26. NOW THE FLOURISHING EBBING TIDE

NOW THE FLOURISHING EBBING TIDE

Dr. Troy Alexander G. Miano

25 March 2017

A close friend and political ally, who is currently the Liga ng mga Barangay President of my hometown Cabatuan, Isabela, invited me and my wife on his eldest daughter’s wedding. After the Catholic Rites held at the Santuario de San José, a parish church found inside Green Hills East Village in Mandaluyong City, the reception took place at the Raffles Makati along Makati Avenue in Makati City.

The City of Makati is very close to my heart since it was in this LGU where I finished my Bachelor of Arts in Political Science major in Local Government Administration and Masters in Development Management and Governance at the University of Makati (UMak) under the College of Governance and Public Policy located along J.P. Rizal Extension along the banks of the historic Pasig River in Barangay West Rembo.

UMak, as it is popularly called, is a public, locally funded city-flagship university. In 2012, the educational institution is the first university in the Philippines which piloted the Senior High School Modelling Program of the Department of Education. UMak is the country's first ISO certified local university. In 1972, UMak was established as the Makati Polytechnic Community College through Municipal Resolution No. 242 and Ordinance No. 64. In 1987, its status was elevated to that of a full-pledged college, and was renamed to Makati College. On January 10, 1990, it was merged with the Fort Andres Bonifacio College, which led to the elevation of the college to a university. On December 19, 1991, by virtue of Municipal Ordinance No. 433, the Pamantasan ng Makati became a chartered university. On August 27, 2002, City Ordinance 2002-111 was approved amending City Ordinance No. 99-126 revising the Pamantasan ng Makati Charter to change the official name of Pamantasan ng Makati to University of Makati. UMak is also the foremost partner of the Philippine Councilors League Legislative Academy (PCLLA) in its executive classes for public officials, which is also supported by the Pimentel Institute of Leadership and Governance.

It is always very fun and informative to know the etymology of a locality. Name origins give us a glimpse of history and additional stock knowledge which we can use in our everyday conversations especially when we are touring someone who is not familiar with the area. For Makati City, an oral tradition passed from one generation to the next was the basis for the origin of the name. A native, particularly a Tagalog residing at a swamp on the south of the Pasig River was asked by a visitor, who was Miguel López de Legazpi, for the name of the place. As a result of the language barrier, the question was misinterpreted and the Tagalog pointed to the receding tide of the Pasig River and he answered, "Makati, kumákáti na (Ebbing, the tide is ebbing)”. This was recorded in the annals of the conquistador as the name of the swampy land.

Makati is one of the sixteen cities that make up Metro Manila in the National Capital Region (NCR) and is the financial center of the Philippines with a small land area of 27.36 square kilometers. It has the highest concentration of multinational and local corporations in the country. Major banks, corporations, department stores as well as foreign embassies are based in Makati. The biggest trading floor of the Philippine Stock Exchange is situated along the city's Ayala Avenue. Makati is also known for being a major cultural and entertainment hub in Metro Manila. The daytime population of the city is estimated to be more than one million during a typical working day because of the large number of people who go to the city to work, shop, and do business but the actual population is only 582,602.

Parts of the city were once subject to the pre-Hispanic Kingdom of Namayan, whose capital is now in the Santa Ana district of Manila. The Spanish then assigned the area to the town of Santa Ana de Sapa and in the 1600s began to be developed as a pilgrimage center around the churches of Our Lady of Guadalupe (now Our Lady of Gracefounded by the Augustinians in 1601) and of Saints Peter and Paul (founded by the Jesuits in 1620) in what is today the población, built by missionary friars to attract worshippers, and also as a farming community. In 1670, it became an independent municipality and was christened “San Pedro de Macati” in honor of Saint Peter the Apostle, the town's patron. In 1851, Don José Bonifacio Roxas (ancestor of the Zobel de Ayala family) purchased the Jesuit estate of "Hacienda de San Pedro de Macati" for 52,800 pesos. Since then, the development of Makati has remained linked with the Zóbel de Ayala family and their company, the Ayala Corporation. In 1901, the Americans declared the whole area south of the Pasig River, including the town of San Pedro de Macati, down to Alabang in Muntinlupa, a US military reservation, thus establishing Fort McKinley (now Fort Bonifacio and Bonifacio Global City). That same year, the whole town was incorporated from Manila to the new province of Rizal. On February 28, 1914, the Philippine Legislature passed Act 2390, shortening the name to “Makati”. On November 7, 1975, by virtue of Presidential Decree No. 824, Makati was separated from Rizal province along with 14 LGUs to become part of the National Capital Region. On February 4, 1995, the Municipality of Makati was converted into a highly urbanized city through RA 7854.

If Legazpi would resurrect today and would traverse the boulevards of downtown Ayala, he would never ever suspect that the country’s busy business center was once the wasted swampy land he misnamed as “Kumakati na” or “Ebbing tide”.