Belmonte guest of honor at MLQ rites

Quezon City Mayor Feliciano Belmonte Jr. has been chosen by family members of late President Manuel Luis Quezon to be the guest of honor during the late leader’s 125th birth anniversary rites on Tuesday at the Quezon City Memorial Circle.

This was revealed in the official program prepared by the National Historical Institute (NHI) for the occasion, which is also an official holiday in Quezon City.

The yearly selection of the guest of honor for the affair is made by the family members of the late president.

Quezon was the president of the Commonwealth Republic and, at the same time, served as acting mayor of the city for 21 days prior to the approval of its charter on Oct. 12, 1939. He appointed Tomas Morato as the first mayor of the city.

The initial vision of Quezon was to develop an area where the ordinary working man can afford to build a home and take root.

Belmonte has dramatically transformed Quezon City from a financially distressed city into a bustling metropolis, now recognized as the richest local government unit in the country.

Quezon City has also been named by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) as the best managed city in the country.

Quezon City had been the capital of the Philippines from July 17, 1948, by virtue of Republic Act 333 signed by President Elpidio Quirino, until 1976 when former President Ferdinand Marcos returned back the title to Manila. – Perseus Echminada