The assassination of an Aklan ‘Katipunero’

BY MELCHOR F. CICHON

TOMORROW, March 17, 2015, the province of Aklan will commemorate the 118th death anniversary of Francisco del Castillo, the leader of the Katipunan in Aklan.

His killer was another Aklanon named Moises Ilicito, who lived to a ripe of old age of 106. He died in Banga, Aklan in 1963.  His story has become a tell-it-again legend that has survived to this day in Aklan.

If one goes to Kalibo, Aklan today, he would see the Del Castillo Shrine. And if he goes to Banga Municipal Cemetery, he would see the modest tomb of Moises Ilicito.

Francisco del Castillo, believed to be a native of Bantayan, Cebu, came to Aklan sometime in the 1890s as the “anointed” man of Andres Bonifacio to organize the Katipunan in the province.

Legend has it that while Moises was serving as altar boy in the church of  Malinao, Aklan, a fortune teller told his parents that someday, he would kill a man.

Believing that, his parents thought of a way to shield the boy from death penalty. They found a way to have him work for the Spanish government as soon as possible.

At the age of 21, Moises Ilicito worked as a guardia civil somewhere in Capiz.

One day, a drunkard Spanish officer known as Lt. Olivares drew his sword and threatened to kill Moises. To defend himself, Moises also drew his sword and engaged the Spaniard in a fatal fight. For killing the Spanish official, Moises ended up jailed in a bartolina.

While in jail, Moises Ilicito learned that the Spanish government was looking for a native who would kill an emerging rebel leader in Aklan.

That leader was Francisco del Castillo, who was then very active in recruiting native members for the secret revolutionary society that would eventually be unmasked as the Katipunan.  Their mission was to attack the Spanish garrison in Kalibo.

On learning of the plot by word of mouth, the Spanish authorities looked for somebody to capture Francisco del Castillo, dead or alive, Moises volunteered. Because of his reputation as a sharpshooter, he was released from prison and was assigned as one of the guards at the garrison in Kalibo.

Francisco del Castillo and his men came to attack the garrison in Kalibo on March 17, 1897.

He pretended to be looking for a certain Tan Juan Azarraga, the wealthiest person in Kalibo at that time.

Recognizing the man to be the rebel leader, Moises asked Del Castillo to surrender. When the latter refused, Moises fired at him.

In the exchange of gun fires, Del Castillo fell lifeless from his horse.

That encounter temporarily stopped the revolution in Aklan.

Later, Col. Ricardo Monet proclaimed amnesty to the remaining Katipuneros in Aklan. Through the intercession of the parish priest and the wives and mothers of the Katipuneros, some of them surrendered thinking that the amnesty offer was real.

Unfortunately, it was not.  It led to the detention of 21 surrenderees.

However, two of them – Cenon Quimpo and Nicanor Gonzales – were released through the intervention of their wealthy families. The 19 others were later shot to death by the Spanish authorities.

But it did not stop the living Katipuneros led by Eustaquio Gallardo from reorganizing. They planned a retaliatory move.

One month later, about 40 Spanish troopers honored an invitation to a feast in Tangalan, Aklan. As soon as they had comfortably seated, the servants who were actually Katipuneros came to the dining table with hidden bolos and knives. At a drop of a handkerchief, they suddenly hacked the unsuspecting Spaniards to death.

After the revolution, Moises Ilicito was appointed as a judge of Malinao, Aklan. He married Nicolasa Mabasa of Banga, Aklan and lived with her in that town. They had seven children.

Moises died in Banga, Aklan on Dec. 1, 1963 at the age of 106./PN 
Source: http://panaynewsphilippines.com/2015/03/16/the-assassination-of-an-aklan-katipunero/