Day before the execution of Jose Rizal Magdiwang and Magdalo leaders met to discuss how to settle differences in revolutionary struggle and also a plot to snatch Rizal on the eve of his execution scheduled by the Spanish colonial authorities, also exploration of unified leadership fails because of dispute over which leadership should prevail; Supremo Bonifacio asks Aguinaldo, secretary of the meeting to record a motion forwarded re-framing of a constitution, despite the fact that the Katipunan Government already had one, but Aguinaldo asks that the matter be deferred at the moment.
After the execution of Jose Rizal at Bagumbayan, Josephine Bracken with Paciano & Trinidad Rizal (her brother & sister-in-law, the latter a Katipunera & a Mason), according to Santiago Alvarez’s Memoirs, said that the Rizals came at past one o'clock in the afternoon of December 30, 1896 at San Francisco de Malabon (now General Trias). Andres Bonifacio, the Katipunan supremo, received the Rizals himself at the house of Mrs. Estefania Potente where he was staying. Was requested by the Rizals to translate Rizal's poem ("Mi Ultimo Adios" originally untitled, unsigned and undated) to Tagalog. Supremo Bonifacio asked if he could keep for some time a copy of Rizal’s poem so that he could translate it into Tagalog with the assistance of Diego Mojica, President of the Popular Council Mapagtiis & local Cavite poet & writer in Tagalog. This Tagalog translation by the Supremo Bonifacio is now known as "Pahimakas."
The following day a meeting was held between the Magdalo and Magdiwang parties of the Katipunan at Imus, Cavite, December 31, to determine the leadership of Cavite in order to end the rivalry between the two factions. The issue of whether the current Katipunan Government should be replaced by a revolutionary government was brought up by the Magdalo, the Magdiwang favored the old Katipunan Government, though both factions agreed that Cavite should not be divided. Supremo Bonifacio and the Magdiwang contended that the Katipunan already functioned like a full-fledged and served as their revolutionary government since it had its own constitution, laws and provincial and municipal governments. Magdiwang is major Katipunan force in Cavite, with 3,400 guns compared to Magdalo's 2000 and had decidedly bigger territories covered.
In the same meeting, a Magdalo engineer and general named Edilberto Evangelista made a draft of a constitution. Aguinaldo himself publicly recommended Evangelista to head the revolutionary government that would be established in place of the Katipunan Government, according to Aquinaldo, Evangelista is "the most educated" in the organization and that Evangelista could "command the respect of the Spaniards." Evangelista presented his draft constitution for the proposed government to Supremo Bonifacio but this had earlier been rejected as too similar and finding it plagiarized from the Spanish "Maura Law" - the same law that laid the basic foundations for Spanish Municipal Government in the Philippines. It is named after its author, Antonio Maura y Montaner the Spanish Minister of Colonies at the time. The Maura Law established tribunales, municipales and juntas provinciales and these foundations laid by the Maura Law were later adopted, revised and strictly followed by the American and Filipino governments that succeeded Spanish rule in the country. Evangelista's constitution contradicts the objectives of the Katipunan Government; Liberty, Equality, Fraternity...
1) To advocate complete independence from Spain, to be achieved through armed struggle.
2) To take back lands, gold, personal savings, personal properties confiscated by the church and Spanish Cortes from the poor masses. They also saw it as their personal responsibility to help the poor, the oppressed and to teach them good manners, hygiene and morality.
3) To dismiss the elite society and social classes, instead create an equal social status.
The Imus Assembly presided by Supremo Andres Bonifacio, ended without a resolution of the conflict and issues. Upon the event of restructuring, according to Santiago Alvarez and Artemio Ricarte, the assembly agreed to appoint Supremo Bonifacio as the head of a legislative committee and was given the authority by both factions to appoint members he considers worthy in setting up a new government. The Supremo requested for the minutes of the meeting to establish this given authority, but these were never provided.
- ka tony
the 29th of December, 2013
