Valenzuela City marks 136th birth anniversary of Dr. Pio Valenzuela

The Valenzuela City government marks the 136th birth anniversary today of its founding father, Dr. Pio Valenzuela.

Mayor Sherwin Gatchalian said that many Filipinos are unaware of Valenzuela’s contributions "to the making of this nation."

"Government officials are public servants and must be loyal to their duties if they have to serve the people. They must not use their positions as instruments to enrich themselves or prosecute their political enemies," Gatchalian quoted one of Valenzuela’s famous passages.

Gatchalian said Valenzuela was one of the triumvirate of the Katipunan (Andres Bonifacio and Emilio Aguinaldo were the other two) but the least written about in history books. Valenzuela has a great role in the growth of the Katipunan since 1892 up to the outbreak of the revolution in 1896.

"Being an ilustrado with a promising career as a doctor, Dr. Pio Valenzuela could have lived a comfortable life but he opted to join the revolutionaries of the Katipunan. Such passion, conviction and self-abnegation mark a true hero," the mayor said.

Valenzuela served as the first mayor of the municipality of Polo (now Valenzuela City) under the American rule. In 1919, he became governor of the province of Bulacan until 1925 when he retired from politics and devoted his time to medical practice.

To commemorate Dr. Pio Valenzuela’s birthday, the city government prepared a week-long celebration with Valenzuela’s descendants as main guests, including former ambassador to Brazil Oscar Valenzuela and Deputy Ombudsman for Mindanao Antonio Valenzuela. — With Jerry Botial