‘We shall create more opportunities to salute the intellectual legacy of Renato Constantino and facilitate engaging discussions on wicked Philippine problems (landlordism, usury, grinding poverty, regressive taxation, unjust enrichment, bureaucratism).’
T the climax of this year’s History Month (Proclamation No. 339, c.16 February 2012), we organized and hosted the first launch of the 50th anniversary edition of Renato Constantino’s A Past Revisited, where Red Constantino provided the context on the decision to reprint his grandfather’s seminal work.
On the relevance of Constantino’s historical analysis in the 21st century, Rhett Daza concurred with Red at the forum: “Fifty years after it first appeared, amidst new research and publications, APR remains relevant. We have reached the end of globalization and arrived at a multi-polar world. And in this world where the erstwhile leader of the Western world, America, now cries ‘America first’, Constantino has the honor of writing APR in 1975, with ‘Filipino first’ in mind.” [Hunters-ROTC Historical Society]
While Raymond Ciriaco (Assistant Rotary Coordinator for all 10 districts of the Philippines and the two districts of Indonesia) shared: “I stand before you today not just as a speaker, but as a proud student of the late Professor Renato Constantino during the transformative years of the 1980s. Studying under him was not merely an academic experience—it was a profound awakening. His book, ‘The Philippines: A Past Revisited,’ was more than a textbook; it was a mirror that reflected the truths we were never taught. Professor Constantino challenged us to question the sanitized versions of history that glorified colonial powers and minimized the struggles of our ancestors. He taught us that history must be written from the perspective of the Filipino people—not from the lens of the colonizer or the elite. I remember vividly how he would dissect historical events with such clarity and conviction, urging us to see beyond the surface and understand the socio-political forces at play. Reading ‘A Past Revisited’ as his student was like peeling away layers of falsehood. It revealed the economic stagnation under Spanish rule, the manipulation of education under American colonization, and the resilience of our people through centuries of oppression. It was in his classroom that I first understood the power of historical consciousness and its role in shaping national identity. Professor Constantino’s legacy lives on in every Filipino who dares to question, to learn, and to act. I am forever grateful for the opportunity to have learned from him, and I carry his teachings with me in every endeavor I pursue.”
Re-introducing A Past Revisited to a combined audience of Public Health and Pharmaceutical Sciences freshmen enrolled in Philippine History I, plus Masters of Management majors of the University of the Philippines Manila, was the forum that supplied the propositions, facts and narratives to flesh out the application of stakeholder and institutional theories on the modern Philippine business and management landscape. From the concept of “un-learning” colonial history and the historical development of the Philippine economy to the analysis of post-WWII economic reconstruction and the imperative for nationalist industrialization, A Past Revisited can provide valuable input for crafting corporate social responsibility in a historically unequal society as well as strategic plans in a politically sensitive environment. How advantageous is it for an investment analyst to monitor a multinational corporation’s entry into the local market through the lens of Constantino’s historical critique? Or an auditor examining a major infrastructure project?
In addition, the Managing Director of the Constantino Foundation emphasized that the magnum opus was a two-person job: “A Past Revisited was written by Renato Constantino and Letizia Roxas Constantino. You will not be faulted for thinking it was only the former. The historian was often at the frontlines and his name was frequently in the crosshairs of the establishment, while the latter, time and again, made an effort to keep her profile low. Yet if you have a copy of any of the book’s editions, you will read inside on the title page what many may have missed: the words ‘With the collaboration of Letizia R. Constantino.’ She was always there, by his side as his equal, a lifelong partner in their mission to wield history and advance the cause of national liberation and genuine democracy…She penned a short poem…on June 20, 1977, reflecting on the nature of their partnership with a bit of humor:
He reads, I write.
He thinks, I organize.
His the forest, mine the trees.
His the skeleton, mine the flesh.
His the larger dimensions, mine the subsidiary insights. (He is inspired, I perspire.)” [Renato Redentor Constantino, Introduction to the 50th Edition] This in turn inspired a writer to craft two translations of the poem:
Siya, nagbabasa; ako, nagsusulat.
Siya, nagiisip; ako, nagaayos.
Gubat, kanya; mga puno, akin.
Kalansay, kanya; laman, akin.
Kabuuang tanglaw, kanya; kaakibat na karunungan, akin.
(Napupukaw siya, pinagpapawisan ako.) [Lakan Uhay Alegre, Filipino]
Hiya, nagbabasa; ako, nagsusurat.
Hiya, naghuhuna-huna; ako, nag-aadam.
Iya an kagubuatan, akon an kakahuyan.
Iya an kalansay, akon an unod.
Iya an haluag nga kasukod, akon an dugang nga pan-urat.
(Gindadasig hiya, ginbabalhas ako.) [Lakan Uhay Alegre, Waray]
This is only the beginning. We shall create more opportunities to salute the intellectual legacy of Renato Constantino and facilitate engaging discussions on wicked Philippine problems (landlordism, usury, grinding poverty, regressive taxation, unjust enrichment, bureaucratism).
