“There are heroes and then there are legends, heroes get remembered but legends never die.”—Boney Kapoor
WITH the death of former Iloilo assemblyman and partylist Rep. Salvador “Buddy” Britanico on Good Friday (April 3, 2026), only former Iloilo governor Arthur “Art” Defensor Sr. is left as the living former member of the historic 1984 Regular Batasang Pambansa.
The other deceased former Iloilo assemblymen in the 5-man seat, who also won in the May 14, 1984 elections, were Fermin “Nene” Caram, Jr. (UNIDO), Rafael “Nono” Palmares (Nacionalista), and Narciso “Narcing” Monfort (KBL).
Defensor, 84, and Caram, who died on October 6, 1986 at 66, were the only two winners from UNIDO Party. Their three other party mates Domingo Trompeta Jr., Mario Salcedo Jr., and Licurgo Tirador all wound up 10th, 11th, 12th places respectively and didn’t make it in the magic 5.
Palmares, the son of Passi City and former Iloilo governor, placed third and was the lone winner from the Nacionalista Party (NP). His fellow NP bets Fortunato Padilla, Benjamin Moreno, and Lazaro Belgica finished 13th, 14th, 15th places respectively.
Another NP bet (Roy Wing) Gualberto Opong finished 22nd or second to the last.
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Monfort, who died on September 5, 2005 at 77, and Britanico, who died at 88, were the only winners from the ruling KBL Party. The other KBL candidates Niel Tupas Jr., Lazaro Zulueta, Emilio dela Cruz, and Teodulo Padernal wound up 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th places respectively.
Quirino Baterna, the lone Social Democratic Party candidate, finished 16th.
Defensor, father of incumbent Iloilo Governor Arthur “Toto” Jr., is also known as the only chief executive of the province of Iloilo who got elected six times in the office.
He was first elected in 1992, re-elected in 1995, and in 1998. After serving nine years as congressman, he was again elected governor in 2010 and re-elected in 2013 and in 2016.
The elections on May 14, 1984, were significant because, despite the ruling Kilusang Bagong Lipunan (KBL) party holding the majority, the opposition, bolstered by the protest vote following the August 21, 1983 assassination of former senator Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr., gained substantial ground, winning over 50 seats.
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The 1984 Regular Batasang Pambansa was known for replacing the interim body. It was the first official, fully elected unicameral legislature of the Philippines under the 1973 Constitution.
When it convened on July 23, 1984, it replaced the Interim Batasang Pambansa (1978–1984) and acted as the nation’s lawmaking body until its abolition by President Corazon “Cory” Aquino on March 25, 1986, following the EDSA Revolution.
It consisted of roughly 200 members known as “Mambabatas Pambansa” (MPs), with 183 elected via district elections on May 14, 1984, and 14 sectoral representatives (agricultural labor, industrial labor, and youth), plus members of the Cabinet.
Alex P. Vidal, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor-in-chief of two leading daily newspapers in Iloilo, Philippines.—Ed
