Alpha Phi Omega is a fraternity founded on December 16, 1925 at
Lafayette College in
Easton,
Pennsylvania,
United States. The first
Philippine APO chapter was chartered on March 2, 1950 at the
Far Eastern University in
Manila. The Eta chapter was established on February 10, 1953 at UP Diliman. UP Diliman is the main campus of the
University of the Philippines, a
Philippine state university founded in June 1908. It is particularly known for its
student activism.
Inception Despite inconsistencies, sources generally agree that the Oblation Run started in 1977. It is found in every UP campus, and has since become UP's identifying symbol. The run has since spread to other UP campuses, including
Baguio,
Los Baños,
Manila and
Visayas, and non-UP colleges and universities, such as the
Polytechnic University of the Philippines,
Far Eastern University and
Bulacan State University. According to a 1996 article published by the UP Diliman APO website, the run originated when an unnamed APO member ran naked inside the campus to promote an APO-sponsored play called
Hubad na Bayani (Tagalog for
Naked Hero). The play is dedicated to Rolly Abad, an APO member who was killed in a brawl a few months earlier. The run was a success so APO decided to stage it every year on the fraternity's anniversary, December 16. This view is supported by a
GMA News and Public Affairs report. A newer account by
Oble, a
student newspaper of
University of the Philippines Baguio, gives a different story. According to a 2011 article of the paper, the first Oblation Run was done by Rolly Abad himself to protest the
Ferdinand Marcos's banning of
Hubad na Bayani, a play detailing
human rights violations during his
martial law regime. Rolly Abad would be killed a few months later in a brawl. In his honor, APO decided to stage the run annually and voice contemporary socio-political issues along with it. Meanwhile, the
Philippine Daily Inquirer notes an APO member, Menggie Cobarrubias, saying "We [I and four others] started it as a prank when the Marcos dictatorship did not allow the showing of the play,
Hubad na Bayani." The play was a political satire against Marcos. Similarly, the
Internet Movie Database lists
Hubad na Bayani as 1977 film directed by
Robert Arevalo. It reportedly won the 1978
Gawad Urian Awards for best picture, best production design and best screenplay.
Participation of women During the December 2005 Oblation Run at UP Diliman, two unidentified naked women, according to Philstar,
Koreans, were seen tailing 30 members who were part of the event. This is the first ever instance that women took part in the occasion. The two, wearing masks to hide their identities, held banners promoting equal
rights for women. After posing for photographers, they entered a car which then sped off. The act, however, was condemned by APO.
Centennial Run To celebrate the University of the Philippines centennial, 100 APO members ran half a mile around the Diliman campus on June 18, 2008. This is the largest Oblation Run in its history in terms of number of participants. The participants started running on 11 AM
PST from Vinzons Hall to the
Oblation statue in front of Quezon Hall, the UP administration building. Several runners carried placards stating "Serve the People" and raised social issues, including appeals for greater state subsidy of education and ouster of then-
President of the Philippines Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. The event was observed by senior APO alumni, including
Jejomar Binay who was the mayor of
Makati. ==Event==