Party (Avelino Wing). Do you know why there was a Querino Wing of the Liberal Party? And Avelino Wing of the Liberal Party?

I cannot remember anymore what were  the platforms and the issues. One candidate for president I  heard  more was Jose Avelino. He seemed to be popular and controversial candidate.  I heard that Jose Avelino was asked about some corruption issue against him.  That he was a “corrupt politician”.  His answers were quoted and reached far flung   in the four corners of the country. His answer was clear and strong.  “What are we in power for?!”.  During that time, I did not know the meaning of those words from one  of the Presidential candidates.

 But this words made Avelino popular nationwide. “What are we in power for.”   But it  made  him lost greatly in the election. I do not know how far was vote buying was practiced during that time. In  our village, I think vote buying was not rampant yet.  The biggest issue on corruption against President Elpidio Querino was   “Golden Orinola”  that he used in Malacanang Palace. But I heard it was not really  “golden orinola.”   It was just an “orinola” made of bronze. It was not very  expensive.

During election day, the three candidates for mayors  slaughtered each  a  carabao for lunch of  the voters. The food preparations by the candiates where in 3 homes. There the voters go to have lunch after they have voted. The voting was started  at 8:00 AM until 5:00 PM. The Voting Precincts were 3 rooms  of   Cawayan Elementary School.  After voting,   the voters went to  the  3 houses where   candidate’s  foods were served. Yes,  many voters go to the 3 houses  were food were served. 

  Most    voters were able to   eat  three  lunches   during that election day.  Many of us children also got good meals that election day. For our uncles and unties served meals during the election.  And we children were also given food, also three  lunches  during the day.  

At about 7:00  PM the vote counting was started. That was called “Escoteno”  or  Election   canvasing. The preparation for the canvassing was made. There were “watchers” from the three  political parties. There  were the counters.  The  watchers will  make sure that the reader, reads  the names correctly while counting was going on. There were the counter who wrote the  number of votes on the blackboard. There were watchers of the 3 political parties.  Children  were allowed to watch the canvassing from the window outside the classrooms 

It was about 1:00 AM  when the canvassing was  finished. The result were recorded in the blackboard for  everybody   to see.  The result of  village election,  was put in box and brought to Municipal Treasurer’s  Office with the  signatures of the Precinct Comelec  Officer and other officers served as witnesses. This were later sent, I was told  by  the  Municipal Office to the Provincial Office and to the National Office in Manila.   The election results for national offices were released to the  people nearly  a month later.  

In our precinct, Elpedio Querino won for president.  Fernando Lopez, won as  Vice President.  I do not remember those elected senators.   It was really fun, and healthful   to attend elections, with abundant  food  from slaugthered  carabaos from the mayoral  and vice mayoral candidates.

The national and  local elections in our village was peaceful. There  were no story of vote buying. No story of killings on election day. In our village there  were no very rich and elites running to get  more  power. There were no landed people who run to get elected.  Most of our people in the villages of Carles  were not feudal lords

We have learned how election happened  and  practiced. And when we grow older, we can also participate in the electoral processes.  During that time, the mayoral and vice mayoral candidates were not graduates  in college.  Some were only elementary school graduates. Some are primary grades. But they have developed the political, business and entreprenuerial skills and ability to   make money and organised  their group to participate  in  electoral process.

 For in those times, in our municipality vote buying, I heard were practice but not yet rampant.  We need only 3 carabaos to slay and two cavans of  rice for the food of voters  in the villages.  Three feeding voters area for voters each village.  I heard  carabaos were slaughtered in  all villages, where elections were held. And I heard, some money were given by the candidates to some voters secretly. And as the years went by,  election has become more expensive  and rampant voting  were accepted. Elections  has  become a  business enterprise, part of the  game plans of the elites and the  oligarchs  to control political and business power of all the  municipalities in the country.