President Manuel L. Quezon was the first President of the Commonwealth of the Philippines. He assumed office on November 15, 1935. Elected to a second term in November, 1941, he was proclaimed by the National Assembly in December of 1941; Manuel L. Quezon and Sergio Osmeña took their oath of office in Corregidor, on December 30, 1941. By virtue of the 1940 amendments to the Constitution, Manuel L. Quezon was only supposed to have served for an additional two years. Sergio Osmeña was scheduled to assume the presidency of the Commonwealth of the Philippines after President Manuel L. Quezon’s term and would have assumed office on November 15, 1943.
However, the Philippines was occupied by the Japanese, and was at war. On November 12, 1943, Joint Resolution No. 95 was passed by the U.S. Congress and was approved by the President of the United States, continuing President Manuel L. Quezon’s term for the duration of the war and postponing Sergio Osmeña’s right to succeed the presidency until constitutional processes had been restored in the country. Manuel L. Quezon was President until his death on August 1, 1944.
Executive Issuances of President Manuel L. Quezon began with Executive Order No. 1 and 2, signed on November 15, 1935; this series lasted until January 2, 1942. A new series consisting of only one issuance started in 1942. Upon the establishment of the Commonwealth Government-in-Exile in Washington, D.C., issuances were designed ‘W’ started on June 1, 1942 and ended with Executive Order Nos. 13-W and 14-W signed on June 20, 1944.
President Manuel L. Quezon’s documents were gathered from its official sources such as the Official Gazette of the Philippines, including an issue of the Official Gazette dated May 1943 volume 41 number 1 published in Washington by the Government-in-Exile; the Malacañang Records Office which has the published compilations of Wartime Issuances or the ‘W’ series; Messages of the President which is composed of five volumes and sub-divided into two parts; Philippine Magazine, and Philippines published by the Office of the Resident Commissioner to the United States. Other sources used are the book bound and loose leaf compilation of different collections from the Jorge B. Vargas, Arturo B. Rotor Papers, Quezon Family Collection, the Basilio J. Valdes Papers, and the National Library of the Philippines.
There are two unnumbered Executive Orders that were signed by President Manuel L. Quezon in 1942. These documents are considered as either pre-war documents or as a part of the new series of Executive Issuances of President Manuel L. Quezon in 1942.
The American Psychological Association (APA) style was used for the citation. The titles that have been provided by the researchers are enclosed in square brackets, considering that the exact wordings and its order were not verbatim from the document being described. Book titles are italicized while the speech titles are not. If in any case that the book title is the same as the title of the speech, it is transcribed in italics because it is the book title.
Volume 1: Official Week/Month in Review
- This is the first volume of President Manuel L. Quezon’s official papers, which constitutes the third book of the Messages of the President series. The series was started in 1936 by Executive Secretary Jorge B. Vargas, during the first year in office of Quezon, the first President of the Commonwealth of the Philippines. This volume collects President Quezon’s Official Month in Review, a chronicle of the Presidents’ official affairs, i.e., their principal activities and undertakings.
Volume 2: Appointments and Designations
- This is the second volume of President Manuel L. Quezon’s official papers, which constitutes the third book of the Messages of the President series. This volume collects President Quezon’s Appointments and Designations, a record of the individual appointments and designations by the President of the Philippines. These include the date which an individual is officially expected to fulfill their duties.
Volume 3: Historical Papers and Documents
- This is the second volume of President Manuel L. Quezon’s official papers, which constitutes the third book of the Messages of the President series. This volume collects President Quezon’s Historical Papers and Documents, which include letters, statements, and other documents deemed of historical significance.
Volume 4: Executive Orders (Part 1)
Volume 4: Executive Orders (Part 2)
- This is the fourth volume of President Manuel L. Quezon’s official papers, which constitutes the third book of the Messages of the President series. This volume collects President Quezon’s Executive Orders, which provide for rules of a general or permanent character in implementation or execution of constitutional or statutory powers.
Volume 5: Administrative Orders
- This is the fifth volume of President Manuel L. Quezon’s official papers, which constitutes the third book of the Messages of the President series. This volume collects President Quezon’s Administrative Orders, which relate to particular aspects of governmental operations in pursuance of the President’s duties as administrative head of the Executive Department. This volume also collects President Quezon’s General Orders, executed in his capacity as Commander-in-Chief of the Philippine Army.
Volume 6: Proclamations
- This is the sixth volume of President Manuel L. Quezon’s official papers, which constitutes the third book of the Messages of the President series. This volume collects President Quezon’s proclamations, which fix a date or declare a status or condition of public interest or importance.
