Due to increasing anti-Filipino sentiment in U.S. Congress and the denial of U.S. Senate for the credit line in order to stabilize the Philippine's economy, he resigned in 1938.
[1] He was born in Bangued, Abra, Philippines on September 9, 1884 to Don Juan Félix Paredes y Pe Benito and Regine Babila, daughter of an Itneg tribal leader.
[3] Under the Tydings–McDuffie Act that created the Philippine Commonwealth Government, Paredes became its first Resident Commissioner, serving from February 14, 1936, until his resignation on September 29, 1938.
[1] The Philippine government had previously invested in U.S. banks, but due to a missed opportunity to convert to gold, they incurred significant losses.
[1] During Paredes' time in the House, isolationist sentiments in U.S. Congress grew, with many American lawmakers wanting the U.S. to withdraw from the Pacific.
This shift in public opinion, influenced by certain industries, made it harder for Paredes to advocate for the Philippines' interests.
[1] Upon his resignation in September 1938, Manuel Quezon, despite their rivalry in politics, complemented Paredes saying: There is no gainsaying the fact that you are entitled to a great amount of the credit for assisting in the passage of many pieces of legislation favorable to the Philippines and vigorously fighting unjust and adverse bills which embodied threats of harm to us economically as well as politically...In 1938, he was again elected a member of the Philippine Assembly, and served as the Majority Floor Leader during this term.
Paredes, being the commissioner of public works, made use of the manpower available to the state in order to build dikes along the Agno River.
The built dikes were utilized to prevent flooding and harnessing the river's water to irrigate fertile lands in several provinces, including Pangasinan, La Union, Ilocos Norte, Pampanga, and Nueva Ecija.