Alejo Santos Santos (born Alejo de los Santos de los Santos; July 17, 1911 – February 18, 1984) was a
Filipino soldier and
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
hero who parlayed his fame into a political career. His prestige was somewhat marred in later life when he agreed to run as the only major candidate opposing
Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. (September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino lawyer, politician, dictator, and Kleptocracy, kleptocrat who served as the tenth president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled the c ...
in the
1981 Philippine presidential election.
Early life and public service

Santos was born in Barangay Bonga Menor,
Bustos,
Bulacan
Bulacan, officially the Province of Bulacan (; ; ; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Central Luzon Regions of the Philippines, region. Its capital is the city of Malolos. Bulacan was established on ...
, to
farmer
A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer ...
Pedro de los Santos y de la Cruz and Regina de los Santos y Francisco.
He graduated from the
University of the Philippines
The University of the Philippines (UP; ) is a Higher education in the Philippines#State universities and colleges, state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by List of Philippine laws, Re ...
with an education degree. He first served as Prison Guard with the Bureau of Prisons from 1933 to 1934. Santos married Juanita Garcia of
Baliuag, Bulacan
Baliwag, officially the City of Baliwag (; , Kapampangan: ''Lakanbalen ning Baliwag/Siudad ning Baliwag,'' also spelled as ''Baliuag''), is a component city in the province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a popul ...
in 1934 and they had eight children: Reynaldo, Edgardo, Ravenal, Lamberto, Alexis, Liberty, Daisy, and Nenita. At the outbreak of World War II, he was a captain of the
USAFFE
United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) ( Filipino: ''Hukbong Katihan ng Estados Unidos sa Malayong Silangan''; Spanish: ''Fuerzas del Ejército de los Estados Unidos en el Lejano Oriente'') was a military formation of the United St ...
. He was among the USAFFE soldiers who retreated to
Bataan
Bataan (, , , ; ) , officially the Province of Bataan, is a province in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. Its capital is the city of Balanga while Mariveles is the largest town in the province. Occupying the entire Bataan Peninsula ...
to make the last stand against the invading
Imperial Japanese Army
The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA; , ''Dai-Nippon Teikoku Rikugun'', "Army of the Greater Japanese Empire") was the principal ground force of the Empire of Japan from 1871 to 1945. It played a central role in Japan’s rapid modernization during th ...
. However, he evaded capture by the Japanese when Bataan fell, escaping instead to his hometown. Santos then agreed to join the fledgling anti-Japanese guerrilla warfare movement under Bernard L. Anderson.
[Lapham, R., and Norling, B., 1996, Lapham's Raiders, Lexington: The University Press of Kentucky, ] He became one of the founders of the Bulacan Military Area, the main guerrilla movement in
Bulacan
Bulacan, officially the Province of Bulacan (; ; ; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Central Luzon Regions of the Philippines, region. Its capital is the city of Malolos. Bulacan was established on ...
which had 23,000 men under its command. The BMA attracted many patriotic Filipinos chafing under Japanese rule, and was soon organized into eight divisions. For his
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
activities, Santos received numerous citations and awards from the Philippine and American governments.
He was the only Filipino conferred the rank of
brigadier general by the
American Government.
Political career

After the liberation of Bulacan by joint Filipino and American ground troops in 1945, Santos was named as its military governor. He was elected as to the
House of Representatives
House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...
in 1946, representing the
2nd District of Bulacan under the banner of the leftist
Democratic Alliance, but was almost immediately unseated together with several of his party-mates in a controversial maneuver believed to be related with the looming congressional vote on the approval of the
Bell Trade Act with the United States. Nonetheless, Santos was again elected to the House in 1949, and he served in the
2nd Congress until his election as
governor
A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...
of Bulacan in 1951. By then, Santos had affiliated with the
Nacionalista Party
The Nacionalista Party (Filipino language, Filipino and Spanish language in the Philippines, Spanish: ''Partido Nacionalista''; , NP) is a political party in the Philippines which is the oldest existing party in the country and in Southeast Asi ...
. Santos would serve as governor until 1957, wherein 705 public works projects were constructed in Bulacan and the national government released for these. From 1959 to 1961, Santos served as
Secretary of National Defense in the cabinet of President
Carlos P. Garcia. In 1967, he was appointed by President
Marcos
Marcos may refer to:
People with the given name ''Marcos''
*Marcos (given name)
* Marcos family
Sports
;Surnamed
* Dayton Marcos, Negro league baseball team from Dayton, Ohio (early twentieth-century)
* Dimitris Markos, Greek footballer
* Né ...
to head the prison bureau, a post he held until 1971.
Presidential candidacy

By 1981, Santos had mostly retired from political life, devoting his activity to veterans affairs; thus, it came as a surprise when he agreed to run for President against
Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. (September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino lawyer, politician, dictator, and Kleptocracy, kleptocrat who served as the tenth president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled the c ...
in the 1981 elections. The elections were called shortly after Marcos lifted the nine-year-old declaration of
martial law
Martial law is the replacement of civilian government by military rule and the suspension of civilian legal processes for military powers. Martial law can continue for a specified amount of time, or indefinitely, and standard civil liberties ...
while retaining authoritarian powers at the same time, and were seen as a means of maintaining the veneer of democracy, especially in the international community. However, the anti-Marcos political opposition, which felt it was cheated out of victory in the 1978 parliamentary elections, refused to participate in the presidential elections and successfully called for a boycott. Santos' candidacy, ostensibly under the banner of the then-moribund Nacionalista Party, provided Marcos with at least one other "major" candidate he could run against. Santos, though the sole widely known opponent of Marcos, did not offer a vigorous campaign, and he was trounced in the election, garnering only 8% of the vote as against Marcos's 88%.
Death

Santos died just three years after his presidential candidacy on February 18, 1984 and was buried at the
Libingan ng mga Bayani
Libingan ng mga Bayani (LNMB, , ) is a national cemetery within Fort Bonifacio (formerly Fort William McKinley) in Barangay Western Bicutan, Taguig, Philippines.
First established in May 1947 as a fitting resting place for Philippine mili ...
. Later on, his remains were transferred into a memorial park in his hometown in Bulacan. A camp of the
Philippine National Police
The Philippine National Police (PNP; ) is the national police force of the Philippines. Its national headquarters is located at Camp Crame in Bagong Lipunan ng Crame, Quezon City. Currently, it has approximately 228,000 personnel to police a pop ...
in Bulacan is named after Santos.
Memorials
* The ne
General Alejo S. Santos Bridgewas inaugurated by Secretary
Mark Villar on February 19, 2020. One of the oldest bridges in Bulacan, built in 1968, was renamed on September 25, 1989 by Republic Act No.6762 to honor Santos. It connects
Barangay Tibag and
Barangay Poblacion along
Angat River
The Angat River (also called Quingua River) is a river in the Philippines located in the province of Bulacan. It flows from the Sierra Madre mountain range to Manila Bay
Manila Bay (; ) is a natural harbor that serves the Port of Manila ( ...
.
* For being a World War II hero and founder of the Bulacan Military Area, a
National Historical Commission of the Philippines
The National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP; ) is a government agency of the Philippines. Its mission is "the promotion of Philippine history and cultural heritage through research, dissemination, conservation, sites management ...
marker was placed on 17 July 2022, at Bustos Heritage Park,
Poblacion
''Poblacion'' (from Spanish '' población'', meaning "population"), sometimes abbreviated as Pob., is a term used in the Philippines to refer to the administrative center, downtown, old town, or commercial area of a city or municipality. It ...
,
Bustos, Bulacan
Bustos, officially the Municipality of Bustos (), is a Municipality of the Philippines, municipality in the Philippine Province, province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 77,199 people.
The town got ...
for General Alejo S. Santos.
* The birth house of General Alejo S. Santos is now th
Alejo Santos Memorial Shrine and Museum(Bulacan Military Area,
Bustos, Bulacan
Bustos, officially the Municipality of Bustos (), is a Municipality of the Philippines, municipality in the Philippine Province, province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 77,199 people.
The town got ...
), erected by the Dr. Jose P. Rizal Memorial Foundation
Bulacan Military Area Memorial Parkmonument stands at Bustos, Bulacan and its historical marker was installed on August 2, 2012 by the
National Historical Commission of the Philippines
The National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP; ) is a government agency of the Philippines. Its mission is "the promotion of Philippine history and cultural heritage through research, dissemination, conservation, sites management ...
Notes
References
Bibliography
''Filipinos in History: Volume IV'', National Historical Institute (Manila, 1994)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Santos, Alejo
1911 births
1984 deaths
Filipino generals
People from Bulacan
Candidates in the 1981 Philippine presidential election
Governors of Bulacan
Philippine Army personnel of World War II
Filipino paramilitary personnel
Bataan Death March prisoners
Nacionalista Party politicians
Secretaries of national defense of the Philippines
Members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines from Bulacan
Burials at the Libingan ng mga Bayani
Garcia administration cabinet members
University of Manila alumni