The Past Leaders of Quezon City: Diaz

THE IGNACIO SANTOS-DIAZ ADMINISTRATION
January 4, 1950 – December 30, 1953

On January 4, 1950, Ignacio Santos Diaz was appointed as the new mayor of Quezon City by President Quirino. This was one of the more popular decisions of the President, considering the as early as July 17, 1946, he was congressman from the first district of Rizal, and he sponsored House Bill No. 159, in the first session of the Second Congress, which sought to separate Quezon City from the City of Greater Manila. The bill was subsequently approved.

He pushed for a bill seeking to make Quezon City the “capital of the country.” As chairman of the congressional committee on landed estates, Diaz carefully studied the plans of the Capital City Planning Commission, to ensure that they served the interests of the projected metropolis.

Ignacio Santos Diaz was born on October 4, 1906. He was the fifth of ten children of Roberto Santos Diaz and Roberta de la Cruz of Marikina, Rizal.

During his term, Diaz worked to have the Quezon City Charter revised, to accommodate the new development thrusts of the city. The result was Republic Act 537 which, among others, increased Quezon City’s original area tenfold to 15,359 hectares and drastically changed the composition of the city council. The number of the councilors was increased from three to eight; the mayor was chairman of the council and the vice mayor an ex-officio member. The eight councilors were to be appointed by the President, with the consent of the Commission on Appointments; they were to hold office at the pleasure of the President.


The V. Luna General Hospital was inaugurated during Mayor Diaz’s term. Named after Col. Victoriano Luna, the first army surgeon, the hospital attends to the medical needs of the soldiers and their dependents.

Also during his time, the new Quezon City Hall annex, which was the brainchild of the late Mayor Bernardo, was practically finished. Started the year before, on April 4, 1949, the building was finished on January 23, 1950, at a cost of P175, 087.88. It was constructed by the Guerrero Construction company, Inc., from the structural designs made by Apolonio Adriano and Pantaleon Tabora, both civil engineers from the same office.

excerpts http://www.qcpubliclibrary.org/qcmanuscript.php#santosdiaz_administration