CEBU, Philippines — For the first time, all employees of government offices in Toledo City will observe today a special non-working holiday since the enactment of a law 28 years ago.
Today, Toledo City commemorates its 60th Charter Day by virtue of Republic Act No. 2688 signed on June 19, 1960.
It was only late last year that the city officials have found out that R.A. No. 7254 was already enacted on March 20, 1992 declaring January 6 of every year as a special non-working holiday in the City of Toledo.
Mayor Marjorie Perales has issued Executive Order No. 37 dated December 26, 2019 requiring all employees of the City of Toledo and national government offices assigned and holding office in the city to observe the special non-working holiday.
Perales is also set to deliver her first State of the City Address and the inauguration of the multi-million state-of-the-art Toledo City Sports Complex.
Republic Act 7254 was signed into law by then president Corazon Aquino on March 20, 1992.
It was sponsored by then Deputy House Speaker and third district Rep. Pablo Garcia.
Garcia was third district representative from June 30, 1987 to June 30, 1995. He was also the second district representative from June 30, 2007 to June 30, 2013.
His son, who is now the district representative and Deputy Speaker Pablo John Garcia, discovered the unimplemented law authored by his father when he asked queries about the bill left by his sister, former congresswoman and now Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia.
Gwen filed a similar bill during the previous congress that Pablo John would have wanted to refile. However, he was told that the Senate did not act on the bill because there is already an existing law about it.
On June 19, 1960, Toledo became a chartered city under Republic Act No. 2688. It was made into a city through the efforts of former congressman Manuel A. Zosa, representative of the old Sixth District of Cebu.
The city has since celebrated its charter day every January 6.
Following the colonization of the archipelago in 1896 to 1946, Toledo became a full-pledged municipality when then governor Francis Burton Harrison signed Act No. 119 on December 19, 1919. (FREEMAN)