Rizal, Cagayan

Rizal, officially the Municipality of Rizal, is a municipality in the province of Cagayan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 19,077 people.

In the 21st century, the town grew notorious for the multiple incidents of assassinations among local politicians, with three mayors being killed since the 1980s.

History

Spanish regime

The incorporation of the town was dated early 1500s during the Spanish era in the Philippines. At that time, the town was called "Malaueg", from the word "''ueg''" that means creek or river. The name was used until 1903 when the town was renamed in honor of Filipino nationalist José Rizal.

During the Spanish regime, the town was said to be the rest spots of the Spanish Authorities, friars and some locals, because of its cool environmental climate. Malaueg people build the largest stone convents for the friars, some nipa hut houses for Spanish Authorities and some ordinary houses for the locals. Malaueg became a center of Christianity next to Nueva Segovia after the Malaueg Church was built.

In 1607, the area was the site of Caquenga's Revolt. With the creation of the Nueva Segovia diocese in 1595 in the Cagayan Valley, Catholic missionaries from Europe began flooding into the region to convert the indigenous inhabitants to the Catholic faith. Per the Dominican account, Pagulayan, the chief of Nalfotan, had tried contacting Catholic missionaries for years. Fray Pedro then accepted the invitation and went to Nalfotan to visit Pagulayan and the Malaueg people. To his astonishment, he found a church erected and the people waiting to adopt the religion. However, Caquenga, an indigenous animist leader, or priestess, apprehended the coming of the friar. Christianity posed a threat to her indigenous animism, and Catholic missionaries and Spanish officials worked continuously to eradicate animism. In response to this threat against her spiritual beliefs, she gathered a group of followers and they revolted against the priest.

American period

During the American occupation of the Philippines, the town of Malaueg was also a favorite spot for the Americans. During the Spanish–American War, the town was almost destroyed when the soldiers used its towering mountains to hide their ammunition and dug some trenches. The Authorities were very protective of the condition of the church during war.

The town before had two municipalities, namely: Mauanan and Malaueg. The barrios on the western and northern part belonged to the municipality of Malaueg, while the barrios on the eastern part belonged to the municipality of Mauanan, where the seat of two municipal governments was established (Philippine Commission; Act Nos. 943 and 944, enacted in 1903). Act No. 2390 changed the names of the municipalities of Santo Niño and Mauanan.

The names of the municipalities of Santo Nino and Mauanan were changed to Faire and Rizal, respectively. Mauanan was named Rizal in the year 1914 and the sitios of Lattut, Capacuaan and Macatal were annexed from Rippang in 1933, under executive Order No. 690 dated March 28, 1935.

Japanese occupation

During the Japanese occupation of the Philippines in World War II, the town was largely destroyed in bombing attacks. The town also became one of the centers of resistance in the Philippines because of its forested areas that served as a hideout.

Post-independence

In the 1980s, many residents of Rizal migrated out of town due to the threat of communist rebels, with various reports stating that it had practically become a ghost town by 1987. On June 2, 1987, more than 100 rebels overran the Rizal municipal hall and burned down the residence and trucks of former mayor Raul dela Cruz. In November 1987, dela Cruz was reinstated as mayor of Rizal by local government secretary Luis T. Santos based on a ruling by the Supreme Court.

21st century; spate of assassinations

On February 13, 2007, nine alleged contract killers, most of whom were from Cagayan, were arrested in Biñan, Laguna at an election checkpoint along the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX), with police authorities claiming that they were members of the New People's Army (NPA) rebel group based on the weapons and explosives found in their van. The police further claimed that they had been heading back to Cagayan after failing to find their targets in San Pedro, Laguna: two mayoral candidates of Rizal that were opponents of mayor Raul dela Cruz in the 2007 election. Two of those arrested were minors from Tuguegarao.

On July 18, 2008, retired constabulary officer Elmer Baligod, a cousin of defeated mayoral candidate Joel Ruma, was tending to his food stall in front of his house in Tuguegarao when he was assassinated by Chito Cauilan and five other motorcycle-riding gunmen. Baligod's two sons Edwardson and Erwin witnessed the incident and chased after the gunmen, reaching the house of mayor dela Cruz, after which they alerted the police. Elmer was soon rushed to the People's Emergency Hospital in Tuguegarao but later died from his gunshot wounds. After negotiations were successfully held between the policemen and mayor dela Cruz to reveal the "male persons" in the latter's residence, Edwardson and Erwin identified Cauilan, an aide to dela Cruz, as one of the gunmen, who proceeded to be arrested. Cauilan would later be convicted for murder by the Tuguegarao Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 2 in February 2016, a decision later affirmed by the Court of Appeals in 2017 and Tuguegarao RTC Branch 3 in 2020.

On the evening of December 3, 2008, mayor dela Cruz was assassinated by unknown gunmen within barangay Maddarulug in Solana, Cagayan, alongside three or four of his security escorts, including his driver Jomar Buluran, while in a van headed for Manila. Dela Cruz sustained bullet wounds to the body and died while being taken to the Saint Paul Hospital in Tuguegarao, while three of his bodyguards managed to survive and give their testimony to policemen. Dela Cruz was the second Rizal mayor to be assassinated since the 1980s, after Ventura B. Baloran. The surviving bodyguards claimed that former Rizal councilor Alfredo Alvarez and his two companions were the perpetrators behind the assassination based on the voices they heard during the incident, although Alvarez himself denied the accusation.

On January 23, 2011, Inspector Antonio Rueco, Rizal's chief of police, and four other officers were killed from an landmine explosion in barangay Illuro Sur and gunfire by communist rebels from the Danila Ben Command of the NPA. Two other Rizal officers were injured but survived the incident.

On July 21, 2013, barangay captain Edwin Gannaban of Pasingan was assassinated by armed men a few months prior to the barangay elections, while an indicted suspect, militia member Randy Gadduan, was killed three days later. Later that year, both mayor Joel Ruma and barangay chairman Eduardo Datul of Lattut were nearly assassinated on two separate incidents by unknown gunmen. Rizal police chief Gerry Roque was relieved from his post in August 2013 as a result of the incidents with captain Gannaban and mayor Ruma.

On the evening of September 3, 2015, former councilor and ABC president Nelson Littaua, a relative of past mayor dela Cruz, was assassinated in front of his home in barangay Carig, Tuguegarao by motorcycle-riding gunmen. He had previously been wounded in an attempted assassination while driving through Solana, Cagayan in April 2008.

On July 29, 2018, incumbent councilor Alvarez was assassinated in barangay San Gabriel, Tuguegarao by motorcycle-riding gunmen while driving through the city to return to his Rizal residence. Police authorities later filed murder complaints against vice mayor Joel Ruma and two of his aides based on security footage of the incident that captured the faces of the gunmen and identified by Alvarez's son Franklin. Vice mayor Ruma was later arrested in South Triangle, Quezon City on April 18, 2022 by the CIDG while he was running for mayor; he soon won the mayoral election a month later, succeeding mayor Brenda Ruma, his wife, and defeating Nacionalista candidate Ralph Mamauag.

On the evening of April 23, 2025, mayor Ruma was shot dead by an unknown gunman while attending a campaign sortie in barangay Illuru Sur for his reelection; three attendees were also injured from the incident but survived.

Geography

The Municipality of Rizal has a total land area of . The land is distributed as follows: are designated as built-up areas; are classified as agricultural land; are occupied by water bodies; consist of open grassland; are allocated for roads and streets; are set aside for eco-tourism purposes; and are designated as forest zones.

The place is hilly and mountainous. The poblacion is located on a plateau. The neighbouring barangays are situated on the slopes of hills, and some are located along the banks of Matalag River.

Rizal is situated from the provincial capital Tuguegarao, and from the country's capital city of Manila.

Mountains

* Mount Annaguan, the highest point in the town, has the height of and it can overview some neighboring towns from its peak.
*Mount Maoanan, with a height of , was the legendary mountain where Biuag and Malana fought a battle for a ''maguinganay''.

The Sinicking National Park has the height of and the highest elevation between the town's Poblacion and barangay Gaddangao is . The entrance to the town is very similar to the Kennon Road of Baguio.

Barangays

Rizal is politically subdivided into 29 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks while some have sitios.

* Anagguan
* Anurturu
* Anungu
* Baluncanag
* Batu
* Cambabangan
* Capacuan
* Dunggan
* Duyun
* Gaddangao
* Gaggabutan East
* Illuru Norte
* Lattut
* Linno (Villa Cruz)
* Liuan
* Mabbang
* Mauanan
* Masi (Zinundungan)
* Minanga
* Nanauatan
* Nanungaran
* Pasingan
* Poblacion
* San Juan (Zinundungan)
* Sinicking
* Battut
* Bural (Zinundungan)
* Gaggabutan West
* Illuru Sur

Climate

Demographics

In the 2020 census, the population of Rizal, Cagayan, was 19,077 people, with a density of .

Languages

The local languages are Malaueg and Ilocano.

Economy

Government

Local government

Rizal is part of the second legislative district of the province of Cagayan. It is governed by a mayor, designated as its local chief executive, and by a municipal council as its legislative body in accordance with the Local Government Code. The mayor, vice mayor, and the municipal councilors are elected directly by the people through an election held every three years.

Elected officials

Members of the Municipal Council (2022–202

Members of the Municipal Council (2019–2022)

Members of the Municipal Council (2016–201

Members of the Municipal Council (2013–2016)

Members of the Municipal Council (2010–201

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Education

The Schools Division of Cagayan governs the town's public education system. The division office is a field office of the Department of Education (Philippines), DepEd in Cagayan Valley region. The Rizal Schools District Office governs the public and private elementary and high schools throughout the municipality.

Primary and elementary schools

* Cambabangan Elementary School
* Dungan Elementary School
* Duyun Elementary School
* Gaddangao Elementary School
* Gaggabutan Elementary School
* Illuru Elementary School
* Lattut Elementary School
* Liuan Elementary School
* Masi Elementary School
* Mauanan Elementary School
* Nanungaran Elementary School
* Rizal Central School
* San Juan Elementary School
* Sinicking Elementary School
* Villa Cruz Elementary School

Secondary schools

* Bural Integrated School
* Illuru National High School
* Mauanan National High School
* St. Francis Academy

Tourism

The tourism development includes the Alsung Cave, the Sinicking National Park and Mount Annaguan forest reservations that will serve as the home for the rare species exclusively found in the area.
; San Raimundo de Peñafort Church: The church, also known as Malaueg Church, was built in 1597. It was under the patronage of St. Raymond of Penyafort. The Dominican fathers accepted the ecclesiastical administration of this town on April 26, 1590. The cornerstone was laid November 26, 1597. The church and the convent have been destroyed and rebuilt four times. A site visited by Roman Catholic pilgrims, believed to show luck to the people in the certain town.
; Mount Annaguan: The highest peak of the town that can view some places of the province of Cagayan.

Infrastructure

The Cagayan–Apayao Road connects Rizal and nearby Conner to the neighboring towns of Tuao, Piat, Solana and Tuguegarao City. The road from Tuao to Rizal is rough and can take up to one-half-hours. It will take another half-hour ride from Tuguegarao to Tuao.

The provincial road was opened in 1951. From 1951 to 1986, one had to cross the Matalag River with a ferry boat made out of bamboos and drum. The ferry boat loaded only one jeep or bus at a time. Traveling to Rizal from Tuao to Tuguegarao or vice versa in those days was slow and tiresome because it took the ferry boat almost an hour to ferry its load to and from the other side of the river. Vehicles were ferried on a first-come, first-served basis.

The roads to the town are along the edge of the mountain, having hairpin turns and in other barangays, the road is at the edge of the Matalag River and some are at the middle of the fields.

The following bus lines serve Rizal:
*Malaueg Bus Lines
*Duyun Lines
*Zinundungan Traveler

References

External links

* Philippine Standard Geographic Codebr>Philippine Census Information

{{Authority control

Municipalities of Cagayan
Populated places on the Rio Chico de Cagayan