The desire of the people with the same tongue, to group together and govern themselves is good enough reason why a unit of a political territory have to set apart or secede from it. So was true of Aklan from Capiz. With a distinct dialect of its own, completely unidentifiable with Capiz, the people of Aklan have themselves advanced in major aspects of life - culture, education, economics, and socially and politically matured. They have shown they are capable of governing themselves, even long before the Spaniards came. Hence, at every opportunity that presents, the Aklanons unceasingly, through its leaders, took the issue of secession.

The effort of Aklanons in the first half of the last century paid off. They finally got their long-sought-after independence from Capiz, ... but, it took them the long and winding road, meeting obstacles after obstacles now and then along the way, but their burning desire never waiver.

Their first attempt was, early on the American occupation. It started when Aklanons found it as an opportune time to present a Memorial for Separation to Hon. William H. Taft, then Chairman of the 2nd Philippine Commission who came to the capital of Capiz to structure the new civil government.

The said Memorial was received by the Honorable Chairman on the meeting, Junta Magna, held at the Gran Teatro Capizeno located at Calle Legaspi, Capiz, Capiz, in the morning of April 14, 1901. Those who were present on the meeting were Dean C. Worcester - the Commissioner, Arthur Ferguson – the Secretary of the Commission, Dr. Trinidad H. Pardo de Tavera – President of National Pacification Committee.

The Aklan delegation was headed by Natalio B. Acevedo. The delegation Committee was composed of Dr. Simplicio Jugo Vidal as Chairman, with Alejandro Pardo, Antonio Habana, Jose Albar and Eleuterio Acuna as members.

There were several thousands of Capizenos who came, - among them were members of the delegations from other towns of Capiz, - had witnessed the presentation of the Memorial.

Delegates from various towns representing Aklan section were:
Sabas Oquendo (Balete), Catalino Macahilig (Banga), Clemente Bolivar and Nemecio Concepcion (Batan), Tiburcio Ascano (Buruanga), Pablo Pelayo and Simplicio de los Reyes (Ibajay), Ananias Mariano and Lope Dalida (Jimeno, now known as Altavas), Natalio Acevedo and Gregorio Pastrana (Kalibo), Simeon Mobo Reyes and Marcos Cochengco (Lezo), Jugo Planas (Libacao), Nicolas Javellana and Nazario Navarette (Madalag), Jose del Castillo (Makato), Teodoro Pioquinto (Malinao), Vicente Magallanes and Victoriano Palanog (Navas), Felix Kimpo and Leoncio Kimpo (Numancia), and Crisanto Señeres (Tangalan)

Simeon Mobo Reyes delivered a speech on the separation, in behalf of the Aklanons, and was replied by Jugo Vidal, opposing the move for separation of Aklan as a province.

After hearing the opposing remarks, the petition was not out rightly denied, but it was not granted either. As a sop, the Americans promised it would be favorably acted upon when economic condition so warrant, and promised set a separate Court of First Instance for Aklan in Batan. Simeon Mobo Reyes was appointed as the first Provincial Secretary.

To complete the first Provincial Board of Capiz Province, Taft also proclaimed the appointments of Simplicio Jugo Vidal as Provincial Governor, Alejandro Pardo as Provincial Fiscal, and four Americans as District Engineer, Provincial Treasurer, Auditor and Commander.

When the promised Court of First Instance in Batan materialized, Catalino Prado Solidum, a Justice of the Peace before the Americans came, on May 7, 1907 was appointed by the Americans to the court. Decades laters, after the construction of Ibajay’s Municipal Hall, a town hall of grandeur, this court was transferred to Ibajay.

The Aklanons’ hot pursuit for independence was not quenched by these and its struggle did not end here. No, not yet ...

The “Ro Aklanon” newspaper, advocating the creation of a separate province of Aklan, started its publication in 1914. Aklanon students kept on agitating and Aklanon writers kept on writing about Aklan, while the Aklanons in Congress kept on filling bills promoting the same theme. The struggle kept on burning!

In 1920, Reps. Jose Alba-Urquiola and Eufronio Alba of 2nd and 3rd Districts of Capiz respectively, seeing another opportunity, presented a bill for the separation of Aklan. The timing was considered inopportune considering the fact that the politically influential Capizenos who were against the move were in power at the time. (The Urquiola-Alba bill was later renamed as Urquiola-Pastrana when Alba lost on Pastrana’s protest against the election of Alba.)

Again, attempts were made by Reps. Manuel Laserna (1925) and Teodulfo Suñer (1930) who were both from the 3rd Disrict of Capiz (i.e. the Aklan section of the province). The said bills met the same fate as that of Urquiola-Alba.

In 1934, for one more time, Rep. Dr. Rafael S. Tumbokon of the 3rd District kept the movement alive. He introduced the separation bill and successfully secured the approval of the Committee on Provincial and Municipal Governments after the due hearings. He was not able to push it through though during the sine-die session of Congress in November of 1934 due to lack of time.

Rep. Dr. R. S. Tumbokon was in good grace with Quezon for having sided with Quezon’s “Anti” camp on the ¹Hare-Hawes-Cutting controversy, against the Roxas-Ozmena's “Pro” camp.

Then came the establishment of the Commonwealth of the Philippines in 1935, with Quezon as the President. Quezon reconciled the other prominent leaders of the “Pro” camp like Manuel A. Roxas and Sergio Osmena to inaugurate the Commonwealth. All elements in the country cooperated.

The Commonwealth caused the legislature to become a unicameral National Assembly. When the Assembly convened and on intervention of Roxas and his powerful political allies, the Tumbokon Bill met its immediate end.

Then finally, this quest came to an end. The most auspicious time arrived - when Pres. Ramon Magsaysay came to office. His obsessions and aims were the improvement, economic well-being and the amelioration of the living conditions of the rural masses.

In conformity with his constituent’s wishes and desires, to fulfill the commitment on the issue of separation, on January 29, 1954, Cong. Godofredo P. Ramos of the 3rd District of Capiz introduced a House Bill No. 334. On March 25th, 1954, it was favorably sided by the House Committee on Provincial and Municipal Government on its Committee Report No. 1228. On May 9, 1955, on its Second Reading, when the bill was approved by the House. Again on the third reading, it was approved with the support of Cong. Carmen Dinglasan-Consing of the First District of Capiz.

It was forwarded to the Senate on May 16, 1955, for concurrence, but was not acted upon by the Senate due to lack of time and numerous bills requiring immediate attention at the time. It was not until April 16, 1956 when the bill passed the Senate - without any amendment.

Nine days later, on April 25, 1956, when Pres. Ramon Magsaysay approved and signed the bill into law as Republic Act No. 1414, declaring the partition of the Province of Capiz into two provinces – Aklan and Capiz – did the dream of Aklanons came into realization.

The president appointed Jose Raz Meñez as the first governor of the new province of Aklan, who served until December 20th, 1959.