The Example of Bonifacio: An Appreciation

In a few days, the nation pays homage to its plebeian son and hero. Enshrined in popular memory as the man with the bolo, Andres Bonifacio was more than that.

The Father of the Revolution was born on November 30, 1863 to working-class parents in Tondo, the poor district of Spanish-ruled Manila. When tuberculosis claimed his parents’ lives, Bonifacio quit studies to look after five younger siblings.

Bonifacio was only fourteen when he took up his father’s trade making rattan walking canes, paper fans and bamboo hats, which he sold in the streets. Thanks to his calligraphic skills, he was able to add to his income by designing advertising posters for business. Busy as he was, Bonifacio was undeterred from acting onstage and composing poetry in his spare time.

Bonifacio proved to be an enterprising hero.

Though he did not receive the formal education of his illustrious contemporary Dr. Jose Rizal, Bonifacio displayed determination on the job. He was in charge of the warehouse of a mosaic tile factory in Sampaloc before his employment as clerk and then sales agent of the British-owned J.M. Fleming and Company, a business dealing in rattan, tar and railroad ties. He later found similar work with the German company Carlos Fressel and Company.

Employment as a clerk or agent of a foreign trading company at the time was no ordinary feat in colonial Philippines. This was the ambition of native-born young men who, despite hard work and merit, were prevented from moving ahead by colonial regimentation and prejudice. We can also assume that Bonifacio was also conversant in English and Spanish, languages he required to move ahead in the business world.

Bonifacio was a prolific reader and studious. Among the books discovered in his library were Rizal's subversive novels, Victor Hugo's Le Miserables, Eugene Sue’s The Wandering Jew, and books on the French Revolution and the lives of American presidents. And while he could not afford stylish clothes, Bonifacio sought to be presentable to people. He was known to wear an open coat with matching tie and black hat to work. Rain or shine, he always carried an umbrella, the way proper English gentlemen did.

Bonifacio was as much the product of historical circumstance as he was the result of the determination to break out of them.

Throughout his life and career, Bonifacio exemplified hard work, the thirst for knowledge, entrepreneurial vigor, vision, culture and sacrifice. These are the qualities a nation requires, the same qualities an entrepreneurial class needs to emerge, compete and thrive in the years ahead.

from SME Bizlink