Philippine presidential inauguration

The inauguration of the President of the Philippines is a ceremonial event marking the commencement of a new six-year term of a President of the Philippines. The presidential inauguration occurs on June 30, as mandated by the 1987 Philippine Constitution. Under the previous 1935 Constitution, the date was December 30, which is also Rizal Day; the last inauguration to take place on the older date was Ferdinand Marcos' second one on December 30, 1969. The most recent public presidential inauguration ceremony, the swearing in of President Rodrigo Duterte to begin his six-year term in office, took place on Thursday, June 30, 2016.

Rodrigo Duterte taking the oath of office in Malacañang on June 30, 2016.

The only inauguration element mandated by the Philippine Constitution is that the president make an oath or affirmation before that person can "enter on the execution" of the office of the presidency. However, over the years, various traditions have arisen that have expanded the inauguration from a simple oath-taking ceremony to a day-long event, including parades, speeches, and balls.

When a new president takes over mid-term due to the death or resignation of a president, the oath of office is administered but formal, public inauguration events have not been held.

Inauguration rites

Manuel L. Quezon climbs up the Malacañang Palace stairs for the first time as President of the Philippines in 1935.

The ceremony since 1992 traditionally begins with the President-elect fetching the incumbent in Malacañang Palace on the morning of June 30. At the Palace's State Entrance, the President-elect will wait for the incumbent to descend the Grand Staircase. Upon meeting at the foot of the staircase, the President-elect would greet the incumbent.

Both travel to the Quirino Grandstand aboard any of the presidential cars. Following protocol, the outgoing President takes the back right-hand seat of the vehicle, while the President-elect is seated behind the chauffeur. At the Grandstand's parade grounds, the outgoing President will be welcomed with arrival honors, and then shake hands with the President-elect. The outgoing President conducts a final troop review and is presented to the public before departing the Grandstand aboard their own private vehicle. Corazon Aquino broke the custom of leaving the Grandstand immediately, choosing instead to stay until the end of Fidel Ramos's inaugural speech. Ramos also attended the oath-taking of Joseph Estrada and the inaugural ceremonies.

The inauguration proper then begins with the singing of the national anthem. An ecumenical invocation follows, led by leaders of the different major religions of the Philippines, followed by a patriotic musical piece by a musical ensemble. Afterwards, President of the Senate of the Philippines reads the Joint Resolution of the Joint Congressional Board of Canvassers proclaiming the newly elected president and vice president. Since the Third Republic, the vice-president-elect is sworn in before the president-elect to immediately secure the line of succession. During his inauguration, President Manuel L. Quezon took the oath of office first to mark a "new start".[1]

As mandated by the Constitution, the president-elect then takes the oath of office at exactly 12:00 PST (GMT+8); in 2010, President-elect Aquino did not await noon, instead taking his oath moments after Vice-President-elect Binay finished doing so. The oath is customarily administered by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines, but that is not required.[2] Due to political differences, Benigno Aquino III instead had then-Associate Justice Conchita Carpio-Morales administer the oath instead of then-Chief Justice Renato Corona. A 21-gun salute is then immediately fired, followed by four ruffles and flourishes and the Presidential Anthem, We Say Mabuhay, is played in honor of the new president, followed by the presidential honors music Marangal na Parangal (Glorious Honors).

The new president then delivers an inaugural address. Previous inaugurations also saw a full military and civil parade in the same manner as the Independence Day celebrations on 12 June (similar to the US Inaugural Parades) right after the address. From the late 1940s to the late 1960s, similar parades were also held on Rizal Day on 30 December as well and to ring in the New Year's celebrations that would start the day after.

The new president then returns to Malacañang Palace to formally take possession of the residence.[3] This formal entry is symbolised by the President ascending the Grand Staircase and proceeding to the Ceremonial Hall. Juan Luna's painting, The Blood Compact, is currently displayed at the top of the Staircase. The President then inducts the new Cabinet on the same day, and holds its first meeting immediately after.

In the evening, an inaugural reception is held for other officials and foreign dignitaries who wish to call on the new president. The customary banquets of either a vin d'honneur or an inaugural ball were abolished in an effort to revert to the pre-martial law practice of simpler official receptions. The last inaugural ball was held in 1981 for Ferdinand Marcos' third inauguration, which was also the last time the Rigodon de Honor (a Hispanic dance analogous to a court dance) was performed; it was again danced on the Independence Day celebrations of 2009. The president concludes the ceremonies with a toast, as a gesture of amity towards states that maintain diplomatic ties with the Philippines.[4]

Date

The new president is to be inaugurated at noon of June 30 as currently mandated by the 1987 Constitution, but past ceremonies were held on different dates.[5] The first President, Emilio Aguinaldo, was inaugurated on January 23, 1899, while Presidents under the 1935 Constitution were inaugurated at noon of Rizal Day (December 30). Only two Presidents under the 1935 Constitution were not inaugurated on December 30, namely Sergio Osmeña and Manuel Roxas. Ferdinand Marcos changed the inauguration date to the present June 30, while his successors Corazon Aquino and Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo were inaugurated on February 25, 1986, and January 20, 2001, respectively, Aquino after the EDSA Revolution and Arroyo after the EDSA II.

Location

Quirino Grandstand is where most inaugurations take place.

Nine inaugurations have been held at the Quirino Grandstand in the Luneta, namely Quirino (1949), Magsaysay (1953), Garcia (1957), Macapagal (1961), Marcos (1965, 1969, 1981), Ramos (1992) and Aquino III (2010).[6] Presidents Estrada and Arroyo only delivered their inaugural addresses there. To date, Estrada and Arroyo were the only presidents to take the oath of office and inaugural addresses in two different locations.

Other presidents, namely Aguinaldo and Estrada, were inaugurated at the Barasoain Church in Malolos, Bulacan; Quezon, Laurel and Roxas were inaugurated in front of the Legislative Building; and Aquino in Club Filipino, Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila.[7] Marcos was inaugurated in Maharlika Hall, Malacañang Palace in 1986, and Duterte was inaugurated in the Rizal Hall, Malacañang Palace in 2016. Arroyo took her first oath as president at the EDSA Shrine in Quezon City. Osmeña, who assumed the presidency upon the death of his predecessor Manuel L. Quezon, took his oath of office in Washington D.C. Quirino and Garcia took the oath of office in the Malacañang Palace.

Attendees

In addition to the general public the following are the attendants of the inauguration:

• The President and Vice-President-elects and their families
• Members of Congress
• Members of the President's Cabinet
• Justices of the Supreme Court
• Local officials
• Representatives of different countries and organisations
• Usually the outgoing President and Vice-President
• Choir, orchestra, and other musical performers
• Representatives of the various religions of the country
• Security, headed by the Presidential Security Group
• Military band and honor guard from the Armed Forces of the Philippines

If a civil-military parade follows the speech the format is the same as in the Independence Day parades, with the AFP first, with the units of the Philippine National Police, Bureau of Fire Protection and the Philippine Coast Guard following them and later by civilian marchers representing the government, private sector, youth and youth uniformed organizations, national athletes and the representatives of the nation's religious sector and its various ethnic nationalities.

Ceremonial

Oath of office

Under Article VII, Section 5 of the 1987 Constitution, before the president-elect and vice-president-elect enter into the execution of their offices, the president shall take the following oath or affirmation:

I,_______________, do solemnly swear [or affirm] that I will faithfully and conscientiously fulfill my duties as President [or Vice-President or Acting President] of the Philippines, preserve and defend its Constitution, execute its laws, do justice to every man, and consecrate myself to the service of the Nation. So help me God. [In case of affirmation, last sentence will be omitted.]

The oath from the Filipino version of the Constitution was used for the inaugurations of Presidents Fidel V. Ramos, Joseph Estrada and Benigno Aquino III:

Ako, si_______________, ay taimtim kong pinanunumpaan [o pinatotohanan] na tutuparin ko nang buong katapatan at sigasig ang aking mga tungkulin bilang Pangulo [o Pangalawang Pangulo o Nanunungkulang Pangulo] ng Pilipinas, pangangalagaan at ipagtatanggol ang kanyang Konstitusyon, ipatutupad ang mga batas nito, magiging makatarungan sa bawat tao, at itatalaga ang aking sarili sa paglilingkod sa Bansa. Kasihan nawa ako ng Diyos. [Kapag pagpapatotoo, ang huling pangungusap ay kakaltasin.][8]

Inaugural address

Every president since Emilio Aguinaldo delivered an inaugural address. Presidents, who became president upon the death of their predecessor, also delivered an address. It is usually delivered after the new president took the oath of office. However, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo delivered the inaugural address first at the Quirino Grandstand and then took the oath of office in Cebu.[9]

Gallery

• 
  Inauguration of President Manuel Quezon, 1935.
• 
  Inauguration of President Jose P. Laurel, 1943.
• 
  Inauguration of President Sergio Osmeña, 1944.
• 
  First inauguration of President Manuel Roxas, 1946.
• 
  Second Inauguration of President Manuel Roxas, 1946.
• 
  First Inauguration of President Elpidio Quirino, 1948.
• 
  Second Inauguration of President Elpidio Quirino, 1949.
• 
  Inauguration of President Ramon Magsaysay, 1953.
• 
  First Inauguration of President Carlos P. García, 1957.
• 
  Second Inauguration of President Carlos P. García, 1957.
• 
  Inauguration of President Diosdado Macapagal, 1961..
• 
  First Inauguration of President Ferdinand Marcos, 1965.
• 
  Second Inauguration of President Ferdinand Marcos, 1969.
• 
  Third inauguration of President Ferdinand Marcos, 1981.
• 
  Fourth Inauguration of President Ferdinand Marcos, 1986.
• 
  Inauguration of President Corazon Aquino, 1986.
• 
  Inauguration of President Fidel V. Ramos, 1992.
• 
  First Inauguration of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, 2001.
• 
  Second Inauguration of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, 2004.
• 
  Inauguration of President Benigno Aquino III, 2010.
• 
  Inauguration of President Rodrigo Duterte, 2016.

List of inaugural ceremonies

Note: Vice presidents-elect usually take the oath of office with the president-elect, but Rodrigo Duterte broke tradition by requesting Vice President-elect Leni Robredo to hold inauguration rites separately.[10] The only other instance that the vice president was inaugurated separately was when Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo succeeded to the presidency and nominated Teofisto Guingona as vice president. Guingona was confirmed by Congress on February 9, 2001, and took the oath of office the same day.

Date	President	Location	Oath administered by[11]	Document sworn on	Inaugural addresses	Notes	Article
March 22, 1897	Emilio Aguinaldo	Holy Cross Parish Church, Sta. Cruz de Malabon, Cavite	Fr. Cenon Villafranca[12]	none[6]	none		First inauguration of Emilio Aguinaldo
January 23, 1899	Emilio Aguinaldo	Barasoain Church, Malolos, Bulacan	Prime Minister Apolinario Mabini	none[6]	Emilio Aguinaldo's Inaugural Address		Second inauguration of Emilio Aguinaldo
November 15, 1935	Manuel L. Quezon	Legislative Building, Manila	Ramon Avanceña	none[6]	Manuel L. Quezon's First Inaugural Address		First inauguration of Manuel L. Quezon
December 30, 1941	(Manuel L. Quezon, no public celebration)	Malinta Tunnel, Corregidor Island, Cavite City	José Abad Santos	none[6]	Manuel L. Quezon's Second Inaugural Address		Second inauguration of Manuel L. Quezon
November 15, 1943	(Manuel L. Quezon, no public celebration)	Washington, D.C., United States	US Assoc. Justice Felix Frankfurter	none[6]	none		Third inauguration of Manuel L. Quezon
August 1, 1944	(Sergio Osmeña, no public celebration)	Washington, D.C., United States	US Assoc. Justice Robert H. Jackson	none[6]	Sergio Osmeña's Inaugural Remarks	First of three Vice Presidents to assume Presidency upon the death of the President	Inauguration of Sergio Osmeña
October 14, 1943	José P. Laurel	Legislative Building, Manila	José Yulo	none[6]	Jose P. Laurel's Inaugural Address		Inauguration of José P. Laurel
May 28, 1946[13]	Manuel Roxas	Legislative Building, Manila	Manuel Moran	none[6]	Manuel Roxas' Inaugural Address		First inauguration of Manuel Roxas
July 4, 1946[14]	Manuel Roxas	Independence Grandstand, Manila	Manuel Moran	none[6]	none		Second inauguration of Manuel Roxas
April 17, 1948[15]	(Elpidio Quirino, no public celebration)	Council of State Room, Executive Building, Malacañang Palace	Assoc. Justice Ricardo Paras	none[6]	Elpidio Quirino's Inaugural Remarks	Second of three Vice Presidents to assume Presidency upon the death of the President	First inauguration of Elpidio Quirino (Extraordinary inauguration)
December 30, 1949[16]	Elpidio Quirino	Independence Grandstand, Manila	Manuel Moran	none[6]	Elpidio Quirino's Inaugural Address		Second inauguration of Elpidio Quirino
December 30, 1953	Ramon Magsaysay	Independence Grandstand, Manila	Ricardo Paras	two family bibles; one each from his mother and father's side[6]	Ramon Magsaysay's Inaugural Address		Inauguration of Ramon Magsaysay
March 18, 1957[17]	(Carlos P. Garcia, no public celebration)	Council of State Room, Executive Building, Malacañang Palace	Ricardo Paras	none	Carlos P. Garcia's Inaugural Remarks	Third of three Vice Presidents to assume Presidency upon the death of the President	First inauguration of Carlos P. Garcia (Extraordinary inauguration)
December 30, 1957[18]	Carlos P. Garcia	Independence Grandstand, Manila	Ricardo Paras	Closed family Bible	Carlos P. Garcia's Inaugural Address		Second inauguration of Carlos P. Garcia
December 30, 1961	Diosdado Macapagal	Quirino Grandstand, Manila	César Bengzon	Closed family Bible	Diosdado Macapagal's Inaugural Address		Inauguration of Diosdado Macapagal
December 30, 1965	Ferdinand E. Marcos	Quirino Grandstand, Manila	César Bengzon	Two closed family Bibles; one owned by his father Mariano and one owned by his wife Imelda.	Ferdinand Marcos' First Inaugural Address		First inauguration of Ferdinand Marcos
December 30, 1969	Ferdinand E. Marcos	Quirino Grandstand, Manila	Roberto Concepcion	Two closed family Bibles	Ferdinand Marcos' Second Inaugural Address		Second inauguration of Ferdinand Marcos
June 12, 1978[19]	Ferdinand E. Marcos	Batasang Pambansa Complex, Quezon City	Fred Ruiz Castro	none	none		Prime Ministerial confirmation of Ferdinand Marcos
June 30, 1981	Ferdinand E. Marcos	Quirino Grandstand, Manila	Enrique Fernando	Two closed family Bibles	Ferdinand Marcos' Third Inaugural Address		Third inauguration of Ferdinand Marcos
February 25, 1986[20]	Ferdinand E. Marcos	Maharlika Hall (formerly Executive Office Building, now Kalayaan Hall), Malacañang Palace	Ramon Aquino	unknown	none		Fourth inauguration of Ferdinand Marcos (Extraordinary inauguration)
February 25, 1986[21]	Corazon C. Aquino	Club Filipino, Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila	Assoc. Justice Claudio Teehankee, Sr.	Closed family bible; owned by Aurora Aquino, mother of Ninoy Aquino[6]	Corazon Aquino's Inaugural Address		Inauguration of Corazon Aquino (Extraordinary inauguration)
June 30, 1992	Fidel V. Ramos	Quirino Grandstand, Manila	Andres Narvasa	Closed family Bible	Fidel V. Ramos' Inaugural Address		Inauguration of Fidel V. Ramos
June 30, 1998	Joseph Ejercito Estrada	Barasoain Church, Malolos, Bulacan	Andres Narvasa	Closed family Bible	Joseph Estrada's Inaugural Address		Inauguration of Joseph Estrada
January 20, 2001[22]	Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo	EDSA Shrine, Quezon City	Hilario Davide, Jr.	Closed family Bible	Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's First Inaugural Address		First inauguration of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (Extraordinary inauguration)
June 30, 2004[23]	Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo	Cebu Provincial Capitol, Cebu City	Hilario Davide, Jr.	Closed family Bible; same one used by Diosdado Macapagal in 1961	Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's Second Inaugural Address		Second inauguration of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
June 30, 2010	Benigno S. Aquino III	Quirino Grandstand, Manila	Assoc. Justice Conchita Carpio-Morales	Closed family bible; same one used by Corazon Aquino in 1986	Benigno Aquino III's Inaugural Address		Inauguration of Benigno Aquino III
June 30, 2016	Rodrigo Duterte	Rizal Hall, Malacañang Palace, Manila	Assoc. Justice Bienvenido L. Reyes	Family bible; owned by Rodrigo's mother, Soledad[24]	Rodrigo Duterte's Inaugural Address	Vice President Leni Robredo held a separate inauguration at Quezon City Reception House	Inauguration of Rodrigo Duterte

References

2. Quezon III, Manuel L. "Notes for the coming inaugural". The Long View. Retrieved 28 June 2010.
3. The Possession of Malacañang Palace, Presidential Museum and Library, June 30, 2012
5. "1987 CONSTITUTION OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES - CHAN ROBLES VIRTUAL LAW LIBRARY". www.chanrobles.com.
6. The Protocol, Ceremony, History and Symbolism of the Presidential Inauguration on the Presidential Museum and Library
7. Quezon III, Manuel L. "Notes for the coming inaugural".
8. ANG 1987 KONSTITUSYON NG REPUBLIKA NG PILIPINAS, Center for Southeast Asian Studies, Northern Illinois University
10. "Separate inauguration a first in recent history". philstar.com.
11. Individual named is the chief justice, unless otherwise indicated
12. Alvarez, S.V., 1992, Recalling the Revolution, Madison: Center for Southeast Asia Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison, ISBN 1-881261-05-0
13. The Commonwealth oath of office included a pledge of allegiance to the sovereignty of the United States
14. When the independence of the Philippines was recognized on July 4, 1946, Roxas retook his oath of office again, without the pledge of allegiance, as befits the president of a sovereign nation
15. Upon the death of Manuel Roxas
16. Upon his election in 1949
17. Upon the death of Ramon Magsaysay
18. Upon his election in 1957
19. Confirmed as Prime Minister
20. Upon certification of COMELEC
21. Upon certification of NAMFREL
22. Upon the culmination of EDSA II
23. Upon her election in 2004
24. Kitty Duterte to hold Bible of Duterte's mother for oath-taking, Pia Randa, Rappler, June 27, 2016

External links

• Philippine Presidential Inaugurations on the Official Gazette
• The Protocol, Ceremony, History and Symbolism of the Presidential Inauguration on the Presidential Museum and Library
• Inauguration of President Aquino and past Philippine Presidents