Richard Gordon as Chairman of Philippine Red Cross one of the first to take action spearheading the relief efforts in times of calamities and natural disasters strike
Richard
Gordon Accomplishments
As
1971 Constitutional Convention Delegate
-
While still studying at UP, he was
elected as the delegate of the first district of Zambales to the 1971
Constitutional Convention which drafted the 1973 Constitution. He was the
youngest delegate at the said convention.
As
Mayor Of Olongapo City
-
Prior to his election as mayor of
Olongapo, Gordon helped his mother Amelia run the city government of Olongapo
after the assassination of his father, James in the late 1960s.
-
During his term as mayor, Olongapo became
a highly urbanized city in 1983.
-
Made Olongapo City as a “model city” from
being a “sin city” by raising police accountability
through I.D. systems, proper health and sanitation, waste management and the
strict observance of color-coding in public transport.
As
Chairman Of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA)
-
Appointed as the Chairman of the Subic
Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) by President Corazon C. Aquino on April 3,
1992.
-
On November 24, 1992, the U.S. Navy completed its withdrawal from the
facility and its conversion for civilian and commercial use began.
-
Gordon with the citizens of Olongapo
lobbied the national government for the inclusion of a free port concept into the national legislation for
the conversion of the U.S. bases. The effort was successful, with the inclusion
of the establishment of the Subic Bay
Freeport Zone (also known as
the Subic Special Economic Zone) in Section 12 of Republic Act No. 7227,
otherwise known as the Bases Conversion and Development Act, which was approved
on March 13, 1992. Section 13 of the same legislation also provided for the
establishment of the Subic Bay
Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), which was tasked to administer the Subic Bay Freeport Zone.
-
In 1996, Subic graciously hosted the APEC Summit and the 18 world leaders were so
impressed with the facility thus making Subic the new investment hub in
Southeast Asia. Large companies such as FedEx Express, Enron and computer giant
Acer poured in US $2.1 billion worth of investments creating 200,000 jobs.
As
Secretary Of Tourism Department
-
Spearheaded the successful Wow
Philippines! Campaign in aggressively marketing and promoting Philippines in
several international tourism expositions and roadshows winning awards from
International Tourism Board and WTM.
-
More Than The Usual In The Philippines
media campaign in several international media organization such as BBC, CNN,
Time Magazine etc. were successful to bring in hordes of foreign tourists.
-
From 2002, after four years of negative growth and in spite of threats of
terror post 9-11, Abu
Sayyaf kidnappings, SARS, Oakwood
Mutiny, tourism arrival
increased heavily. He also encouraged domestic tourism by holding regional
events and having provincial destinations showcased at Intramuros and the rationalization of Holiday Economics.
-
Successful campaigns and strategies
mentioned were successful in bringing in millions of foreign tourists and also
spur domestic tourism creating hundreds of thousands of jobs.
As
Senator of the Philippines
-
In 2004,
Dick Gordon was elected Senator of the Republic of the Philippines with
12,707,151 votes, finishing 5th place among the elected Senators in this batch.
-
In the first half of his term as a
senator of the 13th Congress, Richard Gordon accomplished the
following:
1.
Authored
79 bills and 29 resolutions advocating political reform, justice, job creation,
education, and disaster preparedness. He is primarily recognized for passing
two significant bills in the Senate, namely the new automated election system
law for fast, accurate and credible elections, and the holiday economics bill
for spurring domestic tourism, employment and socio-economic growth.
2. Passed the very first law in the
13th Congress, Republic Act No. 9333, fixing the regular elections
in the Autonomous Region in Muslim
Mindanao (ARMM), and several
other important laws, including Republic Act No. 9369, the new Automated
Elections System law;
Republic Act No. 9334, the sin tax law;
Republic Act No. 9399 and 9400, fixing the tax regime in Special Economic Zones
and Freeports
of Clark and Poro Point;
Republic Act No. 9492, the holiday economics law; Republic Act No. 9346, the abolition
of the death penalty
law; and Republic Act No. 9367,
the Biofuels Act of 2007.
3. Convinced IPU member countries to
participate in the 112thInter-Parliamentary Union Assembly, where he
also proposed a resolution
on behalf of the Philippine
delegation which was adopted, recognizing the role of parliaments in the
prevention, rehabilitation, reconstruction and protection of groups that are
vulnerable to natural and man-made disasters, and further encouraging the
creation of Regional Disaster, Training, Logistics and Reaction Centres in
collaboration with international humanitarian organizations and their local
counterparts such as the Philippine National Red Cross as well as local
disaster coordinating councils to train local field disaster response teams,
share international technical know-how, expertise, technology and other
information relating to disaster prevention training, and management.
4.
Led
the Senate to come together for a Strategic Planning Caucus at the start of the
13th Congress to address the most urgent problems of the nation. He authored
proposed Senate Resolution No. 56, which was adopted and became Senate
Resolution No. 8, entitled Resolution Calling a Caucus of All Senators to
Identify Strategic Measures and Priority Legislation to Effectively and
Efficiently Solve the Most Urgent Problems of our Nation. Through his efforts,
Dick Gordon united the Senate to pass enabling legislation to solve the
country’s budget deficit and fiscal debt, as well as equipped the Senators with
many important facts to pass necessary legislation on fiscal reforms, financial
reforms, job and income generation, security and peace and order, and education
and health.
5. As Chairman of the
Senate Committee of Constitutional Amendments and Revision of Laws, he upheld
the supremacy of the Constitution at all times. Though he may not have voted
for the ratification of the 1987 Constitution, he took an oath to preserve and
defend it. He insisted on the lawful process of Charter Change only according
to the process set forth in the Constitution. He opposed the method of
Constituent Assembly or "con-ass" initiated by President Arroyo and
House Speaker Jose de Venecia, Jr., which was possible in the 1935 Constitution
but unlawful in the current Constitution, as well as the dubious Sigaw ng Bayan
People's Initiative and was one of the triumphant parties in the case of
Lambino and Aumentado vs. COMELEC, G.R. No. 174153, October 25, 2006. He also
preserved the separation of powers in government and asserted the Senate’s
constitutional right and duty to conduct inquiries in aid of legislation
against Executive Order No. 464 in Senate, et al. vs. Ermita, G.R. No. 169777,
April 20, 2006, and Executive Order No. 1 in Sabio vs. Gordon, et al., G.R. No.
174340, October 17, 2006.
6. Preserved the
separation of powers in government and asserted the Senate’s constitutional
right and duty to conduct inquiries in aid of legislation against Executive Order
No. 464 in Senate, et al. vs. Ermita, G.R. No. 169777, April 20, 2006, and
Executive Order No. 1 in Sabio vs. Gordon, et al., G.R. No. 174340, October 17,
2006. In Sabio, he was upheld as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Government
Corporations and Public Enterprises in his resolve to investigate the
accountability of the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) in
managing the government’s interest in Philippine Communications Satellite
Corporation (PHILCOMSAT), pursuant to the Constitutional precept that public
office is a public trust.
7.
Resolute
as a staunch advocate of civil liberties. He has fought numerous times to
protect the fundamental liberties of the people guaranteed by the Constitution
under threat by extrajudicial killings and abductions, Calibrated Preemptive
Response (CPR), Presidential Proclamation No. 1017, etc.
8. He was the first to
speak against extrajudicial killings of journalists and judges. He has
consistently supported giving a high premium on justice as part of the basic
duty of the State to protect and serve the people. Knowing how it is to be a
victim of crime when his father was assassinated but refusing to take the law
into his own hands, he denounced the numerous assassinations of journalists,
judges, politicians, activists, etc. and called for swift action to deliver
justice.
9. Advocated electoral
reform and protection of the people’s right of suffrage. He principally
authored and sponsored Republic Act No. 9369, the new Automated Election System
law, to bring forth election modernization and minimize election fraud.
Chaired
the following Senate Committees:
1.
Constitutional Amendments, Revision of Codes and Laws
2.
Government Corporations and Public Enterprises
3.
Tourism
Member
of the following Senate Committees:
1.
Banks, Financial Institutions and Currencies
2.
Blue Ribbon
3.
Cultural Communities
4.
Economic Affairs
5.
Education, Arts and Culture
6.
Energy
7.
Environment and Natural Resources
8.
Finance
9.
Foreign Relations
10.
Health and Demography
11.
Justice and Human Rights
12.
Labor, Employment and Human Resources Development
13.
Local Government
14.
National Defense and Security
15.
Peace, Unification and Reconciliation
16.
Public Information and Mass Media
17.
Public Order and Illegal Drugs
18.
Public Services
19.
Public Works
20.
Trade and Commerce
21.
Ways and Means
22.
Urban Planning, Housing and Resettlement
23.
Youth, Women and Family Relations
-
In the second half of his term as a senator of the 14th Congress, Richard
Gordon accomplished the following:
1.
Authored
106 bills and 56 resolutions, advocating political reform, public order,
health, justice, job creation, education and disaster preparedness. He is
recognized for passing several significant bills in the Senate, namely, the
Filipino World War II Veterans Pensions and Benefits Act which allows veterans
to receive pensions from both Philippine and United States Governments; the
Tourism Act of 2007 which provides for the strengthening of the tourism
industry through strengthened promotion and the formation of Tourism Enterprise
Zones (TEZs); and the Act Penalizing Violations Against International
Humanitarian Law which ensures the protection of persons in times of armed
conflict.
2. Passed, as sponsor,
the following bills: Republic Act No. 9499, the Filipino World War II Veterans
Pensions and Benefits; Republic Act No. 9593, the Tourism Act of 2007; Republic
Act No. 9803, the Food Donation Act; Republic Act No. 9851, Penalizing
Violations of International Humanitarian Law; Republic Act No. 9903,
Establishing a one-time SSS Condonation Program; Republic Act No. 9996,
Creating the Mindanao Economic Development Authority (MinDA); Republic Act No.
10023, Extending Free Patent to Residential Lands; Republic Act No. 10072,
Philippine Red Cross Charter; and Republic Act No. 10073, Girl Scouts of the
Philippines Charter.
3. Co-authored the
following important laws: Republic Act No. 9496, Extending Utilization Period
of ACEF; Republic Act No. 9500, creating the University of the Philippines Charter
of 2007; Republic Act No. 9504, Small Income and Minimum Wage Earners Exemption
from Filing of Individual Income Tax Returns; Republic Act No. 9513, the
Renewable Energy Act of 2007; Republic Act No. 9576, the Philippine Deposit
Insurance Corporation Charter of 2008; Republic Act No. 9679, strengthening the
Pag-IBIG Charter; Republic Act No. 9710, the Magna Carta of Women; and Republic
Act No. 9993, Philippine Coast Guard Law.
4.
Member
of the Bicameral Conference Committee of Republic Act No. 9700, CARP Extension
with Reforms; and Joint Resolution No. 36, the New Salary Standardization
Scheme for Government Employees.
5. Authored and
sponsored the following legislative initiatives which are on third reading,
pending in the House of Representatives, or awaiting the President’s approval:
Senate Bill No. 2162, Adlaw ni Lapu-Lapu; Senate Bill No. 2590, an Act
proposing Nine Rays on the Sun on the Philippine Flag; Senate Bill No. 3086,
the Philippine Disaster Risk Management Act of 2009.
6. As Chair of the Senate
Blue Ribbon Committee, spearheaded the investigation on the 2004 P728-million
Fertilizer Fund Scam, promptly releasing Committee Report No. 254 which
recommended amendments to the Anti-Money Laundering Act and the Government
Procurement Reform Act; and on the assailed ZTE National Broadband Contract,
resolved under Committee Report No. 743 with recommendations to prosecute key
government personalities for violations of the Anti-graft and Corrupt Practices
Act, and to enact a Whistleblower Bill of Rights.
7.
Member
of the Senate Contingent to the Commission on Appointments.
8. Opposed the
imposition of Martial Law in Maguindanao. He challenged the constitutional
validity of Proclamation No. 1959, arguing that the requisites for Martial Law
did not exist.
9. Despite
his ties to Arroyo, the senator led investigations into the fertilizer fund
scam and the botched NBN-ZTE deal. In his committee reports, he recommended the
prosecution of Arroyo officials. For him his loyalty to his country begins when
his loyalty to his party ends.
Chaired
the following Senate Committees:
1.
Blue Ribbon Committee for the Accountability of Public Officers and
Investigations
2.
Government Corporations and Public EnterprisesGovernment Corporations and
Public Enterprises
Appointed
Vice-Chair of the following Committees:
1.
Ethics and Privileges
2.
Finance
3.
National Defense and Security
Member
of the following Senate Committees:
1.
Accounts
2.
Agriculture and Food
3.
Civil Service and Government Reorganization
4.
Climate Change
5.
Constitutional Amendments, Revisions of Codes and Laws
6.
Cooperatives
7.
Education and Culture
8.
Energy
9.
Environment and Natural Resources
10.
Foreign Relations
11.
Games, Amusement and Sports
12.
Health and Demography
13.
Labor, Employment and Human Resource Management
14.
Local Government
15.
Public Information and Mass Media
16.
Public Order and Illegal Drugs
17.
Public Services
18.
Public Works
19.
Rules
20.
Science and Technology
21.
Tourism
22.
Trade and Commerce
23.
Ways and Means
24.
Youth, Women and Family Relations
Automated
Election Law
He
was also responsible for the passage of Republic Act No. 9369 — or the
Automated Elections System to obviate cheating and post-election controversies
and protests that hound Philippine elections.
WWII
Veterans Compensation
On
April 9, 2008, Araw ng Kagitingan or Day of Valor in Bataan, President Arroyo
signed into law Republic Act No. 9499- Gordon's Veterans Bill. The Filipino
World War II Veterans Pensions and Benefits Act of 2008 amends Sections 10 and
11 of Republic Act No. 6948, as amended, by removing the prohibition against
our veterans receiving benefits from the United States government. Before the
law was signed, the Philippine government benefits of veterans would be revoked
once they were granted benefits by the United States government. Because of
Gordon’s advocacy and persistence, this prohibition is now eliminated, and
Filipino veterans will now be able to receive any form of benefit from any
foreign government without losing the benefits given to them by the Philippine
government.
National
Tourism Policy Act of 2009
He
was the principal author of the National Tourism Policy Act of 2009 or Republic
Act 9593, declaring a national policy for tourism as an engine of Investment
and employment, growth and national development that was signed by President
Arroyo in Cebu on May 12, 2009 and witnessed by the country's tourism private
sector
-
Despite
his ties to Arroyo, the senator led investigations into the fertilizer fund
scam and the botched NBN-ZTE deal. In his committee reports, he recommended the
prosecution of Arroyo officials.
As
Chairman of Philippine Red Cross
-
Elected
Governor of Philippine Red Cross in 1986
-
Chairman
of the Philippine Red Cross since 2004
-
Spearheaded
the rescue, relief and rehabilitation of various disasters from shipwrecks,
typhoons, 1990 earthquake in Cabanatuan, 1991 eruption of Mount Pinatubo, 2004
landslides in Aurora, Quezon and 2006 Ginsaugun, Southern Leyte mudslide and
the PhilSports Arena stampede, typhoon Ondoy in Luzon, Visayas earth quake and
Super typhoon Yolanda in the Visayas and some parts of the country in 2013.
Some
of the Bills He Passed:
Veterans Pensions and Benefits
Act of 2008 (author and sponsor)
National Tourism Policy Act
(author and sponsor)
New Automated Elections System
Law (author and sponsor)
An Act Penalizing Violations of
International Humanitarian Law (author and sponsor)
Holiday Economics Law (sponsor)
Philippine Red Cross Law
(sponsor)
Food Donation Law (sponsor)
Extending Free Patent to
Residential Lands (author and sponsor)
Mindanao Development Act
(sponsor)
Creating the Freeport Area of
Bataan (sponsor)
Establishing a one-time SSS
Condonation Law (author and sponsor)
An Act Creating the Mindanao
Economic Development Authority (sponsor)
Girl Scouts of the Philippines
Charter (sponsor)
*Source:
Gordon and richardgordon.blogspot.com
Advocacies:
Education
Agriculture
Enhancement of tourism
Information technology
National defense
Achievements
and Distinctions:
• Tourism Secretary, Wow!
Philippines
• Chairman and Governor, Phil.
National Red Cross (1986-present)
• Founding Chairman&
Administrator, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) (1992-1998)
• Youngest delegate of the
Constitutional Convention (1971 to 1972)
• The Outstanding Filipino (TOFIL
1996)
• Some authored bills enacted to
law: Automated Elections Law, Veteran’s Law, National Tourism Policy Act of
2009, among others
• Gold Humanitarian Award, Japan Red
Cross (2008
• Gold Vision Triangle Award,
National YMCA
• Who’s Who in Asia, NHK TV Japan
(1995)
• 20 Great Asians of the Future,
Asiaweek Magazine (1995)
• Man of the Year, Alas Singko y
Media Program, ABS-CBN (1996)
• Most Distinguished Alumnus, UP
Alumni Association (1997)
• International Awardee, Visit
Korea, Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Republic of Korea (2003)
Quotes:
“I
just didn’t like the idea that you can inherit the presidency. I just didn’t
like the idea that you can buy the presidency. I just didn’t like the idea that
people run based on names without track records. I have to be part of the
debate,” - Gordon told Rappler
on why he ran for President
“I’m
prepared for it, and perhaps more prepared than the others.” - On his bid to return to Senate in
2013
“When
I say something, I have something to prove it.”
- On his explanation for his reputation as being proud and demanding
“I
picked cigarettes that were thrown by other people and that wasn’t meant to
insult. We must lead by example,” - On being a mayor
of Olongapo City by example
“When
a surveying company takes it upon itself to survey and charge a candidate or
put their results in public, that is an invitation to pecuniary and mercantile
pursuits that can only harm the people because it’s mind management.” - on his opinion about survey after he
sued pollsters Pulse Asia and Social Weather Station
“The
illegitimate brother of surveys is excessive advertising. They’ll tell you
you’re weak, you need to advertise. In the meantime, our so-called guardians of
the people (the media), they run a business. What happens to the candidate with
no money?” - On his opinion about media
advertising
“So
the electorate can really find out what is the capability of this candidate.
Ano ba talaga? (What is the real score?) In this country, you have the right to
ask your candidate, ‘How are you going to execute your plan?’”- on his plan to push the Commission on
Elections to require candidates to debate
“Can
you deny when I was running for president, the boat sank and I just had a
‘Silent Night’ [ad]? We couldn’t afford an agency. As they were playing ‘Silent
Night,’ I was seen in the middle of the night working, while everyone was
sleeping. - on his explanation about his Red
Cross commercial while being a Senatorial candidate in 2013
“I’m
going to win on my terms. I’m not going to employ what other people are doing.
Playing to the gallery, dancing, making jokes. To me, it’s a very serious
effort. Leaders raise the level of awareness, understanding, and responsibility
of their constituents.”- on how to win the
votes of the people
“The
country is not working, my dear, and I don’t want to be like one of those in
Gone With the Wind who says, ‘Frankly, Scarlett, I don’t give a damn.’”
“I
do give a damn.” - on the conditions
of his country and what does he feel
“It’s
better to know where you’re going and not know how to get there than to know
how you’re going and not know where.”
- when asked if his campaign strategy is enough
Source:
Rappler
RichardGordon.blogspot.com
Wikipedia
Photo Sources:
ivote.ph
news.gov.sg
thedailyopium.com
Richard J. Gordon Facebook Page
