If you’re ever wondering what the EMBOs of Makati mean (CEMBO, REMBO, PEMBO, and COMEMBO), apparently they are abbreviations for different variations of “enlisted men’s barrio”.
The meanings of the EMBOs were recently shared on Memories of Old Manila Facebook Page.
Doing a quick search, this showed via Makati’s website.
- Cembo, a popular acronym for Central Enlisted Men’s Barrio, has its beginnings in 1949, when the first batch of enlisted servicemen from the Infantry Group, Philippine Ground Force, Florida Blanca, Pampanga arrived at the Fort William McKinley (now Fort Bonifacio). They were directed to settle at big rolling open tract of land adjacent to the North Gate (Gate I) which was mostly covered by a dense growth of cogon grass. The place was selected to be the site for the housing area of the enlisted personnel of the Philippine Ground Force.
- REMBO is actually an acronym for Riverside Enlisted Men’s Barrio. Geographically, East Rembo lies at the heart of three barrios namely: West Rembo, Comembo, and Pembo. These settlements were named after the special units of the Armed Forces of the geographical location within or around the Fort. Mater Dolorosa Parish lies in this barangay as its well-known landmark.
- PEMBO was a military reservation and home of the elite AFP crack unit, the First Ranger code-named “PANTHERS”. The literal meaning of the word PEMBO is PANTHERS ENLISTED MEN’S BARRIO. At first, only military personnel and their dependents were allowed to reside in the barrio. However, as the year went by more and more military dependents increased together with their civilian relatives and friends and reportedly sucked in unnoticed, in search of homes in the barrio.
- Barangay Comembo belongs to the Makati City’s second district and is located in the Southeastern of Makati and Northeastern part of Fort Bonifacio. It is part of Cluster 5 or the Eastside Cluster along with East Rembo, Pembo, and Rizal.
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