Mariano Jesús Cuenco y Diosómito (January 16, 1888 – February 25, 1964) was a Filipino politician and writer from

Cebu Cebu ( ; ), officially the Province of Cebu (; ), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 167 surrounding islands and islets. The coastal zone of Cebu is identified as a ...

. He was the 4th President of the Senate of the Philippines. M.J. Cuenco Avenue, a major thoroughfare in

Cebu City Cebu City, officially the City of Cebu, is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Central Visayas region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 964,169 people, making ...

, was named after him through a resolution by the Cebu City Council on March 23, 1964.

Early life

Cuenco was born in

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first performed by the O ...

on January 16, 1888, to Mariano Albao Cuenco (1861–1909) and Remedios López Diosomito. He studied at the Colegio de San Carlos of Cebu, where he graduated in 1904 with the degree of

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

. He finished law in 1911 at the Escuela de Derecho (later became the Manila Law School) and passed the bar examinations in 1913.

Political career

Cuenco entered

politics Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

in 1912 when he was elected to the Philippine Assembly representing the fifth district of Cebu. He was re-elected from 1916 to 1928. He ran for the governorship of Cebu in 1931 and became the President of the League of Provincial

Governors A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

of the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. In 1934, he was elected delegate to the Constitutional Convention where he was chosen floor leader. Cuenco was Secretary of Public Works and Communications from 1936 to 1939. He was also appointed Acting Secretary of the agriculture, commerce and labor departments while serving as Secretary of Public Works and Communications in 1938. In 1941, Cuenco was elected

Senator of the Philippines The Senate of the Philippines () is the upper house of Congress of the Philippines, Congress, the bicameral legislature of the Philippines, with the House of Representatives of the Philippines, House of Representatives as the lower house. The ...

but the onset of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

prevented that Senate from going into session. After the Japanese Occupation, Cuenco was reelected to the Senate in 1946. From 1949 to 1951, he served as Senate President and Chairman of the Commission on Appointments. His term paved the way for many reforms and his significant contributions resulted in a more efficient

legislative A legislature (, ) is a deliberative assembly with the legal authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country, nation or city on behalf of the people therein. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers ...

body. As a member of the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

of incumbent President

Elpidio Quirino Elpidio Rivera Quirino (; November 16, 1890 – February 29, 1956) was a Philippine nationality law, Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the 6th President of the Philippines from 1948 to 1953. A lawyer by profession, Quirino entered p ...

, Senate President Cuenco was defeated in his bid for reelection in the

Nacionalista Party The Nacionalista Party (Filipino language, Filipino and Spanish language in the Philippines, Spanish: ''Partido Nacionalista''; , NP) is a political party in the Philippines which is the oldest existing party in the country and in Southeast Asi ...

shut-out during the 1951 Philippine general election. He ran and regained his seat as a

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

once again in 1953 and 1959. He continued serving in the

Philippine Senate The Senate of the Philippines () is the upper house of Congress, the bicameral legislature of the Philippines, with the House of Representatives as the lower house. The Senate is composed of 24 senators who are elected at-large (the country f ...

until his death in office in 1964.

Writer

Cuenco was also known as a prolific writer. He was the publisher of the Spanish–language newspaper ''El Precursor'' of Cebu, a newspaper which ran from 1907 until the eve of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. In 1947, he founded ''The Republic''. In 1926, he became a member of the Academia Filipina Correspondiente de la Lengua Española, which is also under the auspices of the

Real Academia Española The Royal Spanish Academy (, ; ) is Spain's official royal institution with a mission to ensure the stability of the Spanish language. It is based in Madrid, Spain, and is affiliated with national language academies in 22 other Hispanopho ...

. He was honoured by the

Spanish government The government of Spain () is the central government which leads the executive branch and the General State Administration of the Kingdom of Spain. The Government consists of the Prime Minister and the Ministers; the prime minister has the o ...

with the Grand Cross decoration of the Order of Isabel la Católica and by the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

with the decoration ''

Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice ''Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice'' ("For Church and Pope" in Latin) is a decoration of the Holy See. It is currently conferred for distinguished service to the Catholic Church by lay people and clergy. History The medal was established by Leo XII ...

''. Cuenco also wrote in Visayan. ''Ang Republikang Pilipinhon'', ''Código,'' and ''Roma'' are among his works. His pen name was "Lauro Katindog."

Personal life

He was married twice, first to Filomena Alesna y Barcenilla, and years after she died, to Rosa Cayetano. Cuenco died on February 25, 1964, at the age of 76. The funeral service was held in Manila North Cemetery, in

Santa Cruz, Manila Santa Cruz is a district in the northern part of the Manila, City of Manila, Philippines, located on the right bank of the Pasig River near its mouth. It is bordered by the districts of Tondo, Manila, Tondo, Binondo, Manila, Binondo, Quiapo, Ma ...

Early life

Political career

Writer

Personal life

References

See also