A City of Integrity: The Legacy of Mayor Justiniano Borja
From the Sidelines
By: Ray G. Talimio Jr.
“A tribute to the leadership of Justiniano R. Borja and how his legacy helped shape Cagayan de Oro’s early civic values and moral compass”
In the early years of Cagayan de Oro’s cityhood, one name became synonymous with honest leadership, quiet resolve, and people-centered service. Justiniano R. Borja succeeded Max Y. Suniel, the city’s first mayor under the 1950 charter, at a time when local governance required both vision and restraint. What followed was a remarkable chapter in the city’s civic story, marked not by grand buildings or slogans, but by the character of the man leading it.
Known to Kagay-anons as “Tiñing,” Borja was widely respected not only for his competence but for the values he embodied. He lived modestly, refused personal enrichment, and was often seen walking to work in the city hall. He declined luxury, honors, and even opportunities that could have benefited him politically. His vision of leadership was anchored on humility and moral integrity, a legacy that resonates decades later.
Under his administration, Cagayan de Oro began to shape itself as a city with discipline, accessibility, and fairness at its core. City services were brought closer to the people. Borja did not believe in waiting for fanfare or permission. He acted on community needs with quiet urgency. His sense of fairness made the local bureaucracy more responsive and the police more visible in upholding the law. His office was never a fortress, but a place of approachability.
While Borja led without flamboyance, the outcomes were profound. Urban planning under his time prioritized accessibility and function. The city’s open spaces, particularly Plaza Divisoria, became a true people’s park and a space for civic identity. Commerce expanded but was kept in balance with social order. Public health and education services were modest, but they served as building blocks for future expansion.
Borja’s death in office in 1964 was mourned citywide and beyond. His funeral was among the largest in the city’s history. In tribute, the government later erected a statue of him at Divisoria, one of the few public monuments in the Philippines honoring a local official not for war or politics but for simple, principled public service. His name also graces the JR Borja Memorial Hospital, still serving the city’s most vulnerable.
Borja was not just a man of his time. He set the tone for what Kagay-anon leadership could aspire to be. In many ways, his approach became a cultural standard, public office as a public trust and personal ambition always secondary to community welfare. Those who came after him, regardless of political persuasion, have been measured, fairly or not, against the quiet strength of Justiniano Borja.
Another key figure in the city’s formative years was Mayor Reuben R. Canoy, who served from 1971 to 1976. A lawyer, writer, and statesman, Mayor Canoy was known for his visionary approach to local governance. Under his administration, Cagayan de Oro City witnessed notable progress in urban planning, culture, and civic consciousness. He advocated for greater autonomy for Mindanao and laid the groundwork for local government empowerment long before decentralization became national policy. Mayor Canoy also supported the development of media, arts, and education in the city, leaving behind a legacy that extended beyond infrastructure and into the realm of identity and regional pride.
After his term as mayor, Reuben Canoy continued to influence political thought through his strong advocacy for federalism and self-determination in Mindanao. His proposals on regional autonomy inspired many of the debates surrounding local empowerment and helped push forward a national dialogue on how to equitably distribute political and economic power. His ideas reinforced the notion that Cagayan de Oro was not only a center for commerce and governance but also a seat of intellectual and political leadership.
The phrase Metro Cagayan de Misamis is believed to have been first coined by the late Oloy Roa, who served as Mayor of Cagayan de Oro City from 1977 to 1980. A respected civic and political leader, Mayor Roa promoted the idea of regional integration at a time when few were thinking beyond city boundaries. He envisioned a unified metro framework where Cagayan de Oro would serve not only as an urban hub but also as a catalyst for the development of surrounding municipalities. Long before formal proposals or planning studies were introduced, it was his language and vision that gave early shape to what is now being revived as a regional growth strategy.
Cagayan de Oro’s rapid growth in the decades that followed, its transformation into a regional center, its recognition as a highly urbanized city, and its rise in commerce, education, and governance, all rested on foundations laid in Borja’s time. He proved that a developing city does not require a loud leader, only a decent one.
Today, as we mark the city’s seventy fifth year since its chartering, we look back not only on infrastructure and political transitions but on values. Borja’s legacy reminds us that a city is not only built with concrete and roads but also with trust and dignity. His model of leadership is both timeless and urgently needed in every generation.
If the city of Cagayan de Oro stands tall today, it is because it once had a leader who knelt to serve before he asked to lead. That quiet strength remains the moral north of our civic identity.
Photo credits
• Portrait of Mayor Justiniano R. Borja – from the City Archives (uploaded image)
• Statue of Justiniano R. Borja at Plaza Divisoria – CDO Heritage Council and Architect Studio
• Monument inscription of Justiniano R. Borja – sourced from CDO City Government documentation
• Portrait of Mayor Reuben Canoy – courtesy of the Canoy family via “In Memoriam” tribute card
• Portrait of Mayor Oloy Roa – contributed by the Roa family and Cagayan de Oro Historical Archive
Sources
• Records from the City Archives Office
• Testimonies of residents and civic groups
• Works by Nanette Roa and CDO Heritage Council publications
About the Author
Ray G. Talimio Jr. is Past President and Past Chairman of the Board of the Cagayan de Oro Chamber of Commerce and Industry Foundation Inc. Oro Chamber; Co Chairman of the Economic Development Committee of RDC X; Chairman of the MSME Development Council of Misamis Oriental and Cagayan de Oro City; Chairman of BIMP EAGA for Northern Mindanao; National Officer, Past Senior Regional Director, and Past Chapter President of the Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants PICPA; Advocate for MSME development, public accountability, regional infrastructure, and customs and trade facilitation reform.
