A Modern Tribal Ruler

His Majesty Rodolfo Aguilar I (or better known as Apo Kudol ang Calis in Tagbanua) is the current traditional Tagbanua

Tagbanua

The Tagbanua tribe, one of the oldest tribes in the Philippines, can be mainly found in the central and northern Palawan. Research has shown that the Tagbanua are possible descendants of the Tabon Man; thus, making them one of the original inhabitants of the Philippines...

 tribal leader of Coron Island

Coron Island

Coron Island is the third largest island in the Calamian Group of Islands in northern Palawan in the Philippines. The island is part of the larger municipality of the same name. It is about southwest of Manila, is known for several Japanese shipwrecks World War II vintage. The island is part of...

. According to professor-historian Nilo S. Ocampo, the Tagbanua tribe was first mentioned by the passing Spanish missionary Fray Juan de la Concepcion in 1624 cited in Blair and Robertson, 1973:309, described the Calamian Tagbanua as fierce warriors inhabiting Coron Island who came from the first wave of Indonesian migrants to the Philippines.

His Majesty counts among the brave and famous tribal leaders since ancient times with the likes of Apo Macarere and Apo Dumarakol. He hails from the largest, most powerful and most influential family of Coron Island - the Aguilar family. He also chairs the Board of Directors of the Tagbanua Tribes of Coron Island Association which empowers tribal members in their ancestral lands. Among the elderly of their tribe, only him had the experience, knowledge and skills to become a true leader in the modern times. Helping His Majesty is the Tribal Council of Elders (Privy Council of European monarchs is its equivalent) in the management of their ancestral domain. The traditional tribal chieftain is a tribal king because the concept of democracy does not exist in ancient Philippines during the time of Lapu-Lapu

Lapu-Lapu

Lapu-Lapu was the ruler of Mactan, an island in the Visayas, Philippines, who is known as the first native of the archipelago to have resisted the Spanish colonization...

, Rajah Sulayman of Manila, Rajah Lakan Dula

Rajah Lakan Dula

Lakan Banaw Dula or Gat Banaw Dula , often referred to simply by his title Lakan Dula, and later baptised Lakan Carlos Dula, was the Lakan of the pre-colonial Philippine Kingdom of Tondo when the Spaniards first conquered the lands of the Pasig River delta in the 1570s...

 of Tondo and other native kings. The Datu or noble class exists as well in the Southern Palawan Tagbanua tribes and is known there as Usba.

The traditional management of Coron Island was reestablished after hundreds of years of interruption of their life under the Spanish and later by the Americans to the Republic of the Philippines that existed upon departure of the Americans. The organization and existence of Coron Island was realized upon passing of the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act or better known as the IPRA Law. This law provides rights and specifically provides for an 'internal governance' that is comparable to a kind of sovereignty comparable to the "internal sovereignty" provided to the American Indians in their reservations. His Majesty played an key role in the review of the provisions of the law because he stood up and explained in the halls of the Senate of the Republic of the Philippines the importance of territorial skies above ancestral lands for inclusion in the IPRA law.

The foreign powers occupation destroyed many ancient Tagbanua traditions such as use of the ancient alibata alphabet, including their religious beliefs because they are mostly Christian now. His Majesty Paramount Chief Rodolfo Aguilar I continues to serve his beloved tribe in any way he can to restore their culture, secure their rights and introduce to the world the true and noble character of a Tagbanua. His leadership in Coron Island is irrefutably very effective and smooth. His subjects love him because he only wishes but the good of his beloved tribe in Coron Island which is also called Calis by the natives. He has also traveled abroad such as in Durban, South Africa for international tribal conventions. He was a retired staff of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples of the Republic of the Philippines. He busies himself entertaining visitors to the islands who wishes to know more of their distinct culture.

His Majesty was formally proclaimed by the Tribal Council of Elders through a proclamation signed on 31st December, 2010 as a true and recognized supreme leader (Paramount Chief) of the Tagbanua tribe in Coron Island. Thus, he possessed the sovereignty rights which existed before the arrival of the Spaniards according to international law.

Royal Orders

His Majesty is the Sovereign Grandmaster of the Order of the Calamian Star of Peace which he created to honor anyone who excellently advanced human rights, culture and art, and the interests of indigenous peoples anywhere in the world. The Order's European Grandmaster is the Marquis of Villa San Giorgio in Italy.

His Majesty also created the Royal Order of the Calamian Sun of which he made as its Sovereign Grandmaster his son, H.R.H. Pinadu I. The order promotes and recognizes outstanding individuals in public service.

Awards, Recognitions and External Relations

Aside from being the traditional leader in Coron Island, the highest award to His Majesty came from overseas. He was recognized and awarded by the titular Head of the Sovereign Royal House of the Heristal Family of France and Lombardy, where Pepin, The Great and Charles, The Great belonged, with the full hereditary noble title of Prince of the Holy Roman Empire (the Roman titles continue to be granted just how the Queen of England continue to grant the honors of the Order of the British Empire

Order of the British Empire

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...

or (OBE) even after the empire has officially ended). With the conferment of the noble title of Prince comes the recognition of his royal status in Coron Island from the said sovereign.

The Prince of Ghassan recognizes His Majesty as friend and ally in this hemisphere. He was honored with the academic title Doctor of Political Science (Honoris causa) from Ruggero II University and granted a seat in the Academic Senate of the prestigious Norman Academy in Rome. His Majesty is also recognized as the true and only legitimate tribal leader of Coron Island with the passing of Municipal Resolution Nos. 39 and 50 s. 2011 of the Municipal Government of Coron, Palawan. His Majesty Paramount Chief Rodolfo Aguilar was also granted the Merit Cross of Philosophy and Culture by the Sociedade Brasileira de Filosofia, Literatura e Ensino of Brazil.

The Honorary Ambassador-at-Large of His Majesty for Europe and Africa is H.E. The Marquis of Villa San Giorgio in Italy.

Honorifics and Forms of Address

The complete reference to him in English is His Majesty Paramount Chief and Prince Dr. Rodolfo Aguilar I, SGOCSP.

His native title form is Apo Kudol ang Calis.