Remembering the 26 Cebu governors from 1899

Governor Gwen is one of the best governors we ever had. Within a much-limited space and time, I attempt to give you a capsule of historical accounts about 23 Cebuanos who became governors from 1899 to 2021. This can be a backdrop for choosing our next set of officials in 2022.

Today, Cebu is the richest province in the whole Philippines, towering over 81 other provinces. Cebu has total assets of P203.9 billion, followed by a very distant second, Batangas with only P20.79 billion. The tenth is Iloilo with P13.03 billion.

When Ferdinand Magellan landed on Mactan in 1521, there was no governor because Cebu was not yet a province and the Philippines did not exist yet as a republic. On August 6, 1569, the King of Spain named Miguel Lopez de Legaspi as the first governor of Cebu. After that, our country was handed down from Spain to America. Then the Japanese occupation interrupted our history. The records show that the first Filipino to sit as governor was Julio Aballe Llorente from Argao. He served from 1899-1901. In between, Luis Flores and Arcadio Maxilom served as acting governors in 1898 and 1899, respectively. The second governor was Juan F Climaco from Toledo, who served from 1901 to 1906.

The third governor was Don Sergio Osmeña Sr, who became one at age 29. He served from 1906 to 1907. He was followed by Don Dionisio A Jakosalem, from Dumanjug. He served from 1907 to 1912, then became the first Cebuano to be appointed by the Americans as the first cabinet member from Cebu. He was also an expert in Labor Law and he taught as a law professor in University of the Visayas. Following him as the fifth was Manuel Roa from Cebu City. He served from 1912 to 1922. The sixth who served from 1922 to 1930 was Arsenio V Climaco from Toledo. The seventh was Don Mariano Jesus Cuenco, from Carmen Cebu, who served from 1931 to 1934.

The eighth Cebu governor was Sotero B Cabahug from Mandaue, who served from 1934 to 1937. The ninth was Buenaventura P Rodriguez from the north, and in whose honor B Rodriguez Street spanning from the Fuente Osmena to V Rama Avenue was named. The tenth governor was Hilario Abellana from Cebu City. In his honor the Abellana National School was named. He served from 1941 to 1943 during the Japanese occupation. He was followed by Jose Delgado, also from the city, who served from 1943 to 1944. The 12th was Jose S Leyson who served from 1944 to 1945.

Mandaue's famous son, Fructuoso B Cabahug, younger brother of Sotero, was the 13th governor from 1945-1946. He was followed by Manuel A Cuenco, the 14th from 1946 to 1951. The 15th was Serging V Osmeña Jr from 1951 to 1955. Jose L Briones was the 16th from 1956 to 1961. Number 17 was my distant relative from both Ronda and Argao, Francisco Emilio Famor Remotigue, who served in the Capitol from 1961 to 1963.Then he was appointed as secretary of social welfare. The 18th governor was Rene G Espina from 1964 to 1969. The 19th was Dr Osmundo G Rama from 1969 to 1976. The 20th was my ninong, Eddie R Gullas, from 1976 to 1986.

After EDSA, the 21st governor was Dr Osmundo G Rama again from 1986 to 1988. The 22nd was Lito Osmeña from 1988 to 1992. A non-Cebuano, from Agusan was elected as the 23rd, Vicente L dela Serna, from 1992 to 1995. Pablo P Garcia was the 24th from 1995 to 2004, followed by his daughter Gwendolyn from 2004 to 2013 as the 25rd governor. The 26th was Hilario P Davide III from 2013 to 2019. The Governor Gwen came back on the 27th.

The elections in 2022 might make Governor Gwen succeed herself. It is written in the stars.