José Tría Fuentebella (June 17, 1883 – July 25, 1982), widely known as "Pepe", was a Filipino lawyer and politician. He is the first Fuentebella to foray into the national arena of politics.

Early life and education

Fuentebella studied at Colegio de San Buenaventura in Albay. He finished his

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

in Ateneo de Manila in 1902, obtained his

Bachelor of Laws A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

from Escuela de Leyes in 1905 and passed the bar in 1906. José practiced law for three years before entering politics at the age of 26.

Political career

He was elected representative of Ambos Camarines's 3rd district for the Second Philippine Legislature in 1909. He also served in the Third Philippine Legislature until 1916. He convinced his father, Mariano Fuentebella, to run for governor of Ambos Camarines in 1912. Together they formed a powerful tandem and were able to obtain benefits for the province from the colonial government. When his father died, although he was in a higher office as a representative, José accepted the appointment as governor to finish his father's term and implement their joint projects. Fuentebella ran for senator and was later proclaimed Senator-elect in

1916 Events Below, the events of the First World War have the "WWI" prefix. January * January 1 – The British Empire, British Royal Army Medical Corps carries out the first successful blood transfusion, using blood that has been stored ...

for the 6th senatorial district. However, he declined to sit as he immediately went to private practice and look after his family's financial interests instead, with the election results eventually nullified due to alleged irregularities. But in 1931, he made his return to the Senate as a 6th district senator in 1928 and served two terms (1928-1931 and 1931–1934). The Senate was abolished in 1935. In the legislative polls later that year, Fuentebella won a seat in the unicameral National Assembly and served two terms until 1941. Although the Senate was restored in 1941, Fuentebella ran for a seat in the Lower House in the November polls. However, the

1st Congress of the Commonwealth of the Philippines The 1st Congress of the Commonwealth of the Philippines (), also known as the Postwar Congress, and the Liberation Congress, refers to the meeting of the bicameral legislature composed of the Senate and House of Representatives, from 1945 to 1 ...

did not seat until 1945 as

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 ...

came to the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. During the Japanese Occupation, from September 1943 to December 1944, Fuentebella was appointed Commissioner of the 5th Military District comprising the entire Bicol Region. After consulting guerilla leaders, he accepted the appointment from the

Laurel Laurel may refer to: Plants * Lauraceae, the laurel family * Laurel (plant), including a list of trees and plants known as laurel People * Laurel (given name), people with the given name * Laurel (surname), people with the surname * Laurel (mus ...

government reluctantly and only to prevent more Japanese atrocities. He was also elected as an assemblyman to

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

1943 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 – WWII: The Soviet Union announces that 22 German divisions have been encircled at Stalingrad, with 175,000 killed and 137,650 captured. * January 4 � ...

. After the war, he finished his term as representative and successfully defended himself from accusations that he had collaborated with the Japanese. Fuentebella was appointed Philippine Ambassador to Indonesia by then

Philippine President The president of the Philippines (, sometimes referred to as ) is the head of state, head of government and chief executive of the Philippines. The president leads the executive branch of the Philippine government and is the commander-in- ...

Ramon Magsaysay Ramon del Fierro Magsaysay Sr. (August 31, 1907 – March 17, 1957) was a Filipino statesman who served as the seventh President of the Philippines, from December 30, 1953, until his death in an 1957 Cebu Douglas C-47 crash, aircraft disast ...

in March 31, 1955. He exercised deft democracy from 1955 to 1961, a crucial time in Philippine and Indonesian relations. Subsequently, Philippine President

Ferdinand E. Marcos Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. (September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino lawyer, politician, dictator, and kleptocrat who served as the tenth president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled the country under ...

appointed him Presidential Adviser on

Foreign Affairs ''Foreign Affairs'' is an American magazine of international relations and foreign policy of the United States, U.S. foreign policy published by the Council on Foreign Relations, a nonprofit organization, nonprofit, nonpartisan, membership or ...

. Fuentebella was an ardent nationalist and founder of 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 ...

in Bicol. He became president of the party in Camarines Sur from 1909 to 1955. He is one who espoused the "Filipino First" policy of then Philippine President Carlos Garcia. One of his greatest achievements as a politician was the extension of the Philippine National Railways to Bicol, establishing Camarines Sur Polytechnic Colleges in Naga City, and being the author of the "Flag Law".

Death

He died on July 25, 1982.

Legacy

The Governor Jose T. Fuentebella National Highway was named after him through Republic Act No. 7786 on August 8, 1994.

Notes

References

* Building Institutions: The Fuentebella Legacy by Coylee Gamboa {{DEFAULTSORT:Fuentebella, Jose 1883 births 1982 deaths Governors of Camarines Sur Members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines from Camarines Sur Senators of the 9th Philippine Legislature Ambassadors of the Philippines to Indonesia Nacionalista Party politicians People from Camarines Sur Advisers to the president of the Philippines Ferdinand Marcos administration personnel Jose Ateneo de Manila University alumni Members of the Philippine Legislature Members of the National Assembly of the Philippines Members of the National Assembly (Second Philippine Republic) Senators of the 8th Philippine Legislature Members of the Senate of the Philippines from the 6th district Members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines from Ambos Camarines