First off, let me make this clear. This list of Mindanaoans who want to run for Senator in the 2010 elections is just initial – there may still be more interested senatorial candidates in the days to come so Mindanaoan will try to update the list as often as possible. Hopefully, this list can help you, fellow Filipino voters and fellow Mindanao residents, in choosing the right candidate to send to the Senate. I’m also hoping that this post can help provide a platform for all of us Mindanawans to discuss who can really be the true voice of Mindanao in the Senate.
Please feel free to share your thoughts!
Aquilino Martin “Koko” Pimentel III – ran for the Senate during the last elections but lost to former Bukidnon congressman and now Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri. Koko Pimentel has since launched a protest and he even has a website for it. Father is Senator Aquilino Pimentel, Jr. of Cagayan de Oro City, Mindanao. A lawyer. Named as one of the senatorial candidates under the slate of former President Erap Estrada and Makati City mayor Jejomary Binay.
Teofisto “TG” Guingona III – was originally with Sen. Manny Villar and Nacionalista Party but recently defected to the Liberal Party. He’s now one of the senatorial candidates under Sen. Noynoy Aquino and Sen. Mar Roxas’ slate. Currently serving as the representative of the second district of Bukidnon. His father is former Vice President Teofisto “Tito” Guingona.
Atty. Adel Tamano – former spokesperson of the United Opposition and served as president of the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila. He’s now with Sen. Manny Villar. Adel, whose name reportedly means “lover of justice” in Arabic, is the son of the late Senator Mamintal “Mike” Tamano and civil leader Hadja Putri Zorayda Abbas of Lanao del Sur and Jolo, Mindanao. Official website here.
JR Nereus “Neric” Acosta – former representative of the first district of Bukidnon. Currently part of the Liberal Party and will run under the Aquino-Roxas slate. Best known as the principal author of the Clean Air Act. Very active in various non government organizations. Is facing an Ombudsman case. He released a statement pertaining to the graft charges a few months back. In 2004 he was named the very first Filipino World Fellow of Yale University. An associate professor at the Asian Institute of Management and the Ateneo de Manila University. Official website here.
Rodolfo “Ompong” Plaza – businessman, part of the huge political Plaza clan in the Agusan area. His family owns a lot of businesses in Mindanao. Ompong is currently serving as representative of the lone district of Agusan del Sur, Mindanao. Best known as the principal author of the LPG Act (House Bill 5942). Ompong Plaza will reportedly run as “guest candidate” under the Erap-Binay slate. Official website here.
The 2010 presidential elections are just around the corner and I’m interested to know – after former Bukidnon Third District Congressman Juan Miguel “Migs” Zubiri, will Mindanao again produce new senators? Will there be two (or more) Mindanaoan senators soon?
This early, I’ve heard a lot of buzz about three Mindanaoans who will allegedly gun for a senatorial seat this 2010 Philippine elections. These are former Bukidnon First District Congressman JR Nereus “Neric” Acosta, United Opposition spokesperson Adel Abass Tamano and current Bukidnon Second District Congressman Teofisto “TG” Guingona III.
On Neric Acosta – He served as a congressman for Bukidnon’s first district for three consecutive terms. The principal author of the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the Solid Waste Management Act, and the Biodiversity Protection Act, Neric is a young and dynamic academician. Currently the Secretary General of the Liberal Party, Neric is considered as one of the “possible senatorial bets” who might run under Mar Roxas‘ ticket. He ran for governor in Bukidnon opposite Migs Zubiri’s father, incumbent Gov. Jose Zubiri, Jr., in 2007 but lost.
On Adel Tamano – Currently the President of the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila, Adel is the first Filipino Muslim to graduate from Harvard Law School.
On TG Guingona – TG, son of the former Vice President Teofisto Guingona, Jr., is a member of the Nacionalista Party (otherwise known as Manuel Villar’s party). He’s currently serving his second term as congressman of Bukidnon’s second district.
What do you think? Does any of these three Mindanao politicians (or perhaps all three of them for that matter) have a chance of landing a seat in the Philippine Senate?
Mindanaoans who aim to have a seat in the Senate
October 15, 2009
Advocacy, Bukidnon, Commentary, Controversial, Features, Government, Headline, Lanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur, Mindanao, Mindanaoan Update, News, Opinion, Personalities, Politics, agusan del sur, armm, misamis oriental, muslim mindanao, northern mindanao
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First off, let me make this clear. This list of Mindanaoans who want to run for Senator in the 2010 elections is just initial – there may still be more interested senatorial candidates in the days to come so Mindanaoan will try to update the list as often as possible. Hopefully, this list can help you, fellow Filipino voters and fellow Mindanao residents, in choosing the right candidate to send to the Senate. I’m also hoping that this post can help provide a platform for all of us Mindanawans to discuss who can really be the true voice of Mindanao in the Senate.
Please feel free to share your thoughts!
Aquilino Martin “Koko” Pimentel III – ran for the Senate during the last elections but lost to former Bukidnon congressman and now Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri. Koko Pimentel has since launched a protest and he even has a website for it. Father is Senator Aquilino Pimentel, Jr. of Cagayan de Oro City, Mindanao. A lawyer. Named as one of the senatorial candidates under the slate of former President Erap Estrada and Makati City mayor Jejomary Binay.
Teofisto “TG” Guingona III – was originally with Sen. Manny Villar and Nacionalista Party but recently defected to the Liberal Party. He’s now one of the senatorial candidates under Sen. Noynoy Aquino and Sen. Mar Roxas’ slate. Currently serving as the representative of the second district of Bukidnon. His father is former Vice President Teofisto “Tito” Guingona.
Atty. Adel Tamano – former spokesperson of the United Opposition and served as president of the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila. He’s now with Sen. Manny Villar. Adel, whose name reportedly means “lover of justice” in Arabic, is the son of the late Senator Mamintal “Mike” Tamano and civil leader Hadja Putri Zorayda Abbas of Lanao del Sur and Jolo, Mindanao. Official website here.
JR Nereus “Neric” Acosta – former representative of the first district of Bukidnon. Currently part of the Liberal Party and will run under the Aquino-Roxas slate. Best known as the principal author of the Clean Air Act. Very active in various non government organizations. Is facing an Ombudsman case. He released a statement pertaining to the graft charges a few months back. In 2004 he was named the very first Filipino World Fellow of Yale University. An associate professor at the Asian Institute of Management and the Ateneo de Manila University. Official website here.
Rodolfo “Ompong” Plaza – businessman, part of the huge political Plaza clan in the Agusan area. His family owns a lot of businesses in Mindanao. Ompong is currently serving as representative of the lone district of Agusan del Sur, Mindanao. Best known as the principal author of the LPG Act (House Bill 5942). Ompong Plaza will reportedly run as “guest candidate” under the Erap-Binay slate. Official website here.