Eulogio "Amang" Adona Rodriguez Sr. (born Eulogio Rodríguez y Adona; January 21, 1883 – December 19, 1964) was a Filipino politician who twice served as

President of the Senate of the Philippines The president of the Senate of the Philippines ( fil, pangulo ng Mataas na Kapulungan ng Pilipinas or ), commonly known as the Senate president, is the presiding officer and the highest-ranking official of the Senate of the Philippines, and thir ...

Early life

Coming from a poor family, Rodriguez was born in Montalban (renamed ''Rodriguez'' in his honor), then part of

Manila province Manila, also formerly known as Tondo until 1859, was a historical province in the Philippines, encompassing the former pre-Hispanic polities of Tondo, Maynila and Namayan. In 1898, it included the City of Manila (which mainly refers to the pre ...

on January 21, 1883 to Petronilo Rodriguez and Monica Adona. He first studied at the Spanish-run public school in Montalban, then took his secondary course at the

Colegio de San Juan de Letran The Colegio de San Juan de Letran, (transl: College of San Juan de Letran) also referred to by its acronym CSJL, is a private Catholic coeducational basic and higher education institution owned and run by the friars of the Order of Preachers i ...

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

, where he completed his Bachelor of Arts in 1896. He then studied law under a private tutor. To help himself in his studies, he worked as a farmer.

Political career

Rodriguez first served as Municipal President of Montalban, Rizal from 1906–1916; became Governor of Rizal in June 1916; and was reelected in June 1922. He was appointed

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

by Governor General

Leonard Wood Leonard Wood (October 9, 1860 – August 7, 1927) was a United States Army major general, physician, and public official. He served as the Chief of Staff of the United States Army, Military Governor of Cuba, and Governor-General of the Philipp ...

on July 23, 1923, and later served as Representative of

Nueva Vizcaya Nueva Vizcaya, officially the Province of Nueva Vizcaya ( ilo, Probinsia ti Nueva Vizcaya; gad, Probinsia na Nueva Vizcaya; Pangasinan: ''Luyag/Probinsia na Nueva Vizcaya''; tl, Lalawigan ng Nueva Vizcaya ), is a landlocked province in the ...

from February 1924 to May 1925. He became the Representative of the Second District of Rizal in 1925 and was reelected in 1931 and 1934. He was also appointed Secretary of Agriculture and Commerce by Governor Frank Murphy on July 26, 1934, re-appointed by President Manuel L. Quezon on November 15, 1935, and served as such until 1938. After his resignation as Mayor of

, he campaigned for a seat in the Senate and was elected senator in 1941. On May 20, 1953, he was elected Senate President, a position he occupied for the next ten years. As the third highest government official, he steered the Senate into greater heights in terms of legislation. He was replaced by then-Senator Ferdinand Marcos, then the Minority Floor Leader as Senate President in a leadership coup on 1963, ending his long leadership of the Upper Chamber. Rodriguez started his political career as a Democrata or a member of the opposition party, and not until there was a general realignment of parties due to the divisive struggle over the approval of the Independence Law in 1933, did he switch to the majority or the Nacionalista Party, to which he remained faithful until the day of his death three decades later. He nursed the party during its darkest hours, and steered it successfully through the political reefs and typhoons that rocked the local scene, thus earning him the nickname "''Mr. Nacionalista''". Unlike many politicians of his time, he did not switch parties for personal convenience.

Personal life

He had seven children by his first wife, Juana Santiago: Eulogio Jr., Jose, Ruperto, Leonor, Isidro, Constancio and Adelaida. With his second wife, Luisita Canoy, he had three children: Adelaida Erlinda and Rafael.

Death

He died on December 19, 1964 in

Pasay Pasay, officially the City of Pasay ( fil, Lungsod ng Pasay; ), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 440,656 people. Due to its location j ...

, Philippines, at the age of 81.

Legacy

After Amang's death, Amang Rodriguez Memorial Medical Center, a private hospital in

Marikina Marikina (), officially the City of Marikina ( fil, Lungsod ng Marikina), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 456,159 people. It is loca ...

, was named after him.

Eulogio "Amang" Rodriguez Institute of Science and Technology The Eulogio "Amang" Rodriguez Institute of Science and Technology (commonly referred to as EARIST; Filipino: ''Kolehiyong Eulogio "Amang" Rodriguez sa Agham at Teknolohiya'') is a public college in Santa Mesa, Manila in the Philippines. It was ...

was established in 1945 was named after him. España Boulevard Extension in

and an avenue between Rosario and Dela Paz in

Pasig Pasig, officially the City of Pasig ( fil, Lungsod ng Pasig), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 803,159 people. It is located along t ...

were renamed in his honor, as well as the municipality of Montalban.