Mindanaotoday.com | Local Kagay-anon historical actor, Dr. Gerardo Sabal
RAI Bollozos Sanchez | Historyahe!
HI there!
An exciting newspaper clipping dating May 18, 1940, is perhaps worth for the record books. Dr. Gerardo Sabal and Dr. Rizalino Frias performed an appendectomy in only 11 minutes.
Dr. Gerardo Sabal was a medical doctor, medical company commander of the 110th regiment of the 10th military district, and a former municipal councilor of Cagayan de Oro City.
According to familysearch.org, Dr. Sabal was born on March 20, 1906, and died on December 4, 1983.
A graduate of medicine from the University of Santo Tomas, Dr. Gerardo Sabal became the first physician from Tagoloan after passing the licensure exam in 1933.
During the 2nd World War, he served as a medical commander for the Medical Company, 110th infantry (10th Military District), stationed in Balingasag, Misamis Oriental.
After the war, he served as a municipal councilor from 1947 until the late 1960s – a consistent top vote-getter with an electoral ranking of no less than number 1.
He was vital for the development of Cagayan de Oro from its rapid growth starting in 1954, most notably for the health and sanitation of the expanding City.
Besides his dedicated work in public service, Dr. Gerardo Sabal established the Sabal Hospital in 1974.
The Dr. Gerardo Sabal Memorial National High School was named after the brilliant man from Misamis Oriental and Cagayan de Oro City.
Again, the lack of local historical repositories hampers the writing of local historical figures of Cagayan de Oro.
However, with diligent historical research, we can still write a “tad” of historical information about local historical figures.
Further, local historical and cultural commissions fulfill the heart and soul of the historical and cultural commission, which is RESEARCH.
Setting political color aside, the persons involved should not wait for what the academe publishes, but they also would initiate the move to promote historical research.
There are only a few historical sources about Dr. Gerardo C. A. Sabal. The lack of local and digital repositories in CdeO (with the exemption of the city legislative archives) makes historical research tedious.
Despite the constraints, we still can cull out a “tad bit” of the history of this brilliant man from Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental, who made a mark in Cagayan de Oro.
I hope these people will realize that Philippine history is not a homogenous history but a collective history that demands continuous research.
The distinctiveness, uniqueness, and unbinding individuality of the regions, especially local historical actors, make history come alive.
I hope local heritage committees should fulfill their duty to compile the biographies of its prominent citizens who, in their time, immensely contributed to the development of the City.
As I repeat, if local historical research especially inviting academics and committed members of the commission, does not flourish in the next 10 years, local Kagay-anon historical figures like Dr. Gerardo Sabal will become “dust in the wind.” (MT)
(Ryan Albert Ignacius “RAI” Bollozos Sanchez, 40, is a native of Cagayan de Oro City. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in History and currently finishing his Master of Arts in History at Xavier University-Ateneo de Cagayan. He is currently a full-time faculty in the Department of General Education and Interdisciplinary Studies in Xavier Ateneo – teaching Readings in Philippine History, The Life, Works and Writings of Jose Rizal, and Interdisciplinary Studies subjects. He taught part-time at the Liceo de Cagayan University teaching Southeast Asian History and Government, and U.S. Government and Foreign Policy. You may reach him at rsanchez@xu.edu.ph)