On October 14, 2015, Retired Police General Romeo Maganto filed his Certificate of Candidacy (COC) for a seat in the Senate.

 

His name might not be a familiar one for this generation, but he was very big in the 90s. Maganto’s career was so celebrated that he even had two movies glorifying his life and work: “Leon ng Maynila, Lt. Col. Romeo Maganto” (1991), and “Tomagan, Story of Gen. Romeo Maganto” (2003).

 

Said huge career began as soon as Maganto graduated from the Philippine College of Criminology in 1974. He went on to serve 31 full years for the Philippine National Police before retiring as a general in 2004. Maganto’s stellar performance as a policeman is evidenced by the 45 medals he received while in service, five of which are Presidential Medals.

 

Recent election survey results showing Maganto as a cellar dweller might mean that the general public has forgotten him, but it is highly likely that the North still remembers. After all, it was in Ilocos Norte that he shone best as a cop, from busting notorious criminal gangs and lawless individuals to leading destructive attacks against guerrilla NPA troops. His dedication to solve crime and put the perpetrators to justice earned him the nickname “Tigre ng Ilocos” before he had to leave the province as he was promoted police general.

 

Maganto, while being a staunch enemy of insurgents, does not discriminate. He was even known to have arrested his own brother when the latter got involved in criminal work. He also managed to nab former army men who have gone rogue such as John Sultan, Eric Reyes, and Roberto Martinez – Marcos loyalists who plotted several coup attempts against Former President Corazon Aquino.

 

Another achievement for which Maganto was known for would be the capture of convicted murderer and notorious fugitive Rolito Go in 1996.  He failed to follow the chain of command, however, when he brought Go directly to the Vice President at the time, Joseph Estrada, instead of to his superiors in the PNP and DILG. This mishap caused him to be fired as chief of the PNP’s Traffic Management Command.

 

His anti-crime and anti-insurgency police background, however, is not Maganto’s all and end all. In 1995, he authored the Color Coding Traffic Scheme, being traffic czar of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) traffic management office, having been appointed by then President Fidel Ramos himself. At first, he managed to get in the nerves of some politicians such as Jejomar Binay (Makati Mayor at the time), who were skeptic of the scheme. Eventually, though, Maganto’s coding scheme got codified via a regulation signed by then-MMDA Chairman Prospero Oreta.

 

Today, Leon ng Maynila wishes to continue his work on the traffic situation in the country. As a matter of fact, he challenged Malacanang on September 15, 2015 to make him traffic manager. He was quoted by ABS-CBN news in saying that he “will solve the traffic problem within a month’s time.” He even went on to vow to step down from the post if unable to carry out his promise. The Palace took no heed of Maganto’s challenge, despite his successful work managing traffic during the construction of the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) and during the Papal Visit, both in 1995.

 

His convictions in solving crime, insurgency, and traffic are some of the things that the country could expect, should Maganto expedite a last-minute surge and end up earning himself a seat in the Senate after the 2016 national elections.