First_Ladies_and_Gentlemen_of_the_Philippines

First ladies and gentlemen of the Philippines

First ladies and gentlemen of the Philippines

Courtesy title given to the host of the Malacañang Palace, usually the spouse of the president

Not to be confused with Spouse of the president of the Philippines.

The first lady or first gentleman of the Philippines (Filipino: Unang Ginang o Unang Ginoó ng Pilipinas) is the courtesy title given to the host or hostess of Malacañang Palace, the residence of the head of state and head of government of the Philippines.

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The title is traditionally held by the consort of the president of the Philippines, and as such is used to interchangeably refer to the spouse of the incumbent; however, this is rarely the case, especially for presidents without a living spouse at the time of their tenure. The position, which is customary in nature and dignity, merits no official remuneration from the state.

Liza Araneta Marcos is the current first lady of the Philippines, as wife of the 17th and current president of the Philippines, Bongbong Marcos.

Terminology

The host of the Malacañang Palace, who is usually the consort of the president, has been referred to in English as the "first lady" (Filipino: Unang Ginang). As Gloria Macapagal Arroyo took office as the first female president who is not a widow, the masculine form "first gentleman" (abbreviated FG; Filipino: Unang Ginoó) was used for her husband, Jose Miguel Arroyo.[2]

Role

The position of first lady or first gentleman is not an elected position, carries no official duties, and has no personal remuneration. Nonetheless, the title holder participates in humanitarian and charitable work on behalf of the president, often in line with his or her policies and programmes. Furthermore, many of the holders of this post have taken an active role in campaigning for the president, or have participated in public life through some other manner.

Imelda Marcos was given a formal job as Governor of Metro Manila and as Minister of Human Settlements by her husband Ferdinand Marcos during his 21-year rule. She is also the first incumbent first lady to enter politics by winning a seat in the Interim Batasang Pambansa in 1978.

Two former first ladies later won seats in Congress after their husbands' tenures in office. In 1995, Marcos herself became the first former first lady to win a seat in the House of Representatives. In 2001, Loi Ejercito became the first former first lady to win a seat in the Senate.

List

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Non-spouses who held the distinction

On a few occasions, individuals who are not spouses of the incumbent president have temporarily performed tasks reserved for the first lady or first gentleman, effectively rendering them as the de facto holder of the position; most often they are a direct relative of the president. To date, only Elpidio Quirino, Corazon Aquino, and Benigno Aquino III had no spouse to assume the title of First Lady or First Gentleman.[4] Rodrigo Duterte did not appoint a first lady despite having Honeylet Avanceña as his common-law wife. In the case of Quirino, his daughter received the title as he was a widower upon his accession.

By president

Elpidio Quirino

Victoria Quirino-Gonzalez was the first lady for her father, Elpidio Quirino. She was made the official host of the Malacañang Palace.[5] However Victoria is regarded as the first to be named with the role of first lady. The spouses of previous presidents, from Emilio Aguinaldo to Manuel Roxas, were not given the title during their respective husbands' terms.[1]

Benigno Aquino III

Benigno Aquino III never married, so the palace hired professionals to manage tasks and duties customarily reserved for the first lady, such as organizing state dinners.[4]

On some occasions, he charged one or more of his sisters with entertaining local and foreign dignitaries.[6] During the 2015 APEC summit hosted in Pasay, his youngest sister, Kris Aquino served as temporary first lady for the event. Their other sisters, Ballsy Aquino-Cruz, Pinky Aquino-Abelleda, and Viel Aquino-Dee, also assisted him in his various duties.[7][8][9][10][11]

Rodrigo Duterte

Honeylet Avanceña, the partner of President Rodrigo Duterte, has taken on the duties of first lady on several state functions despite not being designated as such during Duterte's presidency.

Prior to his inauguration, incumbent Rodrigo Duterte declared his eldest daughter Sara would be the first lady despite having Honeylet Avanceña as his common-law wife. He was previously married to Elizabeth Zimmerman;[12] their marriage was annulled in 2000.

However, Sara Duterte was already mayor-elect of Davao City, and declined the offer.[13][14] Following her filing of a 10-day leave of absence until June 22, there were speculations that she did so to assume the role of first lady, but she neither denied or confirmed speculations.[15][16] Former Department of the Interior and Local Government secretary Rafael Alunan suggested that Vice-President Leni Robredo serve as de facto first lady[17] but this never materialised.

Avanceña nevertheless would fulfill roles usually conducted by the first lady such as during the official visit of Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe, and the 30th ASEAN Summit in 2017.[18]

Lifespan

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See also

Notes

  1. [N 1]
    The term "First Lady" was first used for Victoria Quirino-González, who was the daughter of President Elpidio Quirino.[1]
  2. [N 2]
    Quirino's spouse, Alicia Quirino, was massacred along with the rest of the family during the Japanese occupation of the Philippines in World War II before he became president. Their daughter, Victoria, was considered First Lady.
  3. [N 3]
    Aquino's spouse, Benigno Aquino Jr., was assassinated before she became president. Her daughter Ballsy was considered as de facto First Lady.
  4. [N 4]
    Aquino was a lifelong bachelor, but his sisters served as unofficial first ladies. Malacañang Palace also hired professionals to host state banquets.
  5. [N 5]
    Duterte's marriage with Elizabeth Zimmerman was annulled before he became president. His domestic partner at the time of his presidency, Honeylet Avanceña, was never designated as First Lady but has occasionally taken on the duties of first lady.

References

  1. [1]
    Lo, Ricky (15 May 2016). "The Fabulous First Ladies, 1897-2001". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 11 May 2016.
  2. [2]
    Flores, Wilson Lee (2 March 2003). "Who were the best First Ladies?". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  3. [3]
    Cabristante, Raffy (26 June 2022). "Marcos says family preparing for his assumption to office". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  4. [4]
    San Juan, Thelma Sioson (27 July 2014). "President who has no first lady: It is what it is". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved 11 May 2016.
  5. [5]
    Tejero, Constantino. "'Do not depend on a man': Why the Quirino women are the family's driving force". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved 25 August 2021. When he (Elpidio Quirino) became president in 1948 (succeeding Manuel Roxas, who died of heart attack while in office), he made 16-year-old Vicky his First Lady and official hostess at Malacañang functions. He never remarried.
  6. [6]
    "President who has no first lady: It is what it is". Inquirer Lifestyle. Philippine Daily Inquirer. 27 July 2014. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  7. [7]
    Lago, Amanda T. (26 June 2021). "The sisters Noynoy Aquino leaves behind". Rappler. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  8. [8]
    "WATCH: Kris to host lunch for APEC first ladies". 9 November 2015.
  9. [9]
    "LOOK: Kris, sisters all set to host luncheon for APEC first ladies". 19 November 2015.
  10. [10]
    Montesa, Jon (11 November 2015). "Kris as APEC 2015 First Lady". Manila Bulletin. Archived from the original on 21 November 2015. Retrieved 11 May 2016.
  11. [11]
    "Aquino's firsts". Rappler. 15 June 2016. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  12. [12]
    Vanzi, Sol (26 June 2016). "Duterte's women". Manila Bulletin. Archived from the original on 2 July 2016. Retrieved 29 June 2016. Although Duterte has announced that his official First Lady will be his daughter Sara, Honeylet will be keeping house for the President, wherever he decides to stay.
  13. [13]
    Alconaba, Nico (11 May 2016). "Mayor Sara turns down first lady job". Inquirer Mindanao. Retrieved 19 July 2016. The country's next President still has no first lady after Sara Duterte-Carpio, daughter of presumptive President Rodrigo Duterte, turned down the offer.
  14. [14]
    "Duterte's families arrive separately in Malacañang". GMA News. 30 June 2016. Retrieved 19 July 2016. During the campaigns, Duterte had said that he was planning to name Inday Sara as his First Lady, but she begged off citing her responsibilities in Davao City.
  15. [15]
    Carillo, Carmencita (2 July 2016). "Davao mayor takes a leave on first day of office". BusinessWorld. Retrieved 19 July 2016.
  16. [16]
    Carillo, Lovely (13 July 2016). "Pulong denies Sara resigning". The Mindanao Daily Mirror. Retrieved 19 July 2016.
  17. [17]
    Macabalang, Ali (4 July 2016). "Leni pushed as Duterte's 'de facto First Lady' in official functions". Manila Bulletin.
  18. [18]
    Ranada, Pia (1 July 2017). "The evolution of Duterte's First Lady: Honeylet Avanceña". Rappler. Avanceña has been taking on so many tasks usually given to first ladies that even Palace photographers and captioners mistakenly called her "First Lady" in a photo release. Within hours, the Palace sent an email correcting the caption, replacing the title with "longtime partner."
  19. [19]
    Updated daily according to UTC.
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