TG Guingona
Teofisto "TG" de Lara Guingona III (), or more commonly known as "TG" is a distinguished lawyer and the son of former Vice President Teofisto "Tito" Guingona, Jr. He was a Congressman of the 2nd District of Bukidnon during the 13th and 14th Congress from 2004 to 2010 and a Senator of the Philippines during the 15th and 16th Congress from 2010 to 2016. TG Guingona passed a total of twenty-three (23) laws as a legislator. Among these are measures designed to improve the health system of the Philippines such as The Expanded Senior Citizens Act which prescribes  that all Filipino senior citizens be automatically covered by the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth), The Rare Diseases Act which improves the access of patients who are diagnosed to have a rare disease or are suspected of having a rare disease to comprehensive medical care, and The Comprehensive Tuberculosis Elimination Plan Act which expands PhilHealth's tuberculosis packages and provides free tuberculosis medicine and laboratory services nationwide. The law also expands PhilHealth's tuberculosis package to include new patients, relapse patients, return-after-default cases, and cases requiring extended treatment. As Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Health and Demography , TG Guingona also fought against the eviction of the Philippine Children's Medical Center (PCMC) by facilitating the land transfer between the Department of Health (DOH) and the National Housing Authority (Philippines) (NHA). The land transfer allowed the DOH to finally own the lot where PCMC stands, thus providing PCMC, the Philippines' largest public hospital for children, the security to continuously operate and provide subsidized medical treatment to more than 70,000 Filipino children, most of which belong to the marginalized sector. Other major legislations authored and co-authored by TG Guingona are The Philippine Competition Act, The Anti-Money Laundering  Act, and The Sandiganbayan Act. The Philippine Competition Act is the first competition law in the Philippines. Through this, the Philippine Competition Commission was created to protect consumers from product price spikes, allow consumers to have more options and better products to choose from, and ultimately empower small businesses. The Anti-Money Laundering Act which gives the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) the power to conduct "ex parte" (without notice) inquiries into the bank accounts of persons who may be committing unlawful activities and/or money laundering upon the order of any competent court while emphasizing constitutional provisions to ensure that  indiscriminate and illegal inquiries are not made. The Sandiganbayan Act aims to address the resolution of graft and corruption cases in the Philippines by increasing the number of divisions in the Sandiganbayan, rationalizing its procedures, and expanding its capacity to eliminate graft and corruption in the government in a timely and efficient manner to ensure that justice will be implemented with the highest level of integrity. In 2012, TG Guingona was the only senator who voted against The Cybercrime Prevention Act or The Cybercrime Law. This law was coined "Cyber Martial Law" by the public for its vague online libel  clauses which was deemed repressive of the Filipino people's constitutional right to freedom of speech. Upon its passage into law, TG Guingona filed a petition before the Supreme Court to repeal these clauses. The Supreme Court heeded this call and ordered a temporary restraining order on its implementation the following month before finally ruling some provisions of the Cybercrime Prevention Act as unconstitutional in 2014. TG Guingona has also been selected as a Champion of Good Governance by the Kaya Natin! Movement, a non-profit and non-government organization in the Philippines. TG Guingona was recognized for his efforts  to promote good governance and ethical leadership in government as exemplified in his accomplishments as the Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Accountability of Public Officers and Investigations (Blue Ribbon). As Chairperson, TG Guingona led the investigations on various graft and corruption activities in government in aid of legislation such as the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) Fund Scam, The Philippine National Police (PNP) Helicopter Scam, and one of the biggest corruption scandals in recent history, the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) Scam or Pork Barrel Scam. TG Guingona also authored The Freedom of Information Bill and persistently called for  its passage into law. The Freedom of Information Bill mandates the disclosure of information from all government agencies in relation to their budget, procurement, transactions, and other pertinent information regarding government agencies to any member of the public. This bill does not only pursue greater transparency and accountability in governance, but it also promotes citizen participation and nation-building because when armed with relevant information, people can more efficiently work with government and introduce reforms. Early life and education. Teofisto "TG" Guingona was born in Manila, Philippines on April 19, 1959 to a family of Filipino politicians. His paternal grandfather , Teofisto Guingona, Sr., was the Governor of Mindanao during the term of President Manuel Quezon, and his maternal grandfather, Vicente Botao de Lara, was the Governor of Misamis Oriental. His father, Teofisto "Tito" Guingona, Jr., was a senator, Chairman of the Commission on Audit, Executive Secretary, Secretary of Justice, Secretary of Foreign Affairs and Vice President of the Philippines. His mother, Ruth de Lara-Guingona, also served as Governor of Misamis Oriental and Mayor of Gingoog City, Misamis Oriental. Being deeply rooted in Mindanao, TG Guingona is fluent in the Filipino dialects Cebuano-Bisaya and Tagalog, as well as in  the English language. TG Guingona attended the Ateneo de Manila University from grade school through law school. He graduated college in 1981 with a degree in Economics before pursuing a law degree in the Ateneo School of Law. He graduated from law school in 1985 and was admitted to the Integrated Bar of the Philippines in 1986. TG Guingona was as student activist during the Martial Law Era. He was a member of the Ateneo de Manila Student Council (student government) when then President Ferdinand Marcos called for an Interim Batasang Pambansa (national Parliament) election in 1978. In response, the  opposition in Metro Manila formed a political party called Lakas ng Bayan (strength of the nation) or LABAN (fight) for short. Among the notable candidates of LABAN were Benigno "Ninoy Aquino, Jr., Neptali "Nap" Gonzales, Sr., Ramon "Monching" Mitra, Jr., Aquilino "Nene" Pimentel, Jr., Alejandro "Anding" Roces, Francisco "Soc" Rodrigo, and TG Guingona's father, Teofisto "Tito" Guingona, Jr. LABAN lost all of its twenty-one (21) candidates, with obscure candidates from Kilusang Bagong Lipunan, the political party of Ferdinand Marcos, winning against the popular Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino, Jr. at the time. LABAN found the electoral cheating so brazen that  a protest march was called for on April 9, 1987. Some members of the faculty and the student council of the Ateneo de Manila University, including TG Guingona, joined the LABAN candidates in protesting the fraudulent election. All the demonstrators were arrested while marching along España Boulevard in front of The University of Santo Tomas. TG Guingona was jailed together with prominent political and religious personalities Lorenzo "Ka Tanny" Tañada, Sr., Francisco "Soc" Rodrigo, Aquilino "Nene" Pimentel, Jr., Ceferino "Joker" Arroyo, Jr., Fr. Romeo "Archie" Intengan, S.J., Jerry Treñas], Manuel Antonio "Dondi" Teehankee, the son of the former Supreme Court  Justice Claudio Teehankee, Sr., and Ruth Guingona, TG Guingona's mother. After several days, TG Guingona was released from jail and his case was categorized as nolle prosequi (the State shall no longer prosecute). The incarceration was a very maturing process for TG Guingona who was only nineteen (19) years old at the time. Before his election as a public servant, TG Guingona was an active practitioner and contributor to The National Shelter Program as a private businessman-developer of socialized and low-cost housing subdivisions all over the Philippines. The National Shelter Program is designed to assist informal settler  families and low to middle-income families through affordable housing opportunities. The House of Representatives. TG Guingona was first elected into public office on 2004 as the Representative of the 2nd District of Bukidnon. He served the post for two (2) terms before running for Senator on 2010. He served as the Deputy Minority Floor Leader and the Minority Representative to the then called Joint Congressional Power Commission which deals with matters relating to energy and electricity. During his tenure as Congressman, TG Guingona authored a total of (30) bills, six (6) of which were passed into law. Among these  are the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction Management Act and the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) Act. The Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction Management Act launched the paradigm shift from emergency relief and response, which is reactive in nature, to a more proactive approach, which is disaster mitigation. The law replaces the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) with the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) and establishes the Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund wherein local government units (LGU) are to set aside five percent (5%) of their estimated revenue from regular sources for their disaster councils. Seventy percent (70 %) of the Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund shall be used for pre-disaster measures while the rest of shall be allocated as a Quick Response Fund which serves as a stand-by fund for relief and recovery programs. The Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) Act creates the Mindanao Development Authority. The Mindanao Development Authority is the government agency responsible for the promotion, coordination, and facilitation of the active and extensive participation of all sectors to foster socio-economic development in Mindanao. TG Guingona has expressed that he believes that investing in the human and social capital in Mindanao may  end the cycle of violence that has afflicted the island for a long time. As an advocate of good governance, TG Guingona also pushed for transparency in budgetary procedures and promoted reform in the national budgeting system. When evidence of electoral cheating by then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo became public, TG Guingona actively endorsed and pursued her impeachment. The cheating in the Presidential election by Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo became known as the Hello Garci Scandal. The Senate of the Philippines. TG Guingona was elected as a Senator of the Philippines in 2010 and served until 2016. He authored a total  of one hundred and twenty-four (124) bills and passed eighteen (18) laws in six (6) years, and especially advocated for the improvement of the health system, transparency and accountability in government, and the protection of human rights through legislation. He likewise served as the Chairperson of the following Senate Committees: In 2015, The Commission on Audit (COA) released a report with an itemized list of amounts paid to and expenses incurred by each senator in 2014. In the said report, COA tagged TG Guingona as the lowest spending senator of the Philippines. Improvement of the health system. TG Guingona  proposed and enacted several measures to improve the state of the health system of the Philippine from strengthening the capacity of public hospitals to treat more people and more illnesses, to promoting the welfare of healthcare workers, and providing patients with better access to quality healthcare. Among these were the following: Additionally, TG Guingona filed the following bills for the advancement of the healthcare system in the Philippines: Transparency and accountability in government. As Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Accountability of Public Officers and Investigations or more commonly known as the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, TG Guingona investigated the  following cases of wrongdoings on the part of the government, its officials, and its attached agencies in aid of legislation: As the nature of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee is to conduct investigations in aid of legislation, the following were legislated by TG Guingona to address the discovered lapses in existing laws and government procedures: Protection of human rights through legislation. As Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Peace, Unification, and Reconciliation, TG Guingona led the Senate investigations on the Lumad Killings in Surigao del Sur and pushed for the passage of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) or the Bangsamoro  Organic Law which established the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). Following the agreements set forth in the final peace agreement signed between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the Bangsamoro Basic Law addresses the Muslim people's quest for self-determination and paves the way for lasting peace in Mindanao after decades of violent conflict TG Guingona also passed the Human Rights Victims Reparation and Recognition Act and Joint Resolution No. 3: Extending Period of Claims for Reparation of Human Rights Violations Victims which allows the State to formally recognize and compensate human rights  victims of martial law under the Marcos regime, and extends the deadline for the filing of claims of martial law victims by six (6) months, respectively. Additionally, TG Guingona filed the following bills directed to alleviate poverty, protect the rights of internally displaced persons, and boost the Philippine government's disaster preparedness and response: Senate committee assignments. Sub-committee Chairmanship. Sub-committee on the Anti-Money Laundering Act (Committee on Banks, Financial Institutions, and Currencies)