At the Crossroads

At the Crossroads- Revisiting EDSA-Taft Avenue

Thousands of people roaming the streets, four different roads leading to different places, hundreds of vehicles plying the roads; these are the elements that draw the scene of the typical Pasay rotonda.

To the ordinary man on the street, not much can be seen in Pasay rotonda. In fact, there is no trace of any rotonda at all. Accordingly, the post in the middle of the crossing serves as the rotonda itself. Looking closer, all you’ll see is a live show of the modern era, busy and always on-the-go. Almost all the buildings around the area have already been replaced with new establishments, well, almost.

Round-and-about the Rotonda

Located at the east bound side of the Taft Avenue, Rotonda Hotel has stood there since the early seventies. Compared to other hotels around the area, this hotel boasts of its historic walls as it withstood the times.

“This hotel has been in business for 25 years, it has been to different renovations and repairs, but the building still stands,” said Tina Abastillas, employee in the Rotonda Hotel.

Although old and quaint, the hotel is still frequented by patrons in the area due to its cheap prices and good service. Another attraction that could catch one’s eyes is the yellow vehicle hanging from the second floor of a building which was formerly a bar named route 99. Abastillas explains that the bar was also owned by the owner of the Rotonda hotel. Even though the bar has already been closed and was already replaced with a convenience store, the car still stayed there.

Joining the bandwagon is Fely’s canteen, formerly known as Pasay Rotonda canteen, which has been in business for 20 years. Although the owner and the name of the place have been changed, the place where its stands still speak of history itself.

Apart from the few establishments that withstood the hard times, there’s but two who bore witness to the history of Pasay Rotonda, EDSA and Taft Avenue. From dusk until dawn, these streets lay awake to be tattooed not only with Pasay’s history but our nation’s history.

EDSA Probably the most famous road in Metro Manila, EDSA stretches from the north in Caloocan, to the south in Pasay City. It was built during the Commonwealth Period under the presidency of Manuel L. Quezon in 1940 and was first called North and South Circumferential Road as it encircles Caloocan, Quezon City, San Juan, Mandaluyong, Makati and Pasay. Other accounts claim that the road was first named Junio 19 after the birth date of our National Hero Dr. Jose Rizal.

After World War II, it was renamed to Highway 54. Under Republic Act No. 2140 in 1959, the name was changed to Epifanio Delos Santos Avenue in honor of Epifanio Delos Santos. He was described as “Great among the great Filipino scholars” and also considered as one of the best Filipino writers during the Spanish era. He died at the age of 57 on April 18, 1928 while still in office as the director of the Philippine Library and Museum.

Apart from the rich history of names this highway went through, this highway is the historic site of the peaceful revolution which took place on February 22-25, 1986. Dubbed as the People Power Revolution of 1986, thousands if not millions of Filipinos rushed to the EDSA shrine/ Mary Queen of Peace Shrine in Ortigas to overthrow the Marcos regime in the land. This event also saw the proclamation of Corazon Aquino as the first woman president in the Philippines. In 2001, another woman president, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, was installed as president after the overthrowing then-president Joseph Estrada.
In the biography Cardinal Sin and the miracle of Asia by Felix Bautista he quotes: “Be that as it may, theologians today see something appropriate in naming the eight-lane highway Epifanio de los Santos Avenue, or EDSA. For, translated into English, Epifanio de los Santos means epiphany of the saints.”

In 2009, a bill was proposed that EDSA be renamed Cory Aquino Avenue for her heroic act of leading the people against the Marcos dictatorship during the First People Power Revolution. However, the Bill was deferred due to the history intertwined with EDSA.

Taft Avenue

Formerly known as Columbia Avenue, Taft Avenue extends from Pasay City to P. Burgos St. in Manila. Named after former U.S. President and Philippine Governor-General William Howard Taft, this avenue was supposed to show new order from the regime of the Americans, contrary to what it shows right now.

Way back in the days of Burnham, Taft Avenue was a Grand boulevard, elegant structures such as the Manila Post Office, National Museum of the Philippines, De La Salle College, among others, highlight the grandiose of the avenue. However, these were all erased in time, when slum areas, traffic, the LRT and pollution slowly dotted the avenue.

Although the Avenue was not able to preserve its marvel up to the present, this highway boasts of accessibility as it passes major roads such as Epifanio Delos Santos Avenue (EDSA), Quirino Avenue and United Nations Avenue. Moreover, major schools line the Avenue such as Arellano High School, University of the Philippines (Manila), Philippine Normal University, De La Salle-Taft, Philippine Women’s University and Philippine Christian University.

In 2002, Senate Bill No. 2011 was filed, which proposes to rename Taft Avenue to Diokno Avenue in honor of the late Filipino nationalist, senator, government minister, lawyer and human advocate Jose Diokno. However, the Bill was vetoed as it is a violation of a city ordinance passed by the city in 1999.

True to form, these intersections have suffered from different battle scars throughout history and yet it still stands. Frequented by people, EDSA and Taft still continue to build their own history.