In the beginning, there was none. However, none as it was, the beginning permeates and develops into a great deed of undertaking. And from nothing, there was something. Days, months, years had passed, and there were more than a few. Several decades more, and here we are. This, my brethren, ladies and gentlemen, is the start of the blissful history of AG MW Pedro M. Gimenez Square and Compass Club inside the walls of the Commission on Audit.

The Commission on Audit is indeed the home of many travelers nationwide considering that almost all the regions in the archipelago housed Master Mason Auditors and senior officers. One of its finest and glorious years was during the stewardship of MW Pedro M. Gimenez as Auditor General when Pres. Ramon Magsaysay appointed him from 1957 - 1965. He steered the office with highest esteem and dedication to work which brought the Commission in high regard in the parlance of public service. As a prudent manager and a specialist as he was, he recruited the best in the fields and the brightest individuals to help him invigorate the public trust and affection whom were mostly members of the Craft.

Known as the Father of Modern Government Auditing in the Philippines, Don Pedro M. Gimenez served the government for 47 years rising from a mere clerk to Auditor General. Among his great contributions to public service is the issuance of General Circular No. 79 ordering the lifting of pre-audit in all government – owned or controlled corporations. On 8 August 1963, he issued General Circular No. 83, withdrawing pre-audit activity in national agencies except review of contracts, cash advance payment of Php500.00 or more, and payment by the Treasury Warrants. On 1 July 1963, he issued the National Accounting and Auditing Manual (NAAM). Before retirement on 29 November 1965, Auditor General Gimenez restored the pre-audit on transactions of national agencies and government corporations.

Taking a short glimpse of MW Gimenez’s beginnings, he was born as the youngest of seven children on 29 April 1895. He was only three years old when his father died. The young Pedro, though driven by hardship, proceeded with determination to acquire an education so as to help his family. When he was four years old, he learned to read and write from an uncle; when he was seven, his mother somehow managed to send him to a local school.

In 1907, an aunt invited him to stay with them in Cavite, where her husband, George S. Gardner, a Mason, worked. Childless, the Gardners took him and treated as their own son. When they transferred to Manila in 1911, the Pedro enrolled at the Manila High School, the only public high school in the City at that time.

            Pedro was initiated, passed, and raised in Pintong Bato Lodge No.51 in 1918. 20 years after (1938), he became the Master of this Lodge. He came to be a Scottish Rite Mason in the Philippine Bodies, as well as a Shriner in 1958. In 1965, he was coroneted IGH 33°.

            After his appointment as Grand Orator in 1959, he successively became Junior Grand Warden, Senior Grand Warden, and Deputy Grand Master in 1960, 1961, and 1962, respectively. Then, in 1963, he was elected Grand Master. Gladly and unfalteringly, he did his duty as Grand Master "for the best interest, the welfare and survival of the noble mission of our ancient and honorable fraternity."  

                Indeed, MW Gimenez left an indelible history as Grand Master and Auditor General. Unfortunately, when MW Gimenez died in 1979, the vibrancy and activeness of the brethren in the Commission went along with him.

Nearly several decades hence, another Master Mason, inspired by the imprints of MW Gimenez’s past, has achieved a milestone in his career who climbed the ladder of leadership and now enjoys the position as one of the cornerstones of the Commission. Bro. Juanito “Jun” G. Espino Jr., the incumbent Commissioner, has taken the bold stride of bringing the brethren back to the folds with high hopes and spirits of making the good old days shine to the fullest. Hence, this club was established in memory of the great Auditor General.

The objective of the club in general is to impress upon the brethren that the tenets of masonry can be a used as a catalyst to improve public accountability and moral standards in COA and to bring about changes in the government management as freemasonry’s share in nation-building and good governance. The club serves as a venue for the COA brethren to hasten the communication with one another as the need arises and caters to their needs while they are away from their respective abodes.  

The Square and Compass Club started with simple meeting of Master Mason Auditors and it was informally institutionalized in October of 2006 when several Auditor brethren visited the Central Office to attend to their administrative obligations. In most fellowships and gatherings, the idea of putting up a club was brought into reality and was initiated by Bro. Jun Espino. Soon thereafter, a series of fellowships transpired every time the brethren visit the Central Office. Election followed on 14 July 2006 to formally organize the club and to properly inform the brethren of any activity in the Grand Lodge and COA. The brethren overwhelmingly elected the following officers with Bro. Jun Espino at the helm of leadership:

The brethren of AG MW Pedro M. Gimenez Square and Compass Club were optimistic that sooner or later the need to establish a Lodge is inevitable. With its membership nationwide, the brethren are one and united in making this need a reality. On 18 October 2006, Bro. Jun Espino and brethren from Region 3, Cagayan de Oro and Zamboanga City gathered in Baguio City to put an initial step to establish the Square and Compass Club to a new lodge. Yours truly, as the club’s Secretary, prepared the necessary documentation for a Petition for Dispensation to Form a New Lodge. Proper communications had been established with the District Deputy Grand Master of Masonic District National Capital Region (E) and the two (2) lodges from Capitol Masonic Temple to solicit their endorsements.

On 24 November 2006, a General Assembly of the club was held at Kowloon House in Quezon City to finalize the draft and to thresh out the minimal problems in documentation.  As the brethren moved to adjourn the assembly, the club overwhelmingly approved the draft.