Last of two parts
I GAVE the keynote address at the UP Manila College of Arts and Sciences Manila Studies Program conference, “Metro Manila @ 50: Narratives, Connections and Relevance,” last Nov. 7, 2025, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the establishment of Metropolitan Manila. I answered the question, “What is Metro Manila to us?”
Finally, if for King Philip II Manila was “Insigne y Siempre Leal Ciudad” (Distinguished and Ever Loyal City), Metro Manila’s recent history makes it a “Distinguished and Ever Expanding City.” The kingdom or “bayan” of Maynila by 1571 was the Spanish capital Ciudad Manila; it was that area near the “alog” of Pasig River and Manila Bay, which eventually was walled in to become Intramuros, all of 67 hectares. That was the center of the Spanish Empire in the East. Eventually, the “arabales” or the suburbs, under Provincia de Tondo, would be called Provincia de Manila. Although much of Provincia de Manila became the province of Rizal in 1901, what used to be Ciudad de Manila would expand to become what is now known as the City of Manila. Although President Manuel Luis Quezon created a dream capital city in 1939, Quezon City, north of Manila, which would become the actual capital of the nation from 1948 to 1976. Manila retained its capital city status that year, but the permanent seat of national government would be Metropolitan Manila with 17 local government units, also known as the National Capital Region, or Kamaynilaan.
In many ways, Manila expanded through reclamations in Dagat-Dagatan, Tondo, and the Cultural and Financial Center Complex. In an interview with Nathaniel von Einsiedel, planning commissioner of the Metropolitan Manila Commission, for my MA thesis, he confirmed to me MMC governor Imelda Marcos’ plan to expand Metro Manila to Infanta and Real, Quezon province, to make Metro Manila the only city in the world facing two major bodies of water — the South China Sea and the Pacific Ocean. This did not push through, but even today, Metro Manila is expanding through the various big reclamations in Manila Bay despite opposition from various sectors. Who would have thought?
With Metropolitanization in 1975 and with Metro Manila as a showcase of the Marcos regime as “The City of Man” (MANila, lots of pun intended, I guess), First Lady and MMC governor Imelda Marcos gave focus in giving it the 11 Basic Needs of Man — food, clothing, shelter, water, power, health, education and culture, sports and recreation, ecological balance, mobility and livelihood. She gave the impression that she could dispense “kaginhawahan” to Metro Manila; that was why she was also called “Lady Bountiful.” With this, Jarius Bondoc told me that like bees searching for food, people flocked to Metro Manila.
Metro Manila as a space also became a symbol of the centralization of the nation’s powers in one man, the dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr. And so all political leaders needed to have a residence near the national leader, bringing with them their retinue. This is key to Metro Manila’s overpopulation.
When the People Power Revolution happened, this became a dilemma. The government’s power had to be devolved to the local governments, and with local autonomy, each Metro Manila mayor was now king in his own kingdom. But what Metro Manila actually needed was centralization — coordinated governance in the MMC setup. I mean roads, sewage, water and electric lines do not end in each city’s boundaries. Just look at the different traffic schemes and traffic rules, and tickets, even if Metro Manila should be one indivisible city. “Kaya tayo nagkandahetot-hetot.”
We were lamenting that the Frost-Arellano plan for Quezon City as the capital was not implemented, where there would have been one big Plaza of the Republic at Constitution Hills, where all three branches of government would be. Only the Batasan was built, and now the area is filled with settlers. Now, we have the Presidential Palace and the Supreme Court in Manila, and the two houses of Congress in Pasay (Senate) and Quezon City (House of Representatives). The central offices of government, instead of being in one place, are scattered. But is that really a bad thing? Former Quezon City mayor Herbert Bautista made me think, what if all government offices were in Quezon City, just imagine the traffic jam that could happen.
So, what is the meaning of Metro Manila?
A scapegoat for inept local dynastic leaders who blame “Imperial Manila” for their inefficient governance and misuse of their powers in the Local Government Code. (It has always been proven that good local governance makes one locality prosperous, despite what is happening in the national government.) I think this is so unfair to Metro Manila. I even imagine how it would fare if we just make it a substate like the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). There was a time when the government reduced the train fare subsidy because it was supposedly unfair to the provinces. But I believe solving Metro Manila’s problems also helps solve the country’s problems because there are actually very few original Manilans here. Most of us are provincianos actually profiting from Manila, so we can also share kaginhawahan with those we left behind in the provinces.
So, who is Metro Manila? I will channel President Quezon’s famous quip, ‘I am the Philippines’:
“We are Metro Manila! We have the gahum/power to change it!”
