Remembering Mayor Baby Sanchez (5/28/2025)

A Past Revisited, Connecting the Dots, part 8

Written in conjunction with the Feast of San Fernando (May 30th) and in memory of Mayor Virgilio 'Baby' Sanchez.

(This is unedited and unrefined version. Originally written in Filipino and translated in English by Co-pilot)

As the feast of San Fernando in the province of Pampanga approaches, I would like to share a story about a former mayor from the perspective of one of his high school scholars.

This is also timely because in 2025, the elections in our country, the Philippines, have just concluded, and many are asking why some elected politicians are not deserving, both at the local and national senate levels.

Like previous elections, the dominant and often victorious candidates come from the ranks of traditional politicians, candidates with long strings or money, and those with established names. There are a few candidates who are decent, have the determination to serve the country, and have the ability to lead who won.

In 1969, my interest in politics in the government was sparked. I was one of the seven Mayor Virgilio Sanchez Scholars of the freshman batch 1969-70 of JASHS. I was with Amelia Canlas, June Irene Castillo, Lolita Balilu, Restituta Zapata, Valentina David, and Azucena Guevarra. I was the only male in our batch.

We were called Baby Sanchez Scholar, from the Sanchez Scholarships program established in Jose Abad Santos High School, and granted by Mayor Virgilio “Baby” Sanchez of San Fernando. The scholars reached 40, the target was 10 for each year level, from 1968 to 1971.

Baby was first elected as vice mayor in San Fernando in 1967. He became mayor when he succeeded Mayor Levi Panlilio, who was assassinated on December 28, 1968, in the barangay of Calulut in San Fernando. Calulut was known then as a haven for outlaws and the Barrio Self-Defense Unit (BSDU).

Pampanga was then dubbed as Huklandia due to frequent news of killings involving armed outlaws, these were the syndicate groups of the former Huk (Hukbo ng Mapagpalayang Bayan), called “Beatles” and the prisoners released from prison, armed by the state to fight the Huks, and they were called “Monkees.” The famous foreign band singers then were the rival Beatles of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr, and the Monkees of Davy Jones, Michael Nesmith, Mickey Dolenz, and Peter York. This was before the NPA (New People’s Army) emerged in Luzon.

The political battle then was known as the three Gs: Guns, Goons, and Gold.

Atty. Baby Sanchez was a unique politician. In his new position, he diligently launched programs to help the people of San Fernando. He soon became known as an excellent and capable town manager, not only to the people of San Fernando but also to the people throughout the province.

The advantage of being a Baby Sanchez Scholar, in my view and perhaps not the view and experience of my fellow Baby Scholars, was the opportunity to participate in civic and political activities in the government. These are the important experiences that I will never forget.

Mayor Sanchez was close to the famous and seasoned Senator Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino. Whenever he was invited to speak in San Fernando, we scholars were often given the role of welcoming him. So, even as a child, I saw up close the brilliance, intelligence, and charisma of Senator Aquino in his speeches. Truly admirable.

What I did not fully understand then, even though Mayor Baby and Senator Ninoy were friends and shared the same political views, and Mayor Baby was made the standard bearer of the Liberal Party to challenge the incumbent governor Francisco Nepomuceno. Nepomuceno was a powerful traditional politician in Pampanga.

Baby Sanchez entered politics at a young age. He was a lawyer, born in Ponduan-Baritan, a district of San Jose, near the market of San Fernando. His siblings were known teachers at San Fernando Elementary School and his relatives at the market.

Baby Sanchez was known as a clean and decent politician. He did not have the three Gs to win the election. In fact, when he first ran for office, he did not have a party. He ran for vice mayor, along with four councilors, one of whom was Armando Biliwang. They did not have a candidate for mayor. Perhaps they knew that Levi Panlilio’s candidacy was strong among the voters of San Fernando, the successor of Mayor Jose Quiwa.

Without Gold (Money), Gun (Arms), Goons (thugs), his support in the 1971 election campaign was the combined forces of his classmates at Pampanga High School, childhood friends and neighbors, market vendors, and school teachers.

The role of the Baby Sanchez scholars in his campaign was also unique; we scholars were his receipt of wholehearted help to the poor by providing scholarships to poor but intelligent students. We were also the young volunteers in the campaign, doing sorties and canvassing in towns throughout the province.

I was one of the enthusiastic and always joined the sorties and walks in the campaign. From morning until night, I joined. I learned and discovered a lot from joining the campaign. Even now, my memories of the campaign for Baby Sanchez’s governorship in Pampanga are still fresh.

In the middle of the campaign, it was reported that the national leadership of the Liberal Party dropped Baby as the official candidate of the Party to challenge Nepomuceno. The chosen official candidate was Brigido Valencia, a wealthy businessman who was not well known in Pampanga.

As they say, money talks, those with money are different, and the Liberal Party at the national level had a strong need because the politicians supported by President Marcos’s administration were strong. Even though Baby was a close friend of Ninoy, they could do nothing.

Baby could no longer back out from his candidacy for governor. He did not want to return to San Fernando and run for mayor because his former ally, Councilor Armando Biliwang, was running for mayor. Baby was also forced because his campaign machinery was already in place throughout the province.

So, the gubernatorial election in 1971 was called a three-way fight. Nepomuceno-Valencia-Sanchez. The winner was the wealthy but unknown Brigido Valencia, and Baby came second in the number of votes. He had a significant lead over Nepomuceno. In my mind then, if Valencia had not entered the race, Baby Sanchez would surely have won as governor of Pampanga.

The winner of the mayoral race in San Fernando was Armando Biliwang. He was the mayor when Martial Law was imposed in the country. He was also known as a leader and strong supporter of the Monkees and BSDU, armed forces against the NPA.

Baby disappeared from the political scene. He returned to his private practice and selling insurance. I continued my studies at the University of the Philippines and no longer lived in San Fernando. I became distant from the political developments in our town. Local elections were also halted due to Martial Law.

In 1980, local elections were restored. Baby regained his enthusiasm to run again in the election. He ran for mayor and challenged his former ally and incumbent mayor Armando Biliwang of San Fernando. In Pampanga, Estelito Mendoza, President Marcos’s sharp lawyer, also entered politics as the candidate of the Kilusan ng Bagong Lipunan (KBL) for governor of Pampanga.

I joined Baby’s campaign, serving as a tactician, poll watcher, and member of the Quick Response Team. I used what I had learned from the activist protests. We knew that even though Baby had strong voter support, the administration forces and Biliwang’s armed forces could not be trusted.

We monitored the precinct areas during the election. We watched for any intimidation or vote-buying entering the precinct. We did not hear of any noticeable incidents on election day.

When dusk arrived, the voting was over, and the counting of votes began, armed groups entered the precincts one by one and stopped the teachers and poll clerks from counting. They seized the ballot boxes and took them to the municipality.

Where I was assigned, at the JASHS Library, our QRT tried to confront those who intervened to seize the ballot boxes. A fight almost broke out, and guns were drawn. Instructions came from Baby’s headquarters to back out and proceed to the municipality.

We quickly went to the municipality. It turned out that not only our precinct was robbed of ballot boxes, but many others, and all were brought to the municipality. The municipality was closed, and the ballot boxes were placed in the treasury office.

A few days passed, and Mayor Biliwang was the acting mayor. He was replaced by Atty. Vicente Macalino from 1981-1983.

The teachers who served as poll clerks in the election, led by my former grade 5 teacher, Miss Teresita Tablante, filed a protest against the violence and fraud in the election with the Comelec in Manila. A few years later, the case was won.

In 1983, a special election was held in San Fernando. Baby regained his enthusiasm to run for mayor in the election. He expected support from Governor Estelito Mendoza. It was important for the Governor that the Mayor of the provincial capital was not politically opposed.

Baby invited me to run as a councilor representing the youth on his party ticket. I did not accept. My explanation was that I no longer had residency in San Fernando. I suggested Rosve Henson, a younger Sanchez Scholar than me, to be his choice. He was also a UP Graduate like me. That’s what happened. Baby and Rosve won the election.

However, my regret was the events in our country in 1983, when Ninoy was assassinated at the Tarmac in Manila, and the protest movement Justice for Aquino, Justice for All or JAJA erupted, Baby and Rosve were in the ranks of KBL of Estelito Mendoza. I think, if Baby had used his victory in the violence and fraud in the 1980 election, and imitated the actions of Homobono Adaza of Misamis Oriental, or Nene Pimentel of Cagayan de Oro, Baby’s name would have been nationally recognized as a regional opposition to Ferdinand Marcos’s regime. A missed opportunity in history. Ninoy and Baby were godfathers to each other. Baby’s mayoralty ended in 1986, the time of the 1986 EDSA and the beginning of Cory Aquino’s administration.

This is just a recollection. My reminiscence is timely for the San Fernando Town Fiesta.

To be continued… Abangan ang susunod na kabanata…

May 28,2025 FB