Filemon Sotto Drive, Cebu City

Filemon Y. Sotto was born on November 24, 1872, son of spouses Marcelino Legaspi Sotto and Pascuala Yap. His father, Marcelino, died on February 5, 1890 (Filemon was barely 18 years old then), his widowed mother, Pascuala, reared him and his younger brother, Vicente alone. The Sotto brothers, went to the San Carlos Seminary in Cebu, then to the San Juan de Letran College. Filemon, finished his Bachelor of  Laws at the University of Santo Tomas in 1905 and admitted to the Philippine Bar the same year.

Filemon, was elected as councilor of the municipality of Cebu in December 1, 1903, then as vice president of the municipal board. He was appointed as fiscal of Negros Occidental and assistant fiscal of Cebu. He was the first elected representative of the old 3rd district of Cebu, serving from 1907 to 1916. He then ran and became one of the first two elected senators of the 10th senatorial district, this was from 1916 to 1922.

By virtue of the Jones Law of 1916, the Philippine Congress became bicameral, thus the Philippines was divided into twelve senatorial districts, Cebu being the 10th District.  He was elected delegate of the 1934 Constitutional Convention, and became part of the fabled Seven Wise Men who drafted the 1935 Constitution.

Filemon married Carmen Rallos but prior to his marriage he had a child from Remedios Duterte, the child was named Pascuala (born on February 9, 1913, named in memory of her mother, Pascuala Yap. Pascuala, nicknamed Lily, went to "Farbulos" later called Colegio del Nino Jesus. In 1932, her daughter married Sixto Pahang and bore a child named Antonio, who became a lawyer (admitted to the bar on May 11, 1959).

Filemon's other children were Marcelo, Miguel Barcelona, and Matilde Sotto-Palicte.

Filemon, like his brother Vicente, was a journalists. He founded the "El Imparcial" and La Revolucion (1910-1941). The other newspapers he founded were Ang Kaluwasan and La Opinion.

Don Filemon died on October 10, 1966, a year after, a grateful city honored him with a street, starting from President Laurel Street running northeast and parallel to President Magsaysay Street, up to the end of the subdivision (Gochan Subdivision) in the Mabolo District. This was on July 10, 1967 contained under City Ordinance No. 594.

The city council named another street in his honor, the "Don Filemon Sotto Street," ordained under City Ordinance No. 635, enacted September 10, 1968, this was in lieu of Jazmin Street.

A later ordinance was passed, City Ordinance No. 955, enacted December 6, 1976, Jazmin Street to Nicolas Rafols, City Ordinance No. 973 (July 5,1977) Jasmin Street and Maria Cristina Street to Nicolas Rafols.

To end this confusion and for uniformity, City Ordinance No. 1123, sponsored by Councilor Bienvenido B. Tudtud, on April 26, 1982,  named a street starting from the junction of Gorordo Avenue opposite the Medalla Milagrosa Church and up to the corner of General Arcadio Maxilom Avenue near the Iglesia Ni Cristo  Church "Filemon Sotto Drive."

Thus City ordinance nos. 635 and 594 were hereby repealed. This was done during the term of Dr. Florentino Solon, Mayor of Cebu City.