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The Liberal Party (LP) was founded on 19
January 1946 by Manuel Roxas, the first President of the Third Philippine
Republic. It was formed by Pres. Roxas from what was once the “Liberal
Wing” of the old Nacionalista Party. Two more Presidents of
the Philippines elected into office came from the LP: Elpidio Quirino
and the redoubtable Diosdado Macapagal. Two other Presidents came
from the ranks of the LP, being former members of the Party that choose
to follow a different path and joined the Nacionalistas: Ramon Magsaysay,
and Ferdinand Marcos.
During the days leading to Martial Rule, Marcos would find his old
Party as a potent roadblock to his quest for one-man rule. Led by
Ninoy Aquino, Gerry Roxas and Jovito Salonga, the LP would time and
again hound the would-be dictator on issues like Human Rights and
the curtailment of Freedoms. Not even the declaration of Martial Law
silenced the LP, and it continued to fight the dictatorship despite
the costs. Many of its leaders and members would be prosecuted and
even killed during this time.
In recent times, the LP was instrumental in ending more than half-a-century
of US Military presence in the Philippines with its campaign in the
Senate of 1991 to reject a new RP-US Bases Treaty. This ironically
cost the Party dearly, losing for it the Elections of 1992. In 2000,
it again showed its mettle by standing against the corruption of the
Estrada Administration, actively supporting the Resign-Impeach-Oust
initiatives that led to People Power II.
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