After returning from his studies in Europe, Dr. Christopher Ryan Maboloc met the man who would help many philosophy academics in Mindanao become part of an established organization that has truly taken root in the island - Dr. Romulo Bautista. Dr. Bautista did his doctorate on Karl Marx at the University of Madrid in Spain. "He was a very humble man. We spent many afternoons at a bakery shop along Claveria, just beside Ateneo, to talk about philosophy and politics," says Dr. Maboloc.
The two professors would introduce the concept of bayanikrasya to graduate philosophy students in Ateneo de Davao University. They have taught more than half of the Philosophy faculty of the biggest state universities in Mindanao, from MSU in Ilgan to USM in North Cotabato. Dr. Bautista handled courses on Marxism and existential philosophy. "He explained to me the difference between white, red and blue Marxism," says Dr. Maboloc. "He actually left with me his usb that contained the files to some of his writings, some of which have been published in the Philippine Democracy Online virtual magazine," Dr. Maboloc adds.
But Dr. Bautista was not liked by everyone. In meetings, he courageously intervened whenever something seems objectionable. It was because of this that he wasn't too popular among the faculty, who were probably protective of a long established tradition of Philosophy dating back to the time when Fr. Mike Moga set up the Philosophy Department. However, Dr. Maboloc, who was the department chair at the time, knew the significant contribution of Dr. Bautista to philosophy in Mindanao. It was for this reason that they would take their efforts outside of Ateneo.
On March 15, 2012, both will instigate the creation of the Social Ethics Society. The prominent names during that organizational meeting at the University of the Immaculate Concepcion in Davao City include Dr. Raymond Pavo, now a dean at UP Mindanao, Prof Randy Ponteras of UM, who is a popular NGO advocate in Davao, and Prof. Apolinar Henry Fernandez, who is probably the most prolific textbook author in Mindanao.
"We were like rebels. The establishment never liked us," says Dr. Maboloc. "I am not new to criticisms. You get nowhere in life if you are afraid of them," he explains. But while that is the case, their charisma and the support of their former students who have actually taken leadership positions in different universities would allow the SES to flourish. This important list would include Dr. Al Quillope of NDMU, Prof. Marcos Monderin of USM, and recently under Dr. Maboloc, Fr. Dexter Veloso of St. Francis Xavier Seminary and Dr. Rogelio Bayod of Cor Jesu College.
Fr. Veloso is the force behind the amazing International exposure of the SES. Most of the scholars who have collaborated with the organization are friends and contacts of Dr. Maboloc but it is Fr. Dexter who pushed the SES to new heights with his resourcefulness. Meanwhile, through Dr. Peter Paul Elicor and Fr. Banny Pardillo, the SES Journal would become an important piece in the growth of philosophical scholarship in Mindanao "There were many people who were against us," says Dr. Maboloc, "but they cannot affect our vision and the deep friendship that we have developed here."
"I think that prior to the SES, we always looked up to the output but lukewarm leadership of top scholars from the capital. Yet, Dr. Bautista and I believed that there is a great potential here in Mindanao when it comes to philosophical scholarship," Dr. Maboloc mentions. When Dr. Bautista was still alive, both of them would go together to give lectures as far as NDU in Cotabato City. The partnership came to an abrupt end as Dr. Bautista would succumb to a lingering illness in August 2013. "I visited him in the hospital a week before he died. We talked about Philippine politics," Dr. Maboloc ends.