Sergio "Serging" Veloso Osmeña Jr. (December 4, 1916 – March 26, 1984) was a Filipino politician who served as a

Senator of the Philippines The Senate of the Philippines ( Filipino: ''Senado ng Pilipinas'', also ''Mataas na Kapulungan ng Pilipinas'' or "upper chamber") is the upper house of Congress of the bicameral legislature of the Philippines with the House of Representatives a ...

, and ran against Ferdinand Marcos in the 1969 Philippine Presidential election. He was the son of

Sergio Osmeña Sergio Osmeña Sr. (, ; 9 September 1878 – 19 October 1961) was a Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the fourth president of the Philippines from 1944 to 1946. He was vice president under Manuel L. Quezon. Upon Quezon's sudd ...

, the fourth

president of the Philippines The president of the Philippines ( fil, Pangulo ng Pilipinas, sometimes referred to as ''Presidente ng Pilipinas'') is the head of state, head of government and chief executive of the Philippines. The president leads the executive branch of t ...

. His son, Sergio "Serge" Osmeña III, was also a Senator of the Philippines.

Early life

Osmeña was born in the town of

Cebu Cebu (; ceb, Sugbo), officially the Province of Cebu ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Sugbo; tl, Lalawigan ng Cebu; hil, Kapuroan sang Sugbo), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 16 ...

on December 4, 1916, to Sergio Osmeña Sr., then the House Speaker and representative from the 2nd district of Cebu, and Estefania Chiong Veloso. He had a brother, Emilio Osmeña, father of Emilio Mario Osmeña Jr. and John Henry Osmeña. He graduated Associate of Arts, cum laude, from

Ateneo de Manila University , mottoeng = Light in the Lord , type = Private, research, non-profit, coeducational basic and higher education institution , established = December 10, 1859 , religious_affiliation = Roman Catholic ( Jesuits) , academic ...

on 1935, and Bachelor of Science in commerce, summa cum laude, from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...

in 1936. After graduating which Osmeña opened an import-export business in New York.

Actions in World War II

Osmeña collaborated with the Japanese in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. He escaped justice and returned to the Philippines and became President of the De La Rama Steamship Company.

Political career

In 1951, he was elected provincial governor of Cebu and Mayor of Cebu City for three terms in 1955, 1959 and 1963. Elected as representative for the second district of Cebu in 1958, his notable work as fiscalizer brought him recognition from the Congressional Press Club which voted him as one of the Ten Most Outstanding Congressmen of 1959. In 1961, Osmeña ran for

Vice President of the Philippines The vice president of the Philippines ( fil, Pangalawang Pangulo ng Pilipinas, also referred to as ''Bise Presidente ng Pilipinas'') is the second-highest official in the executive branch of the Philippine government and is the first in the p ...

as an independent, but lost to Senator

Emmanuel Pelaez Emmanuel Neri Pelaez (November 30, 1915 – July 27, 2003) was a Filipino public servant and politician who served as the 6th Vice President of the Philippines from 1961 to 1965. Early life and career Pelaez was born in Medina, Misamis (now ...

. In the November 1965 elections, he won a seat in the Philippine Senate.

1969 Philippine Presidential election

Osmeña publicly opposed the Marcos administration. On April 5, 1969, at the St. Francis Hotel, San Francisco,

Marcos Marcos may refer to: People with the given name ''Marcos'' *Marcos (given name) Sports ;Surnamed * Dayton Marcos, Negro league baseball team from Dayton, Ohio (early twentieth-century) * Dimitris Markos, Greek footballer * Nélson Marcos, Portug ...

Exposed Osmeña of collaborating with the Japanese in World War II. Later on June 15, Osmeña won the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

nomination for

President of the Philippines The president of the Philippines ( fil, Pangulo ng Pilipinas, sometimes referred to as ''Presidente ng Pilipinas'') is the head of state, head of government and chief executive of the Philippines. The president leads the executive branch of t ...

, and would run against incumbent President Ferdinand Marcos for the

1969 Philippine presidential election The 1969 Philippine presidential and vice presidential elections were held on November 11, 1969. Incumbent President Ferdinand Marcos won a second full term as President of the Philippines. Marcos was the last president in the entire electoral h ...

. Marcos spent US$50 million in infrastructure projects in an effort to improve the country. This rapid campaign spending was so massive that it would be responsible for the Balance of Payments Crisis of 1970, whose inflationary effect would cause social unrest leading all the way up to the proclamation of Martial Law in 1972. Marcos was reported to have spent PhP 100 for every PhP 1 that Osmena spent, using up PhP 24 Million in Cebu alone.

Subsequent activities

Following his presidential loss, Osmeña continued as a leader in the Liberal Party. On August 21, 1971, Osmeña along with prominent members of the Liberal Party held a proclamation rally at the

Plaza Miranda Plaza Miranda is a public square bounded by Quezon Boulevard, Hidalgo Street and Evangelista Street in Quiapo, Manila. It is the plaza which fronts the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene (Quiapo Church), one of the main churches of the City ...

in Quiapo. While on stage with the other Liberal leaders, two hand grenades were thrown on stage, injuring Osmeña. The

Plaza Miranda bombing The Plaza Miranda bombing ( fil, Pambobomba sa Liwasang Miranda) occurred during a political rally of the Liberal Party at Plaza Miranda, Quiapo district, Manila, the Philippines on August 21, 1971. It caused nine deaths and injured 95 others ...

, injured 95, including Osmeña, and killed 9. Afterwards, Osmeña left for the United States and lived in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California. Marcos proclaimed martial law in September 1972 and submitted documents to the U.S. Congress, he declared martial law due to a communist threat of the Communist Party of the Philippines and the rebellion of the

Muslim Independence Movement The Muslim Independence Movement (MIM) was a secessionist political organization in the Philippines. On 1 May 1968, two months after the Jabidah massacre, Datu Udtog Matalam, a former governor of Cotabato, issued a Manifesto for the declaration of ...

, the documents charged that declaration of martial law was also due to a plot to kill Marcos. Osmeña was a key figure in the plot, although no formal charges were filed against him.

Personal life

He was married to Lourdes de la Rama of

Negros Occidental Negros Occidental ( hil, Nakatungdang Negros; tl, Kanlurang Negros), officially the Province of Negros Occidental, is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas Regions of the Philippines, region. ...

with whom he had five children: Sergio III ("Serge"),

Tomas Tomas may refer to: People * Tomás (given name), a Spanish, Portuguese, and Gaelic given name * Tomas (given name), a Swedish, Dutch, and Lithuanian given name * Tomáš, a Czech and Slovak given name * Tomas (surname), a French and Croatian su ...

("Tommy"), Maria Victoria ("Minnie"), Esteban ("Stevie"), and Georgia.

Death

Osmeña died of respiratory failure at the age of 67 on March 26, 1984, at

Cedars Sinai Medical Center Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is a nonprofit, tertiary, 886-bed teaching hospital and multi-specialty academic health science center located in Los Angeles, California. Part of the Cedars-Sinai Health System, the hospital employs a staff of over 2 ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Osmena, Sergio 1916 births 1984 deaths Ateneo de Manila University alumni Candidates in the 1969 Philippine presidential election Cebuano people Children of presidents of the Philippines Deaths from respiratory failure Filipino Roman Catholics Governors of Cebu Independent politicians in the Philippines Liberal Party (Philippines) politicians Mayors of Cebu City Members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines from Cebu New York University Stern School of Business alumni Sergio People from Cebu City Candidates in the 1961 Philippine vice-presidential election Senators of the 6th Congress of the Philippines Senators of the 7th Congress of the Philippines Filipino collaborators with Imperial Japan