Boy Scouts of the Philippines


The Boy Scouts of the Philippines, BSP, is the national Scout association of the Philippines in the World Organization of the Scout Movement. It was "granted Recognition as a Member Organisation of the Boy Scouts International Conference...with effect from October 31, 1936" by virtue of certification signed by J. S. Wilson, Olave Baden-Powell, and Daniel Spry.
For most of the late 20th century and into the 21st century, the Boy Scouts of the Philippines was among the largest Scout organizations in the world in terms of membership count, largely due to the organization's dependence on the Department of Education.

Program sections

All ranks wear the organizational badge, with elements from the Flag of the Philippines and the green neckerchief below the trefoil, in their uniforms..

Scout ideals

Mission

Scout Oath

On my honor, I will do my best

Panunumpa ng Scout

Sa ngalan ng aking dangal ay gagawin ko ang buong makakaya

Scout Law / Batás ng Scout

Senior Scout Code

Preamble

We, the sovereign Filipino people, imploring the aid of Almighty God, in order to build a just and humane society, and establish a Government that shall embody our ideals and aspirations, promote the common good, conserve and develop our patrimony, and secure to ourselves and our posterity, the blessings of independence and democracy under the rule of law and a regime of truth, justice, freedom, love, equality, and peace, do ordain and promulgate this Constitution.

Laws and rulings

For most of its existence, the Boy Scouts of the Philippines was a private organization. However, this status has been officially and legally reversed with finality by Philippine Supreme Court decisions in 1991, 2011, and 2012.
#TitleDescriptionDateAuthority
Commonwealth Act 111An Act to Create a Public Corporation to be Known as the Boy Scouts of the Philippines, and to Define its Powers and PurposesCharter of the BSP organization31 October 1936Pres. Manuel Quezon
Presidential Decree 460Amending Certain Provisions of Commonwealth Act No. 111, Otherwise Known as the National Charter of the Boy Scouts of the Philippinesmandating the President of the Philippines as the Chief Scout of the Boy Scouts of the Philippines17 May 1974Pres. Ferdinand Marcos
G.R. No. 80767Boy Scouts of the Philippines v. National Labor Relations Commissiondeclaring the BSP a Government Owned or Controlled Corporation and a government instrumentality22 April 1991Supreme Court
Executive Order No. 509, s. 1992Amending Executive Order No. 495, Series of 1991, by Excluding From the Coverage Thereof the Boy Scouts of the Philippines and for Other Purposesrevoking conversion of the BSP into a private corporation4 March 1992Pres. Corazon Aquino
Republic Act 7278An Act Amending Commonwealth Act No. 111, as Amended by Presidential Decree No. 460, Entitled "An Act To Create a Public Corporation To Be Known as the Boy Scouts of the Philippines, and To Define Its Powers and Purposes," by Strengthening the Volunteer and Democratic Character of the Boy Scouts of the Philippines and for Other Purposesreorganizing the BSP24 March 1992Pres. Corazon Aquino
Resolution No. 99-011Defining the Commission's policy with respect to the audit of the Boy Scouts of the Philippinessubjecting the BSP organization to government audit by the COA17 August 1999Commission on Audit
G.R. No. 177131Boy Scouts of the Philippines versus Commission on AuditRuling "After looking at the legislative history of its amended charter and carefully studying the applicable laws and the arguments of both parties, we find that the BSP is a public corporation and its funds are subject to the COAs audit jurisdiction."7 June 2011Supreme Court en banc
Memorandum Order No. 2013-42Classifying the Boy Scouts of the Philippines and the Girls Scouts of the Philippines as Sui Generis GOCCs5 November 2016Office of the President, Governance Commission for Government Owned or Controlled Corporations

History of Scouting

Just 3 years after the birth of the Scout Movement and just 2 years after the Boy Scouts of America was founded the first Philippine troops were organised by Elwood Stanley Brown, Physical Director of the Manila YMCA, in 1910. In 1912, Elwood Stanley Brown recognised by Baden-Powell as "Chief Scoutmaster." In 1913, troops were organised by . In 1914, the Lorillard Spencer Troop organised in November in Zamboanga City by Sherman L. Kiser, the first troop in the southern island of Mindanao.
In 1921, Scouting started at Silliman Institute under the auspices of its church. They applied for registration to BSA National Headquarters, New York, in 1922, and received their document in January 1923. On April 19, 1922, a certain Mr. Ong of Calivo, Capiz organized the Boy Scouts of Calivo which the Governor General of the Philippines Leonard Wood at that time acknowledged in his letter dated January 2, 1923. In 1923, the Rotary Club established the Boy Scouts of America Philippine Islands Council No. 545 in October as a territorial council covering troops organized nationwide. In 1931, experimentation was conducted in Sea Scouting and Cub Scouting. In 1933, the Philippines made first participation in an international Scout event, with the BSA Philippine Islands Council delegation embedded in the BSA contingent to the 4th World Scout Jamboree in Budapest, Hungary. In 1934, Rover Scouting was introduced.
The BSA Shanghai District was placed under the supervision of the BSA Philippine Islands Council No. 545.

Establishment

In October 31, 1936, the Boy Scouts of the Philippines was officially chartered under Commonwealth of the Philippines Act No. 111. The founding BSP President and Chief Scout was Josephus Stevenot. In 1937, the BSA Philippine Islands Council No. 545, meeting in October, decided on the handover of its properties and responsibilities to the nascent BSP.
In 1938, the BSP was inaugurated by Pres. Manuel Quezon on January 1, and started functioning. Exequiél Villacorta was appointed the first "Chief Scout Executive" of the Boy Scouts of the Philippines, in imitation of the BSA office of Chief Scout Executive. The young BSP was caught in the crossfires of the Second World War and scouting activities, which were either abolished or absorbed into the paramilitary styled activities of the current Scout Association of Japan during the Japanese-sponsored Second Republic, only resumed in most of the country by late 1945.

Independence era

In 1947, one year after the restoration of independence, the BSP made its first participation in an international event, with the BSP contingent to the 6th World Scout Jamboree in Moisson, France as a full member organization of the World Organization of the Scout Movement's Asia-Pacific Region. In 1953, the first Wood Badge course was conducted at BSP Camp Gre-Zar in Novaliches, Quezon City.
In 1954, the first BSP National Scout Jamboree was held at Rolling Hills, Balarâ, Quezon City. Dr. Mariano Villarama de los Santos served on the World Scout Committee from 1957 until 1959 as its first Filipino member. In 1959, the 10th World Scout Jamboree was held at the National Scout Reservation, University of the Philippines, Los Baños, at the foot of Mount Makiling, in the province of Laguna. This was the first World Scout Jamboree outside Europe and Canada.
In 1960, the BSP began to indignize its Scouting programs. That year the Cub Scout program was revised to replace American symbols with Philippine motifs. A year later, the Boy Scout program was revised to replace American symbols with Philippine motifs.
In 1963, 24 members of the BSP delegation to the 11th World Scout Jamboree in Marathon, Greece, died in a plane crash in the sea off the coast of Mumbai, India. Streets in the South Triangle District of Quezon City were later named in their memory. In 1968, Boy Scouts, Rovers, and Scouters joined in the search-and-rescue operations for victims of the Ruby Tower collapse in August. For the services rendered by the Scouts, the BSP organization was awarded by President Ferdinand Marcos with a Presidential Gold Medal the following year.
In 1970, Senior Scouting was officially launched as part of the BSP program. It has three sections: Air, Land, and Sea. In 1971, Ambassador Antonio C. Delgado was elected Chairman of the World Scout Conference, becoming the first Filipino to hold this position. In 1972, BSP membership hit the one-million mark nationwide.
In 1973, the Golden Jubilee Jamboree and first Asia-Pacific Jamboree was held at the National Scout Reservation, University of the Philippines, Los Baños, Laguna. The jamboree song, "Kapatirang Paglilingkod," reflected the Bagong Lipunan regime of President Marcos. In 1974–75, the Cub Scout name was Philippinised: the Pilipino alphabet at that time did not include the letter C, so "Cub" was replaced with "Kab." However, since "kab" was not actually a Pilipino word, it was contrived as an acronym for "Kabataan Alay sa Bayan" and written in all caps. In 1975–86, in compliance with the orders of Pres. Marcos, the Boy Scouts of the Philippines was renamed "Kapatirang Scout ng Pilipinas". The Scout age groups were reduced from four to two. The Scout Oath and Scout Law were revised and a new Scout badge was devised. President Ferdinand Marcos took the title of Chief Scout, the first Philippine head of state to hold the title.

Modern day scouting

In 1986, the Golden Jubilee of the Boy Scouts of the Philippines was marked. In the aftermath of the People Power Revolution, the name Kapatirang Scout ng Pilipinas was abandoned and the organization reverted to its original name "Boy Scouts of the Philippines", under its first lady Chief Scout, then President Corazon Aquino. In 1990–91, a program was created for pre-school boys and named KID Scouting. Since "kid" is English and not Filipino, it was contrived as an acronym for "Kabataang Iminumulat Diwa" and written in all caps. In 1991, the 12th Asia-Pacific Jamboree was held in Philippine Scouting Center, University of the Philippines, Los Baños, Laguna. In 1992, the old BSP badge was reinstated.
In 1993, the Philippines hosted the first ASEAN Scout Jamboree. In 1997, the 2nd World Scout Parliamentary Union held in Manila. In 1999, the first Venture Scout Jamboree was held on Ilian Hills, Iriga City, Camarines Sur, Bicol. In 2007, the BSP observed the world centennial of the Scout Movement. In 2009–10, the BSP hosted the 26th Asia-Pacific Jamboree, 28 December 2009 – 3 January 2010. This was the third APR Jamboree in the Philippines. In 2011, BSP celebrated 75 years of Philippine Scouting. In 2013, the National Peace Jamboree held on Mount Makiling in Laguna, in Capitol Hills Scout Camp in Cebu, and the BSP's Camp Malagos in Davao.
2014 marked the Centennial anniversary of the defunct Lorillard Spencer Troop, the first official troop in the islands. A "Centennial Jamboree" was held in three venues: Marikina City, Cebu City, and Zamboanga City..

Noted Personalities