Don Filemon Yap Sotto and Remedios Duterte

Don Filemon Yap Sotto, one of the fabled “Seven Wise Men” who drafted the 1935 Constitution, had a common-law life by the name of Remedios Duterte.

It was in 1909 when Don Filemon, while an assemblyman of the old 3rd Congressional District of Cebu (composed of Carcar, Minglanilla, Naga, San Fernando, and Talisay, from 1907 to 1916) started courting Remedios Duterte, then a beauty queen in Cebu. It was in the house of Remedios’ cousin Romulo Agas on Plaridel Street, Cebu City, where Filemon used to pay her visits almost nightly.

Before long, lover’s incontinence developed into intimacy, Remedios gave birth to a boy who died in infancy. They continued having a relationship. About this time, Filemon asked Romulo Agas to move out with his family because he wanted to rent the house where they were staying for Remedios. Then Remedios became pregnant once again. On February 9, 1913, she gave birth to a baby girl, Filemon had her baptized with the name Pascuala in memory of his own mother. Remedios was at that time too sick to nurse the baby so Filemon hired a nursemaid, Engracia Aguirre, to take care of their baby.

Filemon and Remedios (years later married Don Magdaleno Sala del Mar) parted ways. Filemon married Carmen Rallos, who did not have a child of her own and treated Pascuala as her own child.

They called the baby as Lily and had her educated at “Farbulos” later called Colegio del Niño Jesus. Pascuala married Sixto Pahang and the couple had a son by the name of Antonio who, like his grandfather, became a lawyer on May 11, 1959.

Filemon, who became a lawyer on October 30, 1905, was the elder brother of Vicente who took the Bar exam on March 23, 1907 but was only admitted to the Bar on March 27, 1917. The Sotto brothers, same with their grandson, Vicente “Tito” Sotto III, are products of the San Juan de Letran College.

The Sotto siblings were the children of Marcelino Legaspi and Pascuala Yap. Marcelino was the child of Brigida Legaspi Fiel and Pantaleon Geronimo Sotto.

Don Filemon was elected councilor of the Municipality of Cebu in 1903 and vice president under the first elected President of the Municipality of Cebu, Don Florentino Rallos, who was the father of his wife, Carmen.