Senator Kiko Pangilinan proved his mettle by championing the cause of the judiciary. He belongs to a breed of new legislators who possess vibrancy in spirit, dedication to work, and passion for the voiceless segments of Philippine society.

He is acknowledged as one of the most hardworking and most productive senators in the country today. He filed the most number of committee reports during the 12th Congress. In fact, one-third of the total number of committee reports was chalked by Kiko. Such feat and exemplary performance earned the respect and trust of his colleagues in the Senate that they elected him majority leader of the 12th Congress and is the youngest to become Senate majority leader since 1937.

Prior to becoming the Senate Majority Leader, Kiko served as Chairman of the Senate Committees on Justice and Human Rights, Housing and Urban Planning, Education, and the Ethics and Public Accountability. He is also the principal author and sponsor of the Judiciary Compensation and Modernization Act, which doubled the pay and other benefits of judges and justices thereby addressing the issue of huge vacancy rate in many courts. He is also author of the law which doubled the pay of the National Prosecution Office and the Alternative Dispute Resolution Law. He also authored the law which amended the Balik-Turo Program thereby addressing the problem of shortage of teachers.

He is also credited for the passage of laws which created new local courts in San Pablo City, (RA 9252), Tagbilaran City (RA 9309), Eastern Samar Province (RA 9307) and Roxas City (RA 9274).

Some other legislation which Kiko became actively involved with include the following:
• The Citizenship Retention Act of 2003
• The Filipino Overseas Absentee-Voting Act
• Anti Piracy Law

Presently, Kiko is actively campaigning for the passage of the Juvenile Justice Bill and the Independent Counsel Bill which would further strengthen the country’s judicial system and the government’s prosecutory arm.
Early Beginnings

Kiko was a student-activist during his college years. He was president of the UP Student Council and the first UP Board of Regent student-member with voting power. He earned his Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Arts in English at the University of the Philippines. He also conducted lectures at the Ateneo de Manila. In 1997, Kiko pursued his Masters in Public Administration at the Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.
For almost a decade, Kiko was also a well-respected broadcast journalist. He is also a staunch human rights advocate. His crusade goes way back during the early years of his law profession when he worked as a collaborating lawyer with the Free Legal Assistance Group (FLAG) and handled pro-bono cases and up to the time he joined the pool of top-notch broadcast journalists of the country.

Good Politics

Presently, Sen. Kiko is the Vice Chair and the National Organizing Commission Chair of the Liberal Party-Philippines – the longest running political party in the country with over 58 years of history and tradition. He believes that strengthening the country’s “partyness” in government will usher the country along with all its political institutions towards a more competitive economy and further promote responsible and responsive lawmaking.
For the past years, he displayed leadership, political will, integrity and respect for the rule of law. During the last 2004 Congressional Canvassing, Kiko displayed patience, sobriety and calm to usher a smooth canvassing process.

Despite the hectic schedule, Sen. Kiko still manages to take part in civic-oriented organizations, and continues to visit various project sites and touch base with his constituents. Kiko is passionate about strengthening the Filipino family, empowering the youth, revitalizing the judicial system, promoting respect for human rights and working for an accountable and responsive government. From student leader to senator, his vision of a new leadership has not wavered and he continues to encourage Filipinos to be active, to take a stand and participate, and to inspire them so that they too can lead and work towards a better Philippines.

KTubed – the online Kiko reality series

Visit his web site at www.kiko.ph

Originally posted at www.senate.gov.ph