NHCP has ‘reservations’ about renaming QC’s Del Monte Avenue after FPJ

The National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) on Tuesday expressed “reservations” over a proposed measure to rename Del Monte Avenue in Quezon City after late movie star and presidential candidate Fernando Poe, Jr.

During the Senate Committee on Public Works hearing on the proposed Senate Bill 1882 on Wednesday, NHCP Deputy Executive Director Alvin Alcid said that the agency agrees that Poe, popularly known as FPJ, “deserves recognition.”

“In fact, he was honored as a National Artist in 2006 with respect to his contribution to film,” Alcid said.

However, the NHCP official said the agency has its “reservations” in renaming Del Monte Avenue.

“In our position paper, we have our reservations because Del Monte Avenue, which we seek to rename, is an old name,” Alcid said.

“Based on the records we found and based on the Heritage law also... there is a provision there that states street names which have been in existence for more than 50 years or older are considered historical already, that is where we are coming from,” he added.

The NHCP official said that Del Monte Avenue has been around as early as 1961.

“We would also like to emphasize that [the name] Del Monte came from an area—San Francisco del Monte—which is an old settlement in 1590,” Alcid said.

“The area was chosen by Franciscan missionaries, that’s why we have the San Pedro Bautista church there,” he added.

Alcid, however, said the NHCP will respect the Senate's decision on this matter.

For her part, Senator Imee Marcos said that “if we went by that rubric that 50 years or older will never be changed, there will be no progress in this country.”

FPJ, an icon in the Filipino action movie industry and a National Artist, had a film company located on Del Monte Avenue.

Senate Bill 1882 was filed by Senator Lito Lapid, also a known action star.

The House of Representatives approved its counterpart bill on September 9 and transmitted it to the Senate the following day. — BM, GMA News