Dionisio Jakosalem

Dionisio Abella Jakosalem (May 8, 1878 – July 1, 1931) was the governor of Cebu, Philippines (1906–1912) and the first Filipino cabinet member appointed under the American regime.

Early life and education Jakosalem was the son of Alfonso Jakosalem and Apolonia Abella and born in Dumanjug, Cebu on May 8, 1878. He studied in Dumanjug, Colegio-Seminario de San Carlos where he met Sergio Osmeña Sr., and University of Santo Tomas where he acquired his bachelor's and law degrees. On March 27, 1907, he passed the bar exams. He married Generosa Teves.

Politics Jakosalem worked as secretary of the municipality of Dumanjug in 1900 and was appointed as justice of the peace in Cebu in 1903. The following year, he served as municipal council member.

Civil service He did not seek reelection in 1912, stating that he had grown tired of politics and wished to retire. He served as the provincial fiscal the next year and remained in this post for a year. He was offered to be appointed as governor of Davao and Director of Lands, but he declined.

As a cabinet member, he supported a law covering labor practices in the country such as setting a standard schedule for working hours of employees, creating a government body to oversee labor disputes, and regulating workers strikes. He was credited for the management on the supply of rice that avoided a national crisis caused by World War I. Additionally, he endorsed the creation of programs for road construction, a national water policy, and insurance policy that would cover employees' illness, accident, and old age.

Later years Jakosalem practiced law in Cebu after retiring from civil service He also worked for Hospicio de San Jose de Barili that was founded by Pedro Cui (uncle of his wife Generosa) and became a staff of the faculty and later College of Law dean of the Visayan Institute (now University of the Visayas). He was 53 years old when he died on July 1, 1931.

Historical commemoration

The Dionisio Jakosalem Street in Cebu was named after him. It starts from M. C. Briones Street (named after Supreme Court associate justice Marcelo Cabahug Briones) and ends at General Maxilom Avenue (named after General Arcadio Maxilom, a hero of the Philippine Revolution). The Dionisio Jakosalem Heritage Park in Dumanjug, Cebu is named after him.