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<img src="https://cdn.kahimyang.com/resources-25/jose-diokno.avif" alt="Jose Diokno" loading="lazy" />
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(Jose Wright Diokno)
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Early Life and Education
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Diokno was born to Ramon Diokno, a prominent lawyer and later Supreme Court Associate Justice, and Leonor Wright, a Filipina of American descent. His family's deep roots in public service and nationalism - his grandfather, Ananias Diokno, was a revolutionary general under <a href="https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/1028/today-in-philippine-history-march-22-1869-emilio-aguinaldo-was-born-in-kawit-cavite" class="news_link">Emilio Aguinaldo</a> - shaped his worldview from an early age. A prodigy, Diokno graduated as valedictorian from <a href="https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/2843/today-in-philippine-history-june-16-1911-the-de-la-salle-brothers-opened-in-paco-manila-the-first-la-salle-school-in-the-country" class="news_link">De La Salle College</a>'s high school class in 1937. He earned a commerce degree also from De La Salle summa cum laude in 1940 at the age of 17, topping the Certified Public Accountants (CPA) board exams that same year despite needing special dispensation due to his youth.
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When World War II interrupted his law studies at the <a href="https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/2891/miguel-de-benavides-credited-as-founder-of-university-of-santo-tomas" class="news_link">University of Santo Tomas</a>, Diokno took matters into his own hands, studying law independently in his father's office. In 1944, without a formal degree, he took the Philippine Bar Examination and achieved the highest score, a feat shared with <a href="https://kahimyang.com/kauswagan/articles/1645/today-in-philippine-history-june-22-1920-jovito-salonga-was-born-in-pasig" class="news_link">Jovito Salonga</a>. This remarkable intellect laid the foundation for a career that would blend legal brilliance with a fierce commitment to the Filipino people.
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February 26, 1922: Jose Diokno was born in Ermita, Manila