Basilan Jaycees
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St. Louis, Missouri, USA | |
Area served | Basilan Province |
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Method | Community service |
Members | 25 regular |
Key people | Local Organization President JCI Mem. Ma. Yzabelle Sigrid Yu-Tang Secretary General JCI Mem. Christopher Rey Diaz |
Volunteers | 600 alumni |
Junior Chamber International – Basilan Inc. (
Headquarters
The Basilan Jaycee Clubhouse is currently located at Isabela City, Basilan 7300
History
Basilan Junior Chamber of Commerce
The Basilan Junior Chamber of Commerce was organized on January 11, 1949, in a Joint Chapter Extension Project of the Manila and Zamboanga Jaycees. It included some of Basilan’s most active and civic-minded personalities in law, public service, medicine and business at the outset. Its Charter President (1949–1950), Dr. Isidro Sta. Elena, eventually became JCP Regional Vice President for Northern Mindanao in 1951–1952. National President Joaquin V. Gonzalez flew in from Manila to witness the induction of the Chapter’s 3rd President (1951), Judge Doroteo de Guzman. 4th President (1952), Dr. Alejandro C. Infante, founder of the Infante Hospital in Isabela City, was the longest-serving Adviser of the Chapter, whose service to the organization spanned over 50 years, until his demise in 2007. He was followed by a succession of able young Presidents who steered the Chapter in its early years. Prominent businessmen Amado Borja (1953), Thomas Ba Leong (1953), Carlos F. Tan (1955), and Judge Francisco S. Atilano (1955) were among the pioneers of this intrepid group of young leaders who invested the Chapter with a strong foundation based on an enduring vision of leadership and service to the community.
The 8th President (1957), Retired
Junior Chamber of Basilan City, Inc.
The Chapter was officially registered with the
The organization became a force in local politics towards the late 1960s, when young politicians started to quickly fill up its ranks. Often split into two main opposing
Responding to the need for the Chapter to touch-base with Basilan’s core Muslim constituencies, even as the Nur Misuari-led secessionist movement continued to wreak havoc in the countryside, the members elected its first Muslim President (1971) in the person of a young Ulbert Ulama Tugung, a learned scholar and respected public servant who became a JCP Regional Vice President for Southern Mindanao (1977). He was ultimately appointed by Pres. Corazon C. Aquino to be the first Regional Governor of the Lupong Tagapagpaganap ng Pook (LTP) or the Regional Administration for Western Mindanao and Sulu. Sadly, his exemplary leadership was cut short by an assassin’s bullet. His wife, Jayceerette PP Elnorita Pamaran Tugung, was appointed LTP Regional Governor at his death, and went on to win as Congresswoman of Basilan in 1992–1995. He was followed by NP party member JCI Sen. Aniceto G. Mon (1972) the twin brother of the Chapter's 15th President, Ricardo Mon.
Then on December 21, 1972, Pres.
Atty. Ricardo G. Mon, who was Chapter President in 1967, was appointed as the first Mayor of Isabela Municipality. At around this time, the Basilan Jayceerettes made its glamorous presence known. A series of socio-civic projects were conducted by the wives of the Jaycees as they promoted advocacies which ranged from a variety of environmental concerns to education and community health.
The 24th President (1973), JCI Sen. Louis W. Alano started the first of what eventually came to be three terms at the helm of the Chapter.
Silver Jubilee
The Chapter celebrated its Silver Jubilee under the administration of its 25th President (1974) Dr. Edgardo Eustaquio, a public servant and health practitioner, one of the founders of the Basilan Community Hospital and a three-term City Councilor of Isabela City. He was followed by 26th President (1975), local business taipan JCI Sen. Yu Chi Han, whose lasting legacy of forging deeper ties between the Chapter and the local business community strengthened the Jaycees more so because the political situation deteriorated further as Basilan’s highlands was transformed into a combat zone where the military staged running gun-battles with the MNLF and isolated bandit groups, the “black shirts” or “munduhin” as they came to be romantically called. Also, as the countryside was rent asunder by a total breakdown in the peace and order, right-wing vigilante groups such as the Ilonggo-based “ilaga” and the Chavacano-Bisaya “mundo oscurro” rose up from nowhere and started to give the Muslim communities tit-for-tat.
Basilan Jaycees, Inc.
In the midst of the seeming chaos, the Chapter evolved once again, officially changing its name to the Basilan Jaycees, Inc., during the incumbency of the 27th (1976) and 28th (1977) President, JCI Sen. Fernando S. Cariaga, the first in a line of educators and faithful church workers, whose steady management of the Chapter’s affairs gave it a much-needed breather from all the politics which threatened to pull the chapter apart. A surprising economic upturn, engendered by the Marcos administration’s many infrastructure projects and programs, gave the Chapter and the Basileños a healthy respite from the incessant conflict that bugged the island.
What followed were some of the most active years of the Jaycees, led by JCI Sen. Kieck Seng Tan (1978) under whose able leadership the very first batch of Lady Jaycees were inducted, JCI Sen. Roque C. Tan (1979), and then again by JCI Sen. Louis W. Alano (1980), Engr. Tahir I. Latip (1981), currently Basilan's Provincial Engineer and the second Muslim to be elected president, Napoleon P. Yu (1982), and then for a third time, again by JCI Sen. Louis W. Alano (1983) wherein the Jaycees initiated the creation of political action committees and associations such as the Concerned Citizens’ Aggrupation (CCA) which gathered the local community in indignation rallies against the Marcos dictatorship immediately after the assassination of Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr., as well as organized an Operation Quick Count for the 1986 Snap Elections, in close coordination with the National Movement for Free Elections (
The 35th (1984) and 36th President (1985), also a two-termer, was Atty. Alvin G. Dans, a scion of yet another of the most established families in Basilan. He was eventually elected Mayor of the Municipality of Isabela for two terms, Governor of the Province of Basilan, and Congressman of the Lone District of the Basilan, appointed by Pres.
Junior Chamber of Basilan, Inc.
The name of the Chapter was reverted to Junior Chamber of Basilan, Inc., under the auspices of the 39th (1988) and 40th President (1989) JCI Sen. Benedicto N. Peñaflor, following the JCI amendments during the World Congress in
Golden Anniversary
It is particularly remarkable to note, however, that it took the Chapter all of half a century since its inception, and 20 years since its first female member was inducted, to finally elect its very first Lady President. The chapter’s 50th President (1999) JCI Sen. Laura W. Alano, was likewise elected National Vice President for Western Mindanao (2000). She was awarded ‘Most Outstanding National Vice President for Area V in 2000’ and is the first Lady JCI Senator of the chapter. She was followed by JCI Mem. Ma. Theresa M. Alano (2000), who was appointed by Pres.
Junior Chamber International Basilan Inc. & JCI Basileña
Yet another page in the Chapter’s history was finally turned as, following the JCI Corporate Identity Program approved at the 2003 World Congress in Copenhagen, Denmark, the Chapter’s name was officially changed to Junior Chamber International – Basilan Inc., during the incumbency of the 55th President (2004), JCI Mem. Jaime J. A. Rivera. He was elected National Vice President for Western Mindanao for 2006. He is the Chapter’s first JCIP Academy and PRIME Graduate (Davao 2004), as well as Certified Local Trainer duly accredited by JCI University, his term has been characterized by a closer coordination with local government units, greater synergy with the business sector, and renewed ties with other Jaycee Chapters. He likewise won the "Most Outstanding National Vice President Award of Recognition" at the 2006 JCI Philippines National Convention held in Subic, Zambales in October 2006, and was appointed National Chairman of the Voice of Philippine Democracy project, as well as National Adviser of the Philippine Junior Jaycees, Inc. in 2007. The 56th President (2005) JCI Mem. Nuayme “Indah” M. Sangkula, hails from the prodigious Sangkula Clan of Sulu, and is also a teacher, the third Muslim President of the chapter. The flagship "Miss Isabela Earth Pageant" was held during this term, with the winner - Miss Bernadette Estrada (Tantoco) - carrying the Miss Western Mindanao - Earth title and reaching the semi-finals in the Miss Philippines-Earth 2005 in Manila. JCI Basilan Inc. likewise hosted the 1st Area Council Meeting of JCI Philippines Area 5 (Mindanao) at Lantaka Hotel, Zamboanga City.
The Chapter’s 57th President (2006) JCI Mem. Rowell C. Acaylar, is a Registered Nurse and a former Police Officer. He is currently a Clinical Instructor at the Mindanao Autonomous College Foundation Inc. (MACFI) in Lamitan City. His term is highlighted by twin victories at the National Convention Temyong Awards held in Subic, Zambales, where the Chapter’s only two bids for “Most Outstanding JCI Week Celebration” and “Most Outstanding JCI Family” both won coveted “Recognitions”, a substantial feat considering the competition for said categories. It was also on this year that JCI Basilan Inc. voluntarily split into two, with the male members retaining the Chapter’s name and seal, while lady JCI Members were assisted in forming the all-female JCI Basileña, officially recognized on April 8, 2006, during the 2nd National Board Meeting of JCI Philippines Inc., held in Bacolod City, Negros Occidental.
SIDEBAR: JCI Basileña was led by its Charter President, JCI Mem. Carlissele Rodriguez-Navales, followed by JCI Mem. Bernadita F. Hontucan in 2007, and Rev. May Casiano-Casada, a female Priest of the Episcopal Church in 2008 before falling into a hiatus. The all-female chapter has since been revived for 2014 by JCI Mem. Ma. Jennesa Santos-Tubongbanua, Isabela City Councilor.
Yet another example of inter-generational dynamics happening in the Chapter is the election of Atty. Orheim T. Ferrer, son of 1992 PP Edgardo Ferrer, as the Chapter’s 58th President (2007). He is followed by the 59th President JCI Mem. James Abner S. Rodriguez, Isabela City Councilor, school administrator and community organizer, with strong ties to the local military establishment.
References
- ^ "Associate Justice Regino C. Hermosisima, Jr". Elibrary.judiciary.gov.ph. Archived from the original on 2011-08-15. Retrieved 2010-07-07.