Elpidio Rivera Quirino (November 16, 1890 - February 29, 1956) was a Filipino politician of ethnic Ilocano descent who served as the sixth President of the Philippines from 1948 to 1953.
Elpidio Quirino was a native of Caoayan, Ilocos Sur to Don Mariano Quebral Quirino of Caoayan, Ilocos Sur and Doña Gregoria Mendoza Rivera of Agoo, La Union. He was baptized on November 19, 1890. He spent his early years in Aringay, La Union. He studied and graduated from his elementary education to his native Caoayan, where he became a barrio teacher. He received his secondary education at Vigan High School and then he went to Manila where he worked as junior computer technician at the Bureau of Lands and as property clerk in the Manila police department. He graduated from Manila High School in 1911 and also passed the civil service examination, first-grade. Quirino attended the University of the Philippines. In 1915, he earned his law degree from the university's College of Law, and was admitted to the bar later that year. He was engaged in the private practice of law. He was later inducted into the Pan Xenia Fraternity, a professional trade fraternity in the University of the Philippines, in the year 1950.
Quirino was married to Alicia Syquia on January 16, 1921 and had five children: Tomas, Armando, Norma, Victoria, and Fe. Only Quirino, his son Tomas, and his daughter Victoria, survived when the Japanese massacred the family during the war. His brother Antonio Quirino was the owner of Alto Broadcasting System, which later merged with Chronicle Broadcasting Network to form the ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corporation.
Quirino was engaged in the private practice of law until he was elected as member of the Philippine House of Representatives from 1919 to 1925, succeeding Alberto Reyes. In 1925 he was succeeded as Congressman by Vicente Singson Pablo. Quirino was elected as Senator from 1925 to 1931 representing the First Senatorial District. He then served as Secretary of Finance and Secretary of the Interior in the Commonwealth government. Before the Second World War, Quirino was re-elected to the Senate but was not able to serve until 1945. During the Battle of Manila in World War II, his wife, Alicia Syquia, and three of his five children were killed as they fled their home. After the war, the Philippine Commonwealth Government was restored. The Congress was likewise re-organized and in the Senate Quirino was installed was Senate President pro tempore.
Soon after the reconstitution of the Commonwealth Government in 1945, Senators Manuel Roxas, Elpidio Quirino and their allies called for an early national election to choose the president and vice president of the Philippines and members of the Congress. In December 1945 the House Insular Affairs of the United States Congress approved the joint resolution setting the election date at not later than April 30, 1946. Quirino was nominated as the running mate by newly formed Liberal Party of presidential candidate and then-Senate President Manuel Roxas. The tandem won the election. Vice-President Quirino was later appointed as Secretary of Foreign Affairs.
Quirino's five years as president were marked by notable postwar reconstruction, general economic gains, and increased economic aid from the United States. Quirino assumed the presidency on April 17, 1948, taking his oath of office two days after the death of Manuel Roxas. His first official act as the President was the proclamation of a state mourning throughout the country for Roxas' death. Since Quirino was a widower, his surviving daughter Victoria Quirino Gonzalez serves as the official hostess and perform the functions traditionally ascribed to the First Lady.
Quirino's administration faced a serious threat in the form of the communist HukBaLaHap movement. Though the Huks originally had been an anti-Japanese guerrilla army in Luzon, communists steadily gained control over the leadership, and when Quirino's negotiation with Huk commander Luis Taruc broke down in 1948, Taruc openly declared himself a Communist and called for the overthrow of the government.
Quirino ran for re-election to the presidency with José Yulo as vice president in 1953 despite his ill health. His defense secretary Ramon Magsaysay, resigned his office and joined the Nacionalista Party. Other prominent Liberalists, like Vice President Fernando López, Ambassador Carlos P. Romulo, Senators Tomás Cabili and Juan Sumulong, also bolted Quirino's party. On August 22, 1953, Nacionalista and Democratic Parties formed a coalition to ensure Quirino's full defeat. On the election day, Quirino was defeated by Ramon Magsaysay with a majority vote of 1.5 million.
Following his failed bid for re-election, Quirino retired from politics to private life in 1953. He offered his dedication to serve the Filipino people, becoming the "Father of Foreign Service" in the Republic of the Philippines. Quirino died of a heart attack during the leap year day of February 29, 1956. He was buried at Manila South Cemetery in Makati. On February 29, 2016, Quirino's remains were relocated and reinterred at a special tomb site in the Heroes' Cemetery in Taguig, in time for the former President's 60th death anniversary.
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