Bam Aquino

Paolo Benigno "Bam" Aguirre Aquino IV ([bɛˈnigno ʔaˈɡirɛ ʔaˈkino], born May 7, 1977) is a Filipino politician and social entrepreneur who served as a Senator of the Philippines from 2013 to 2019.
Bam Aquino was born on May 7, 1977, in Manila to Paul Aquino, one of the co-founders of the Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino and a son of Benigno Aquino Sr., and Melanie (née Aguirre) Aquino.
His grandfather, Benigno Sr., served as a congressman from Tarlac's 2nd district (1919–28), a senator from the 3rd district (1928–34), and Speaker of the National Assembly of the Japanese-sponsored puppet state of the Philippines from 1943 to 1944. Benigno Sr. was put on trial for treason after World War II for collaborating with the Japanese and eventually became the 6th Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Philippines (1943–44).
Under President Ferdinand Marcos Sr.'s regime, his uncle Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino Jr., a former senator (1967–72), was exiled in the United States from 1980 until 1983 when he returned to the Philippines and was assassinated at Manila International Airport.
In 1986, Marcos fled into exile, and Ninoy's wife, Corazon Aquino, became the first female president of the Philippines. His uncle Butz and aunt Teresa Aquino-Oreta also served as senators. His cousin, Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III, was elected the 15th President of the Philippines in 2010, which he served until 2016.
He graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Management Engineering from the Ateneo de Manila University, where he was valedictorian.
Aquino was also one of the hosts of the morning TV show Breakfast, a youth-oriented talk show on Studio 23. In 2006, Aquino hosted the youth-oriented debate show Y Speak, also on Studio 23.
In 2009, Aquino played the role of his uncle Ninoy Aquino, in the documentary film, The Last Journey of Ninoy. The film premiered on August 21, 2009, in commemoration of the 26th anniversary of the assassination of Ninoy.
Before becoming a senator, Aquino became the President of MicroVentures, Inc., a social enterprise company that manages the Hapinoy Program which provides micro-financing and training. After, Aquino was named as one of the Ten Outstanding Young Men of the Philippines in the category of Social Enterprise and Community Development. He was also chosen as one of the Ten Outstanding Young Persons of the World in 2012.
He was also a Board Member of Rags2Riches, Venture for Fundraising, and the Coca-Cola Foundation.
Running under the Team PNoy coalition of his cousin, President Benigno Aquino III, he won in the 2013 elections and placed 7th with 15,388,992 votes. As Senator, Aquino chaired the Committee on Science and Technology from 2016 to 2019. He was also a member of the following committees:
He was the former chairman of the Committee on Education Culture and Arts from July 2016 until his removal from the position in February 2017 due to his opposition to legislation backed by President Rodrigo Duterte. He was chairman of the Committee on Trade, Commerce, and Entrepreneurship and Committee on Youth from July 2013 to June 2016.
Aquino passed more than 40 laws during his first five and half years in office.
Aquino ran for re-election as senator as one of the Otso Diretso candidates. He failed to win his re-election bid, placing 14th overall with 14,144,923 votes, the highest among any Otso Diretso candidate. Aquino was quoted that "There are 14 million people who voted for an Aquino during the time of Duterte. That's something." According to his wife, he might return to his social entrepreneurship initiatives after his term ended on June 30, 2019.
On July 19, 2019, the PNP–Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) filed charges against Aquino and other members of the opposition for "sedition, cyber libel, libel, estafa, harboring a criminal, and obstruction of justice". On February 10, 2020, he was cleared of all charges.
Aquino initially planned to run for senator in the 2022 Philippine Senate election. However, on October 7, 2021, he revealed that Vice President Leni Robredo had offered him the role of campaign manager for her presidential campaign in the 2022 Philippine presidential election, which she launched earlier that day. Aquino accepted the offer instead to focus on "this essential and daunting challenge." Robredo would later go on to lose the presidential election to former Senator Bongbong Marcos, as she placed second in the official tally.
In 2023, Aquino, who is also an esports gamer, established his gaming content platform known as BAM Gaming. In May 2024, he began co-hosting Rekta: Agenda ng Masa, a radio program on DZRH and DZRH News Television.
In a television interview in 2024, Aquino announced he had already left the Liberal Party and became chairman of the Katipunan ng Nagkakaisang Pilipino (KANP). He is contesting a Senate seat in the 2025 elections.
He is married to Maria Fatima Gomez. They have two daughters.