SENADO 2016, sino nga ba?
Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan
Independent
Kiko hopes to come back to the Senate. His credentials boast of a colorful educational background and an even more colorful political career. Not to mention his wife, seasoned actress and “Megastar” Sharon Cuneta, has been with him every step of the way, even pledging support for her husband’s re-election bid.
Francis “Kiko” Nepomuceno Pangilinan was born on August 24, 1963 in Manila to Donato Pangilinan and Emma Nepomuceno. He has eight other siblings. In 1996, he married Cuneta. They have four children together, two of whom not biologically his.
Pangilinan finished his primary and secondary education at La Salle Green Hills. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in English, majoring in Comparative Literature from the University of the Philippines Diliman. He received his Bachelor of Laws degree from the same university. He taught Law at the Ateneo de Manila University for seven years, from 1993 to 2000. In 1997, he pursued his master’s degree in Public Administration at the Harvard University Kennedy School of Government, with strategic management as area of concentration.
Pangilinan’s foray into politics started during his stay in UP where he was a noted student leader. In 1985, he was elected chairperson of the College of Arts and Letters Student Council. He was elected chairperson of the University Student Council the following year, and in 1987, served as student-member of the Board of Regents.
He was affiliated with Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino from 1988 and 1992; he has been a member of the Liberal Party since 2001. He was an elected councilor in Quezon City from 1988 to 1992, and the Minority Leader of the Quezon City Legislative Council from 1991 to 1992.
He served as a Senator for 12 years, from 2001 to 2013. He was the chairperson of several Senate committees including, but not limited to, Ethics and Privileges, Justice and Human Rights, and Agriculture. He was the Majority Floor Leader from 2004 to 2007, and was also appointed as the Senate representative to the Judicial and Bar Council in 2001.
During Pangilinan’s senatorial term, he sponsored and authored laws with topics ranging from citizenship to money laundering to domestic violence. Some of these include RA 9293 (Amending the Philippine Teachers Professionalization Act), RA 9262 (Anti-Violence against Women and Their Children Act), National Service Training Program Act, Anti-Money Laundering Act, and Citizenship Retention Act of 2003.
After his term ended in 2013, Pangilinan was appointed by President Benigno Aquino III as the Presidential Assistant for Food Security and Agricultural Modernization (PAFSAM) in 2014. He was mandated to oversee four agricultural agencies, namely the National Food Authority, Philippine Coconut Authority, Fertilizer and Pesticide Authority, and National Irrigation Administration.
He resigned as PAFSAM in September 2015 to focus on his bid to return to the Senate. He filed his certificate of candidacy in October the same year.
For his current senatorial campaign, Pangilinan has been vocal about agriculture. He even has his own farm in Alfonso, Cavite which boasts of herbs, vegetables, and other plantations. According to a Philippine Daily Inquirer article published last February 17, 2016, farming for him “has become a true passion, advocacy and source of pride.” For him, visiting his farm “helps bring home the point that agriculture should be a priority sector and given the attention it deserves.” In terms of farmers’ plights, Pangilinan has called for a direct subsidy and higher incomes.
References:
https://www.senate.gov.ph/senators/sen_bio/pangilinan_bio.asp
http://www.mb.com.ph/pangilinan-calls-for-direct-subsidy-to-farmers/
http://web.archive.org/web/20070202031837/http://kiko.ph/about.html
http://business.inquirer.net/207184/veggies-herb-planting-for-quiet-time-fulfillment
http://www.rappler.com/nation/105926-francis-kiko-pangilinan-resigns
http://www.tempo.com.ph/2016/02/22/news/main/kiko-wants-to-uplift-lives-of-farmers/
http://www.mb.com.ph/glimpses-of-a-secretarys-organic-farm/