By Filipino Historian
1872 has been a landmark year in Filipino history. One more event believed to have taken place during this year is the birth of General Mateo Noriel Luga, an Ibanag revolutionary leader who was native of Isabela. Some sources indicate that he was born earlier (e.g., 1868), but oral tradition in his hometown of Tumauini seems to indicate that 1872 was the correct year. To this day, however, the search for the exact date of his birth remains ongoing.
Luga left his province to join the Philippine Revolution in 1896, where he figured in early battles such as those fought in Antipolo and Montalban (now Rodriguez), among others. For a while, he was imprisoned by the Spanish in Fort Santiago, at the time when Jose Rizal was also incarcerated. Fortunately for him, the Spanish were unable to press on his execution.
By April 1899, Luga attests that General Antonio Luna himself recommended his assignment to Cebu to serve as a military adviser. His journey to the province, however, was a challenge. He had to disguise as a sailor aboard the ship called "Butuan" to avoid detection. Owing to his covert entry to Cebu, General Juan Climaco and his staff doubted Luga's credentials. Yet armed with President Emilio Aguinaldo's letter, Luga was eventually accepted by the Cebuano revolutionaries.
By this time, the Filipino-American War had reached Cebu, where Luga would be regarded as one of the major non-Visayan leaders to fight in the province at the time. His exploits earned him various monikers, among them "alimokon" or white-eared brown dove (endemic bird to the Philippines), and "tagolilong" or an invisible being. At one time, he was said to have almost captured General Henry Ware Lawton during a raid at Pardo, also in Cebu. When the Americans resorted to imprisoning his family to persuade him to surrender, he instead went for their rescue and succeeded.
On October 27, 1901, on the same day Climaco and General Arcadio Maxilom surrendered to the United States, Luga and 38 of his troops also laid down their arms at Carcar. This ended the organized resistance in Cebu. Nonetheless, believing that public service has not ended for him, Luga was among the first to join the newly-formed Philippine Constabulary (PC), wherein he pursued peace in the provinces, particularly against the so-called "Pulahanes", fighters who adhered to syncretic religious beliefs, and earned their name due to the red fabric (pula) they usually wear.
Rising to the rank of captain, Luga would resign from the Constabulary by 1914. As his reason, he would point to suspicions at the time that he supposedly had pro-Japanese sentiments. Thinking that he had served the Philippines well, it appeared distasteful for him to be suspected in the first place. Luga remained active in the public scene, opposing the Hare-Hawes-Cutting Act which pledged Filipino independence after ten years but provided for US military bases to remain. This despite the law being a result of lobbying by the Osmeña-Roxas Mission, both Visayan leaders. It would take another law, the Tydings-McDuffie Act, to formalize the transition phase and the creation of the Philippine Commonwealth.
After his Constabulary service, Luga was also active in the Philippine Refining Company (formerly Visayan Refining Company). Luga died on April 9, 1935 in Manila, unable to see the freedom he fought for so long. In a 1924 interview, he gave this statement in regards to the Filipino struggle of his time:
"We the veterans, are already old, but before we die, there is only one wish that I am asking from God. Even though we have no money to leave behind because we are poor, we do wish that before we go to our final resting ground, we can see that you who are left behind can enjoy the fruits of the freedom we have been hoping for."
The General Mateo Luga Award was named in his honor. Learn more about the Revolution:
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