“ELPIDIO

REPO
RT E RS:

ei n
-Andr aculangan
a C r u z QUIRINO”
sh a D im r t e
-Eli e V il l a f ue
-Jus t i n
 INTRODUCTION
EARLY LIFE

SCOPE
& EDUCATION
POLITICAL
CAREER
PRESIDENTIAL
CAMPAIGN
PRESIDENTIAL
ACHIEVEMENTS
CHALLENGES
& CONTROVERSIES
ECONOMIC POLICIES
FOREIGN POLICIES
SOCIAL &
DOMESTIC ISSUES
LEGACY
CONCLUSION
BIBLIOGRAPHY
INTRODUCTION
 Elpidio Quirino was a Filipino lawyer and politician who served
as the 6th President of the Philippines from 1948 to 1953.
A lawyer by profession, Quirino entered politics when he
became a representative of Ilocos Sur from 1919 to 1925.
He was then elected as a senator from 1925 to 1935. In
1934, he became a member of the Philippine Independence
Commission that was sent to Washington, D.C., which
secured the passage of Tydings–McDuffie Act to the United
States Congress.
- Elpidio Quirino -

INTRODUCTION - 1/1
 In 1935, he was also elected to the 1935
Constitutional Convention that drafted the
1935 Philippine Constitution for the newly
established Philippine Commonwealth. In
the new government, he served as secretary
of the interior and finance under the cabinet
- Elpidio Quirino -
of President Manuel L. Quezon.
INTRODUCTION - 1/1
 EARLY LIFE
& EDUCATION
 Full name: Elpidio Quirino y Rivera
Date of Birth: November 16, 1890
Birth Place: Vigan Provincial Jail in
Vigan, Ilocos Sur

EARLY LIFE & EDUCATION – 1/3

 Quirino was the 3rd child of Mariano Quirino y Quebral and
Gregoria Rivera y Mendoza. Elpidio was a Chinese mestizo

descendant and he was baptized on November 19, 1890, three

days after his birth. When he was young, he lived in Aringay, La
Union. He studied and graduated from his elementary education

to his native Caoayan, where he became a barrio teacher. He also

received secondary education at Vigan High school and
graduated Manila High School in 1911 and passed the civil
service examination, first grade.
EARLY LIFE & EDUCATION – 1/3
 After he graduated, he attended University of the
Philippines in Manila. In 1915, he earned his law degree

from the university’s college of law. In that same year,

he was admitted to the bar. At his early years of being
an adult, he was inducted into the Pan Xenia Fraternity
(A professional trade fraternity in the University of the
Philippines) in 1950.
EARLY LIFE & EDUCATION – 2/3
 Quirino got married to Alicia Syquía on January 16,
1921. The couple had five children: Tomás,
Armando, Norma, Victoria, and Fe Angela. Sadly, on
February 9, 1945, his wife and three of their children:
Armando, Norma, and Fe Angela, were killed by
Japanese troops as they fled their home during the
Battle of Manila.
EARLY LIFE & EDUCATION – 2/3
 Quirino’s daughter, Victoria, became
the youngest hostess of Malacañang
Palace, at 16 years old, when Quirino
ascended to the presidency on April
17, 1948. She married Luis M.
Gonzalez in 1950, who

became Philippine Ambassador to

Spain from 1966 to 1971.
Victoria Quirino, Elpidio’s daughter
EARLY LIFE & EDUCATION – 3/3
POLITICAL
CAREER
 Quirino was engaged in private law practice of
until he was elected as member of the
Philippine House of Representatives from
1919 to 1925. He was elected as a senator in
1925 representing the First Senatorial District,
serving until 1935. He then served as secretary
of finance and of the interior under the
Philippine Commonwealth.
POLITICAL CAREER - 1/2
 In 1934, he became a member of the
Philippine Independence Commission
that was sent to Washington, D.C.,
headed by Manuel L. Quezon, that
secured the passage in the United
States Congress of the Tydings–
POLITICAL CAREER - 1/2
McDuffie Act.
 Before World War II, Quirino was re-
elected to the Senate, but was not able to
serve until 1945. After the war, the
Philippine Commonwealth Government
was restored. The Congress was re-
organized and Quirino was installed as
Senate President pro tempore.
POLITICAL CAREER - 2/2
 Elpidio served as many positions under different presidents until
the year of his presidency. He was Secretary of the Interior in
1935 to 1938 under Manuel Quezon. In 1934, he also served as
Secretary of Finance under President Quezon until 1936. In May
1946 to November 1946, he was Secretary of Finance again but
this time under Manuel Roxas. While he was vice president, he
also as Secretary of Foreign Affairs under Manuel Roxas's
presidency.
POLITICAL CAREER - 2/2
After World War II, Quirino
was elected vice-president in
the April 1946 presidential
election, consequently the
second and last for the
Commonwealth and first for
the Third Republic.
Elpidio crying beside the coffin of
Manuel Roxas during his wake in 1948.
After the death of
incumbent
President Manuel Roxas
in April 1948, he
succeeded to the
presidency. Elpidio crying beside the coffin of
Manuel Roxas during his wake in 1948.
PRESIDENTIAL
CAMPAIGN
 Quirino assumed the presidency on April 17, 1948, taking
his oath of office two days after the death of Manuel Roxas. His
first official act as the President was the proclamation of a state
mourning throughout the country for Roxas' death. Since Quirino
was a widower, his surviving daughter, Victoria, would serve as
the official hostess and perform the functions traditionally ascribed
to the First Lady.

PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN – 1/3

 The Communist organization, Hukbong Bayan
Laban sa Hapon, estimated to still have more
than 40,000 duly registered members. By
March 1951, the government went on with its
sustained campaign to cope with the worsening
peace and order problem.
PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN – 1/3
 The 1951 budget involved the use of residue fund
for the land resettlement program in favor of the
surrendered HUKS. The money helped maintain
the Economic Development Corps (EDCOR),
with its settlements of 6,500 hectares in
Kapatagan (Lanao) and 25,000 hectares in
Buldon (Cotabato).
PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN – 2/3
 In each group that were brought to these places,
there was a nucleus of former Army personnel
and their families, who became a stabilizing
factor and ensured the success of the program.
Less than ten percent of the Huks who settled
down, gave up this new lease in life offered them
by the government.
PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN – 2/3
 To promote the smooth restructuring of the
Armed Forces of the Philippines, the military
were made to undergo a reorganization. Battalion
combat teams of 1,000 men each were set. Each
operated independently of the High Command,
but not the overall coordination in operational
plans.
PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN – 3/3
 A total of 26 Battalion Combat Teams were
put up. New army units were also set, such
was the first Airborne Unit, the Scout
Rangers, the Canine Unit, and the Cavalry
Unit. These all showed a considerable
ability.
PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN – 3/3
 PRESIDENTIAL
ACHIEVEMENTS
 On July 17, 1948, Congress approved Republic Act No. 333, amending
Commonwealth Act No. 502, declaring Quezon City as the new capital
of the Philippines, replacing Manila.
President Quirino won a full term as President after the untimely death
of President Manuel Roxas in 1948 in the November 1949 presidential
election. His running mate, Senator Fernando López, won as Vice
President.
PRESIDENTIAL ACHIEVEMENTS – 1/2
 Despite factions created in the administration party,
Quirino won a satisfactory vote from the public. It
was the only time in Philippine history where the
duly elected president, vice president and senators
all came from the same party, the Liberal Party.
PRESIDENTIAL ACHIEVEMENTS – 1/2
 The election was widely criticized as being
corrupt with violence and fraud taking place.
Opponents of Quirino were beaten or murdered
by his supporters or the police and the election
continues to be seen as corrupt.

PRESIDENTIAL ACHIEVEMENTS – 2/2

 To bring the government closer to the people,
he revived President Quezon’s "fireside chats",
in which he enlightened the people on the
activities of the Republic by the periodic radio
broadcasts from Malacañang Palace.

PRESIDENTIAL ACHIEVEMENTS – 2/2

CHALLENGES
& CONTROVERSIES
 Elpidio was alleged to have owned a golden arinola and
was subject to controversy. The controversy was tackled
in Senate, with Quirino's political opponents
unsuccessfully using the scandal as grounds for the
president's impeachment. The arinola reportedly cost
₱250, and the complementary bed ₱5000.
CHALLENGES & CONTROVERSIES – 1/2
 The extravagant cost of the arinola and bed even for
1950s standards caused concerns that government funds
were used to acquire the two. The golden arinola scandal
reached the Senate and it was considered using the
scandal as grounds for Quirino's possible impeachment.
However, the allegations were eventually dropped.
CHALLENGES & CONTROVERSIES – 1/2
 The purported arinola made of gold was never found and the bed was found
to have cost only ₱300. However, Quirino's reputation has taken enough
toll to cause him to lose his bid to retain his position in the 1953 presidential
election to Ramon Magsaysay. He also faced allegations of nepotism and
misappropriation of funds besides this scandal.
Fun Fact: In 2014, the granddaughter of Elpidio said the
supposedly “golden” arinola was made of stainless steel and not
gold from Baclaran.

The Quirino administration also faced a serious threat in the form of the
communist HukBaLaHap movement.
CHALLENGES & CONTROVERSIES – 2/2
FOREIGN
POLICIES
 Quirino's administration excelled in diplomacy,
impressing foreign heads of states and world
statesmen by his intelligence and culture. In his
official travels to the United States, European
countries, and Southeast Asia, he represented the
Philippines with flying colors. During his six
years in office, he and his Foreign Affairs
President Harry Truman receiving
Secretary, was able to negotiate treaties and a cane as a gift from President
agreements with other nations of the Free World. Elpidio Quirino.

FOREIGN POLICIES – 1/3

 Two Asian heads of state visited the
country—President Chiang Kai-shek of
the Republic of China in July 1949 and
President Sukarno of Indonesia in January
1951. In 1950, at the onset of the Korean
War, President Quirino authorized the
deployment of over 7,450 Filipino soldiers
to Korea, under the designation of the
Philippine Expeditionary Forces to Korea
(PEFTOK).
FOREIGN POLICIES – 2/3
 “While I recognize the United States as a great builder in this country, I
have never surrendered the sovereignty, much less the dignity and future of
our country.”
— Elpidio Quirino

In 1951, the Philippines signed the Mutual Defense Treaty with the
United States to deter the threat of communism that existed during
the Cold War. The military alliance remains to this day a key pillar
of American foreign policy in Asia that also includes defense pacts
with Japan, South Korea, Thailand, and Australia.
FOREIGN POLICIES – 3/3
ECONOMIC
POLICIES
 Enhancing President Manuel Roxas' policy of social justice to
alleviate the lot of the common mass, President Quirino, almost
immediately after assuming office, started a series of steps
calculated to effectively ameliorate the economic condition of the
people.
After periodic surprise visits to the slums of Manila and other
backward regions of the country, President Quirino officially made
public a seven-point program for social security which included the
following:
ECONOMIC POLICIES – 1/3
 After periodic surprise visits to the slums of Manila and other
backward regions of the country, President Quirino officially made
public a seven-point program for social security which included the
following:
-Unemployment insurance -Maternity insurance
-Old-age insurance -State relief
-Accident and permanent disability insurance -Labor opportunities
-Health insurance

ECONOMIC POLICIES – 2/3

 President Quirino also created the Social Security
Commission and appointed Social Welfare
Commissioner Asuncion Perez as its chairperson.
This was followed by the creation of the PACSA,
charges with extending aid, loans, and relief to less
fortunate citizens. Both the policy and its
implementation were hailed by the people as
ECONOMIC POLICIES – 3/3
harbingers of great benefits.
 Upon assuming the reins of government, Quirino announced two main objectives
of his administration: first, the economic reconstruction of the nation and second,
the restoration of the faith and confidence of the people in the government. In
connection to the first agenda, he created the President's Action Committee on
Social Amelioration (PACSA) to mitigate the sufferings of indigent families, the
Labor Management Advisory Board to advise him on labor matters, the
Agricultural Credit Cooperatives Financing Administration (ACCFA) to help the
farmers market their crops and save them from loan sharks, and the Rural Banks
of the Philippines to facilitate credit utilities in rural areas.

ECONOMIC POLICIES – 3/3

 SOCIAL &
DOMESTIC ISSUES
 Quirino's administration was tainted by widespread graft and
corruption. Basic social problems, however, particularly in the rural
areas, remained unsolved.
President Quirino’s administration faced a serious threat in the form of the
Communist-led HukBaLaHap movement. Though the Huks originally had been an
anti-Japanese guerrilla army in Luzon, the Communists steadily gained control over
the leadership, and, when Quirino’s negotiations with Huk commander Luis Taruc
broke down in 1948, Taruc openly declared himself a Communist and called for the
overthrow of the government. By 1950 the Huks had gained control over a
considerable portion of Luzon, and Quirino appointed the able Ramon Magsaysay as
secretary
SOCIAL & DOMESTIC ISSUES – 1/2
of national defense to suppress the insurrection.
 When Quirino’s administration started, postwar reconstruction was still undergoing
and the Huks were still creating riot in the country. The economy was fluctuating
because of the rise in the unemployment rate and inflation; and problems regarding
housing, education, poverty and farmland intensified. To solve the problems in the
country, he promised to repair the existing system. He also plans to control the prices
and make producers consumers too. PACSA, ACCFA, Labor Management Advisory
Board, Rural Banks, “Fireside chats”, and HukBaLaHap amnesty were the
programs/policies he established during his administration.

SOCIAL & DOMESTIC ISSUES – 2/2

 Unfortunate families, farmers, his administration, HukBaLaHap
members, and the general public were benefited from this.
Problems like the uprising of the HUKS still resumed during his
time despite the amnesty. He was also not able to remedy the
problems of the masses. Controversies like cheating in the
elections and using government money to purchase a golden
arinola made the people despise his administration.

SOCIAL & DOMESTIC ISSUES – 2/2

LEGACY
 Following his failed bid for re-election, Quirino retired private
life. He offered his dedication to serve the Filipino people,
becoming the "Father of Foreign Service" in the Philippines.
Quirino's five years as president were marked by notable
postwar reconstruction, general economic gains and increased
economic aid from the United States.
In the evening of February 29, 1956, Quirino was preparing to
attend a meeting when he suffered a massive heart attack. He
died shortly thereafter at 6:35 pm, at the age of 65, at his
retirement house in Novaliches, Quezon City.
LEGACY – 1/7
 Elpidio Quirino
in his mid 60s.

LEGACY – 2/7
 Ramon Magsaysay later declared March 1 to 15 as a "period of national mourning,"
wherein all flags at all government establishments in the country were flown at
half-mast as a sign of mourning. Quirino's remains lay in state at the Malacañang
Palace from March 2 to 4. On March 5, a necrological service was held for him at

the Legislative Building in Manila and his remains were later interred at the
Manila South Cemetery.

LEGACY – 3/7
 There are a number of memorials dedicated to Quirino. In 1964, the
municipality of Angaki in Ilocos Sur was renamed to Quirino in his
honor. The province of Quirino, established in 1966, was named in his
memory. Streets like the Quirino Avenue in Manila and Elpidio Quirino
Avenue in Parañaque are named for him. The Novaliches–Ipo Road,
where his retirement home is situated, was renamed as Quirino
Highway. The Independence Grandstand in Manila's Rizal Park was also
renamed to Quirino Grandstand in his honor.

LEGACY – 4/7
 The memorial to Quirino in Japan.

Once the Quirino Avenue station of MRT Line

7 and the Quirino Highway station of the Metro
Manila Subway commence operations, Quirino
will have three separate train stations named
after him including the Quirino station of LRT
Line 1.
In 2016, a memorial to him was established in
Hibiya Park, Tokyo, Japan.

LEGACY – 5/7
 On February 29, 2016, his remains
were relocated and reinterred at a
special tomb site in the Libingan ng
mga Bayani in Taguig, in time for

the 60th anniversary of his death.

Quirino’s tomb in the

Libingan ng mga Bayani.

LEGACY – 6/7
 Fun Fact: Elpidio Quirino was on the 2 peso coin in
1990. The 2 peso coin was to celebrate the 100th birth
anniversary of Quirino. Though, it did not stay for
long as it was demonetized on January 2, 1998.

LEGACY – 7/7
CONCLUSION
 Although Elpidio Quirino implemented many programs and policies to recover the
Philippines from its post-war condition, it was not enough to cover his flaws. Some
still believed that he was a corrupt president. Even so, people say that Quirino’s
presidency was eventful and positive for the nation. His accomplishments do not
match the low reputation that is associated with his presidency. Fate is often cruel
when historic times lead to the appearance on the scene of more dynamic
personalities. Ramon Magsaysay is a more remembered figure even though his time
as president was less than 3 years.
Quirino was highly vilified by a virulent press, making his administration look corrupt when it
was quite effective in its pursuit of goals. He was ridiculed for choices he probably was not fully
aware of.

CONCLUSION – 1/2
 Elpidio Quirino is one of the least known among Philippine presidents as time moves on. Because of his
weakness in tolerating rampant graft and corruption in his party, permitting immorality in the armed
forces, and neglecting the impoverished plight of the majority of Filipinos, he was very unpopular, and
in 1953 he was defeated by Ramon Magsaysay. All of those aside, Quirino deserves at least a bit more
recognition today. Many Filipinos now don’t even know him and some have forgotten about him.

President Elpidio Quirino offered his services and showed dedication to the country. Even though his
presidency was said to be corrupt, Elpidio still helped the country in many ways. Maybe he was unaware
of some of the mistakes he made and maybe some citizens doubted him, but that did not stop him from
trying to be a good president to the Philippines.
CONCLUSION – 2/2
BIBLIOGRAPHY
 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elpidio_Quirino
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Elpidio-Quirino
https://econ.upd.edu.ph/perse/?p=5055
https://bloomspresidents.wordpress.com/elpido-r-quirino/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_arinola_scandal#:~:text=P
hilippine%20President%20Elpidio%20Quirino%20was,Custodi
o%2C%20it%20was%20Armando%20J.
https://en.numista.com/catalogue/pieces4517.html

BIBLIOGRAPHY – 1/1
 Thank you!
:)
RT E RS:
REPO
a C r u z
ei n
-Andr aculangan
sh a D im r t e
-Eli e V il l a f ue
-Jus t i n