Who’s Who – The Aquinos of Bataan

ALBERTO MAGTANONG AQUINO (1888-1972) was the ninth and 13th governor of Bataan. He was first elected as chief executive of the province in 1920, at the age of 32. He was re-elected in September 1935 and served until June 1938. He is best remembered for his barangay school building programs, as well as his fight against nepotism in government.

Born in Calaguiman, Samal on November 21, 1888, Governor Aquino was the youngest of the three children of Pablo Aquino and Geronima Magtanong. He finished a Law degree and became a full-fledged lawyer on October 12, 1911.

It was former Bataan Governor Pedro Rich (1908-1909) who persuaded and helped Alberto Aquino win the governor’s post in 1919 against Jose Baluyut of Orion.

In addition to establishing various school buildings in the barrios, Alberto Aquino also opened several farm-to-market roads in many parts of the province. It was on July 4, 1920, during his first term as governor, that the Bataan High School (also known as Arellano Memorial Bataan High School and later, as Bataan National High School) was returned to Balanga from Orani.

Governor Aquino sought re-election in 1922 but he was outpolled by Manuel Aguinaldo of Pilar. Immediately thereafter, he was appointed and served as judge of the Court of First Instance in Capiz, Aklan. He was joined by his family in the said Visayan isllnd.

In 1935, after settling in Balanga with wife Ursula Banzon, he launched a successful comeback by defeating incumbent Governor Sabino de Leon Sr., also from Pilar. As a returning governor, Aquino was partly credited for the construction of major bridges along the Bataan National Road. The infrastructures, part of national preparations for an impending war, were funded by the American government. Aquino also completed irrigation systems for Bataan farmers, specifically in Balanga and Pilar.

Aquino returned to private practice in 1938 after losing to a political newcomer, Attorney Joaquin J. Linao of Morong. He passed away on October 11, 1972. In his honor, the bridge in Calaguiman, Samal was named after him. His monument is also erected at the plaza of Calaguiman.

JOSE BANZON AQUINO is the youngest of the 10 children of former Governor Alberto M. Aquino and Ursula Banzon. He carved a name for himself by placing third in the Bar examinations held in 1954.

Jose is a product of the Balanga Elementary School, Arellano Memorial (Bataan) High School now the Bataan National High School, and the Ateneo de Manila University where he obtained his Law degree.

After passing the Bar in 1954, he was employed at the Central Bank as an investigation lawyer. Thereafter, he joined the teaching profession and became the Dean of the College of Law in an unnamed university in Lanao del Norte. He also managed a local bank in Mindanao.

He and his wife, the former Josefina Ramos of Zambales, and four children had migrated to Canada more than a decade ago . He is currently the vice president of a local bank in the said country.

Jose once served as president of the HAS Club of Balanga.

FRANCISCO BANZON AQUINO also a son of former Bataan Governor Alberto M. Aquino and Ursula Banzon, is one of the major industrialists in the country. He is better known as “Mr. Café Puro” and “Mr. Fibisco.”

Francisco was born in Balanga on May 3, 1923. He completed his primary and secondary education from the Balanga Elementary School and the Bataan National High School, respectively. He studied Law at the Francisco Law School in Manila.

While practicing his profession, Francisco ventured into the coffee-making business and put up the Commonwealth Foods Inc. (CFI) based in Makati. Starting in the 1950s, the company manufactured and introduced the first local brand of instant coffee in the country, under the brand name “Café Puro.” He also produced the “Fibisco” biscuits from his Pasig plant and the “Ricoa” energy drink manufactured in Mandaluyong.

Francisco, chairman of the board of CFI, also served as president of the Makati Chamber of Commerce and Industries, Inc.He is married to the former Estela Dionisio Martinez of Orani with whom he has four children: Emmanuel (lawyer, Registrar of Deeds in Bataan), Vivian Aquino-Araneta, Francisco Jr., and Edward Thomas (M.D., St. Luke’s Hospital).