16/08/2025
100 years ago, the Espaldons moved from Sorsogon to Simunul, Tawi-Tawi (then Sulu). Romulo Espaldon (standing at center) was then only a few months old. His parents, Cipriano Acuña Espaldon and Claudia Cadag Mercader, served as pioneer teachers of Tawi-Tawi. They lived in Tubig Indangan, Simunul—only a stone's throw from Sheikh Karimul Makhdum Mosque, the country's first mosque.
Romulo would later become the only family member to embrace Islam, and serve as the first governor of the province of Tawi-Tawi in 1973, first admiral of the Philippines in 1974, first and only Regional Commissioner of Western Mindanao in 1975, first Minister of Muslim Affairs in 1981, Representative of Tawi-Tawi in 1990, and ambassador to Egypt and Saudi Arabia. But perhaps his greatest achievement was his Policy of Attraction and Reconciliation in the 1970s which led over 40,000 rebels back to the fold of law, thus averting the secession of Mindanao from the Philippines.
The Admiral has always owed a debt of gratitude to the people of Tawi-Tawi, particularly Simunul, for protecting the Espaldon family during World War II despite being Christians in a predominantly Muslim province. A cave in Manuk Mangkaw, Simunul, which sheltered guerrilla brothers Romulo and Ernesto when they were being hunted by Japanese occupation forces, has been informally called "Bohe Espaldon."
Photo:
Standing (L-R): Manuel Espaldon, Romulo Espaldon, Ernesto Espaldon
Seated (L-R): Soledad E. Reyes, Lilia E. Ticshhauser, Claudia Espaldon, Felipe Espaldon, Cipriano Espaldon, Fe E. Lim, Leonor E. Bulawin