The Chamber of Commerce of the Philippine Islands, originally known as La Cámara de Comercio de las Islas Filipinas is the provenance and oldest business institution in the Philippines, founded in 1886.

The Chamber of Commerce of the Philippine Islands (CCPI) has its origins in the Spanish period from a Royal decree by the king of Spain, Alfonso XII through the Queen Regent Maria Christina when "Cámara" institutions were throughout the Spanish colonies; and the Camara was established by this decree on April 9, 1886. On June 17, 1887, its statutes and bylaws were initially approved by the Gobierno Superior of the Philippines, and finally approved by the Queen Regent Maria Cristina on February 9, 1888. Henceforth the Cámara de Comercio de las Islas Filipinas held its first General Assembly and elected the following officers on May 24, 1887.

President:D. Joaquín María ElizaldeVice President:D. Gonzalo TuasonSentador (Secretary):D. Manuel FrancoTreasurer:D. José María EcheitaSecretary General:D. Joaquín Santamarina

Sr. Don Francisco Godínez succeeded the founding president Sr. Don Joaquín María Elizalde in 1890, followed by Sr. Don José de Echeita in 1895. After the Spanish–American War in 1898, as conflicts subsided, on July 19, 1903, the Camara de Comercio de Manila held a session wherein Sr. Luis Hidalgo, Sr. Teodoro Yangco, Sr. Vicente Somoza and Sr. Faustino Lichauco called forth a meeting to create a Filipino Chamber of Commerce and thus, Cámara de Comercio Filipina was born. In the said meeting, Don Francisco Reyes was elected as the President.

The "Cámara de Comercio Filipina" held its first session and elected Governor General William Howard Taft as the Honorary President. The Chamber ushered advocacies, programs and projects from its founding in 1886, towards edifying the Philippines as "Pearl of the Orient", a description coined by the Spanish Jesuit historian Juan Delgado in 1751 and phrased by José Rizal in his final poem, "Mi Último Adiós" for its culture and historical significance.

In the New Millenium Martial Law imperatives made the Chamber take a backseat from 1977 until 2014, the year when the National Historical Commission of the Philippines, recognizing its status, bestowed Markers upon the chamber in 3 languages: Spanish, English, and Filipino – the languages that span the Chamber's existence; thus the Chamber rekindled itself as the "Provenance Chamber of History" with the theme, "History Builds the Future."; and in 2021 the Chamber adopted a continuing guide themed "Navigating the Future as its Work Program advocacy for the coming years."

Chamber Presidents A chronological listing of the Chamber's presidents and their terms: CHAMBER PRESIDENTS Term 1886 1890 1896 1903–1904 1904 1905 Pres. Joaquin Marcelino de Elizalde Francisco Godínez José María de Echeita Francisco Z. Reyes Teodoro Yangco Rafael del Pan Term 1906–1912 1912–1915 1915–1916 1916–1917 1917–1918 1918–1919 Pres. Vicente D. Fernandez Rafael Reyes Teodoro Yangco Mauro Prieto Jose F. Fernandez Ramon J. Fernandez Term 1919–1920 1920–1921 1921–1922 1922–1923 1923–1924 1924–1925 Pres. Vicente Madrigal Juan B. Alegre Jose V. Ramirez Alfonso M. Tiaoqui Teodoro Yangco Leon Miguel Heras Term 1925–1926 1926–1927 1927–1928 1928–1929 1930–1931 1931–1932 Pres. Vicente G. Genato Manuel E. Cuyugan Vicente T. Fernandez Pio V. Corpus Leopoldo R. Aguinaldo Isaac Barza Term 1932–1933 1933–1934 1934–1935 1935–1936 1936–1941 1941 Pres. Gonzalo Puyat Arsenio N. Luz Eulogio Rodriguez Leopoldo R. Aguinaldo Vicente Madrigal Aurelio Pedro Periquet y Ziálcita Term 1941–1945 1945–1949 1951 1951–1954 1954–1955 1955–1957 Pres. Vicente Madrigal Gil J. Puyat Aurelio Pedro Periquet y Ziálcita /Daniel R. Aguinaldo Antonio de las Alas Teofilo D. Reyes Sr. Cesar M. Lorenzo Term 1957 1957–1958 1958–1960 1960–1961 1961–1962 1962–1963 Pres. Bienvenido R. Medrano Primitivo Lovina Marcelo S. Balatbat Gaudencio E. Antonino Alfonso Calalang Hermenegildo R. Reyes, Sr. Term 1963–1964 1964–1965 1965–1966 1966–1967 1967–1968 1968–1969 Pres. Domingo Arcega Demetrio Muñoz Aurelio Periquet Jr. Pio Pedrosa Teofilo Reyes Jr. Teofisto Guingona Jr. Term 1969–1970 1970–1971 1971–1972 1972–1973 1973–1974 1975–1978 Pres. Rogelio W. Manalo Simeon C. Medalla Miguel S. Arámbulo Jr. Wigberto P. Clavesilla Dominador Lim Fred J. Elizalde Term 1983 1984 1985–1992 1992–1993 1993–1996 1996–2000 Pres. Perfecto Mañalac Paulino S. Dionisio Jr. Vicente Angliongto José Barredo Lourdes L. Sanvictores Exequiel B. Garcia Term 2000–2003 2003–2006 2006–2009 2009–2010 2010–2025 Pres. Rose D. Teodoro Francis C. Chua Melito S. Salazar Jr. Benigno N. Ricafort Jose Luis U. Yulo Jr.

The Founders Among the founders of the Chamber were representatives of the cross-section of the economy. They were: Don Juan Rodriguez, shipbuilder; Don Miguel Velasco, real estate owner; Sr. Rogaciano Rodriguez, businessman; Sr. Francisco Reyes, banker, who was the first president from 1903 to 1904; Don Ricardo Aguado, businessman; Sr. Teodoro Yang-co, real estate owner; Sr. Luis Hidalgo, businessman; Don Pedro A. Roxas, real estate owner and businessman; Sr. Rafael Reyes, real estate owner and industrialist; Sr. Tomás Sunico, industrialist; Sr. Vicente Somoza Cua-Peco, real estate owner and businessman; Dr. Aristón Baustista, industrialist; Don Vicente D. Fernández, attorney-in-fact of Don Pedro P. Roxas; Sr. Telésforo Chuy-dian, real estate owner and businessman; Don Bernandino Hernandez, businessman; Sr. Faustino Lichauco, real estate owner and importer; Don Ramón Soriano, real estate owner and importer; Sr. Tomas Argüellles, architect; Sr. Ignacio Sy-yap, businessman; and Don Rafael del Pan, lawyer.

First Meeting The first organizational meeting of the founders was held at the residence of Don Juan Rodriguez on Calle Vives in Manila's San Nicolas district. It was presided by Don Miguel Velasco. In this meeting, the group adopted "Cámara de Comercio de Manila" as the name of the organization. It was later changed in 1919 to "Chamber of Commerce of the Philippine Islands / Camara de Comercio de las Islas Filipinas".

American Period (1903-1946) The change of sovereignty in the country from Spanish to American changed the tenor of business in the islands. Vicente Madrigal, Juan B. Alegre, Jose V. Ramirez, Alfonso M. Tiaoqui, Vicente P. Genato, Manuel E. Cuyugan, Vicente T. Fernandez and other prominent members of the Camara proved themselves leaders in espousing improved business relations in the Philippines.

On May 3, 1915, the members of the Camara de Comercio Filipinas amended their by-laws, and on June 19, 1915, its Escritura Social was ratified.

By 1919, English began to be used instead of Spanish, thereby the Cámara was also officially referred to in documents as the Chamber of Commerce of the Philippine Islands. On July 17, 1933, During the 3rd session of the 9th Philippine Legislature, the Secretary of Agriculture and Commerce was authorized to sell to the Chamber a land for its building and approved therein on December 6, 1933. On September 15, 1934, The Chamber was issued title to its own land, and through the contributions of private businesses, the Chamber's 3-storey building, designed by the architect Juan Arellano, was built and inaugurated in 1937 with Philippine President Manuel Quezon officiating with then-President Aurelio P. Periquet y Ziálcita.

After the end of World War II, upon the attainment of Philippine independence, on April 6, 1949, the Securities and Exchange Commission of the Department of Commerce and Industry issued a Reconstruction of Records of the Chamber of some lost documents where the Chamber was named as Cámara de Comercio de las Islas Filipinas (and henceforth, Chamber of Commerce of the Philippine Islands).

Official Publication

The Early COMMERCE Years Before the Chamber's founding, the necessity for unilaterally voicing the interests of the business community in the Philippines was a dismissive concept. However, manifold concerns confronting the conduct of business emboldened the Chamber towards issues essential to the material progress of the country.

The Chamber's official publication, named the "Revista de la Cámara de Comercio de las Islas Filipinas" released its maiden issue in 1927, subsidized by Leopoldo R. Aguinaldo (who became a Chamber president), and who later renamed the magazine's name to "COMMERCE". The change in name was made to identify it as the official organ of the Chamber.

COMMERCE Magazine had two sections for English and Spanish readerships, but was later reformatted into a wholly English language publication. It was printed in a deluxe format, on heavy paper, which made it the most expensive, authoritative and exclusive trade publication in the Philippines. In January 1952, Dr. Jose R. Katigbak was appointed to manage the magazine, assisted by M.M. de los Reyes. The Board of Editors headed by Dr. Katigbak included Domingo Abadilla and Hilarion Vibal as staff, followed by other prominent members of the Chamber who took turns in running the publication, such as Teofilo Reyes, Hilarion Vibal, Benito Medina, Carlos de Lara and George Yulo.

The Later COMMERCE Years The publication of COMMERCE was halted during the Philippine Martial Law regime. In 2015, José Luis U. Yulo Jr. (56th President of the Chamber) and Denissa G. Venturanza (executive director) decided to revive the publication. Currently, COMMERCE Magazine (Philippines) is issued regularly on a quarterly basis.

Gallery

References

External links Pearl of the Orient Economic Compass Pillars 5 (ECOMP-P5)