Blas Ople Birth Anniversary in Bulacan Date in the current year: February 3, 2025

Blas “Ka Blas” Ople was born on February 3, 1927 in Hagonoy, Bulacan to working-class parents. When Japan invaded the Philippines in 1941, Ople joined the guerrilla movement despite being a teenager and fought against the Japanese until the liberation of Bulacan. Because of the war, he graduated from high school at the age of 21. He then earned a degree in liberal arts and pursued a career in journalism, becoming one of the youngest newspaper columnists in the country.

Ople’s political career began in the late 1950s when he co-founded the National Progress Movement (Kilusang Makabansa), an organization that focused on issues of social justice and nationalism. In 1953, he joined a volunteer group that supported the presidential campaign of Ramon Magsaysay, heading the group’s executive planning committee and helping write speeches.

When Magsaysay won the election, Ople joined his administration as special assistant to Secretary of Labor Terry Adevoso and technical assistant on labor and agrarian affairs to President Magsaysay. He also taught in several universities.

During the first term of President Ferdinand Marcos, Ople was appointed Social Security Commissioner in 1965 and Secretary of Labor in 1967. In 1971, he briefly resigned to run for the Senate, but lost the election and was reappointed as Secretary of Labor in 1972. During his tenure, Ople was instrumental in creating the Labor Code of the Philippines and initiating a program to help Filipino workers find employment overseas. In recognition of his efforts, he was elected president of the International Labour Conference of the International Labour Organization in 1975.

During the 1986 presidential elections, Ople served as Marcos’ campaign manager. When the People Power Revolution broke out, Ople lost his government post and led the opposition against President Corazon Aquino. Nevertheless, he was invited to serve on the Constitutional Commission that drafted a new constitution and accepted the invitation.

After another unsuccessful run for the Senate in 1987, Ople temporarily retired from politics. He ran for the Senate again in 1992, and this time he won. During his first term in the Senate, he served as President pro tempore of the Senate from 1996 until the end of his term in 1999. After his re-election, he served as President of the Senate until July 2000, when he resigned and served as President pro tempore until July 2001.

Following the ouster of President Joseph Estrada in 2001, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo appointed Ople as Secretary of Foreign Affairs in July 2002, a post he held until his sudden death on December 14, 2003.

Blas Ople’s birthday was declared a public holiday in his home province of Bulacan. Events held on the occasion include a wreath-laying ceremony in front of Ople’s monument in Malolos City, ceremonial speeches, and other events honoring the life and legacy of Blas Ople.