Rodrigo Abellanosa

Rodrigo "Bebot" Abellana Abellanosa (born December 2, 1961) is a Filipino politician serving as the representative for the 2nd district (south district) of Cebu City since 2013.[2] He served as a member of the Cebu City Council representing the 2nd district from 2004 to 2013 and was the barangay captain of Duljo Fatima, Cebu City from 1994 to 2004.

The Honorable Rodrigo Abellanosa
Member of the Philippine House of Representatives from Cebu City's 2nd district
Incumbent
Assumed office June 30, 2013
Preceded by	Tomas Osmeña
House of Representatives positions Chair of the Philippine House Committee on Natural Resources In office August 1, 2018 – June 30, 2019 Preceded by Arnel Ty Succeeded by Elpidio Barzaga Jr.
Member of the Cebu City Council from the 2nd district
In office June 30, 2004 – June 30, 2013
Barangay Captain of Duljo Fatima, Cebu City
In office June 30, 1994 – June 30, 2004
Personal details
Born	Rodrigo Abellana Abellanosa December 2, 1961 Cebu City, Philippines
Political party	LDP
Other political affiliations	Bando Osmeña – Pundok Kauswagan
Children	BG Rodrigo Abellanosa Angel Vianne Abellanosa
Education	Asian Institute of Management University of the Philippines Diliman Ateneo de Manila University
Profession	Politician
Net worth	₱71.4 million[1] (2018)
Signature

Early career

Abellanosa established the Asian Computer Institute (ACI), the precursor of Asian College of Technology (ACT) on September 19, 1988 in Colon Street, Cebu City.[3] He went on to serve as president of ACT and Asian College of Technology International Education Foundation Inc. (ACTIEF).[4][5]

Political career

Barangay captain (1994–2004)

Abellanosa served as Barangay Captain of Duljo-Fatima in Cebu City from 1994.[6]

Cebu City Council (2004–2013)

Abellanosa served as City Councilor for three consecutive terms from 2004 to 2013.

He first ran as Councilor of the South District under Bando Osmeña – Pundok Kauswagan of Mayor Tomas Osmeña.[7]

In the 10th Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP), he was designated as Chairman of the Committee on Family & Women and Committee on Local & International Relations.[8]

In the 11th Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP), he was designated as Chairman of the Committee on Social Services. He also served as Vice Chairman of the Committee on Public Services and the Committee on Family & Women.[9]

In the 12th Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP), he was designated as the Presiding Officer-Pro Tempore and Chairman of the Committee on Social Services. He also served as Vice Chairman of the Committee on Education, Science and Technology and the Committee on Trade, Commerce, Cooperatives and Entrepreneurship in the 12th SP.[10]

House of Representatives (2013–present)

Abellanosa ran for Representative of Cebu City 2nd district (South) to succeed Tomas Osmeña who unsuccessfully ran as Mayor in the 2013 elections. He won against Aristotle Batuhan in 2013,[11] Gerardo Carillo in 2016[12] and Jocelyn Pesquera in 2019.[13]

He was supposed to run against Antonio Cuenco, the former 2nd District (South) Representative of Cebu City but on September 7, 2012, Cuenco announced that he was retiring from politics for health reasons. In a letter read by his son James Anthony Cuenco, the former Deputy Speaker said that he suffered vertigo during a sortie.[14] Cuenco endorsed then Cebu City Councilor Jose Daluz III as his replacement[15] but eventually, former DOTC undersecretary Aristotle "Totol" Batuhan was chosen by Team Rama to run against Abellanosa.[16]

On December 13, 2012, a complaint was filed by a certain Phillip Banguiran, a resident of barangay Inayawan, Cebu City citing Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act by asking the Ombudsman in the Visayas to investigate Abellanosa because his school, Asian College of Technology, was the biggest recipient of the city’s scholarship program.[17]

On October 11, 2016, the Office of the Ombudsman filed a graft case before the anti-graft court Sandiganbayan against Abellanosa over an alleged P51-million anomalous transaction when he was a city councilor. He was accused of having an unlawful interest in Cebu City’s distribution of PHP 51.065 million in scholarship programs when he was a city councilor in 2011.

Then Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales approved the charge sheet against Abellanosa on September 29, 2016. The prosecution said that as a member of the Sangguniang Panglungsod, Abellanosa showed unlawful interest in the passage of City Resolution No. 12-3355-2011, which authorized the city mayor to enter into a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the Asian College of Technology and International Educational Foundation (ACTIEF) where he was a trustee and president of ACTIEF at the time.

The prosecution said Abellanosa entered into an MOA with the Cebu City government on behalf of ACTIEF for the implementation of a city-funded scholarship program.

Records obtained by graft investigators showed ACTIEF was entrusted with PHP 51.065 million scholarship funds, which the Ombudsman said was prejudicial to the government and public interest.[18]

The Ombudsman found him guilty of grave misconduct and meted him the penalty of dismissal of service but in a 10-page resolution that was promulgated on January 27, 2017, the Sandiganbayan granted the motion to quash information filed by Abellanosa, saying that the facts in the case do not constitute an offense. Thus, the higher court ordered to lift the hold-departure order issued against him and released the bond he posted for his provisional liberty.[19][20]

In a 10-page decision promulgated on December 21, 2017, the Special 20th Division of the Court of Appeals (CA) reversed the decision of the Office of the Ombudsman finding Abellanosa guilty of grave misconduct for his involvement in the City Government’s scholarship program while he was still a councilor thus allowing him to continue to serve as Congressman. Associate Justice Geraldine Fiel-Macaraig banked on the doctrine of condonation in favoring Abellanosa. [21]

Macaraig, who pinned her opinion, which was affirmed by two other associate justices, said that contrary to the grounds of the Ombudsman, Abellanosa’s election as congressman during the 2013 elections rendered the imposition of the administrative offense of grave misconduct moot and academic on the basis of condonation doctrine.

Based on the 2018 Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALNs), Abellanosa remained as the richest Cebuano lawmaker who declared PHP 71.4 million net worth or actual wealth as of December 31, 2018.

Abellanosa's net worth is PHP 2.1 million more than his PHP 69.3 million net worth in 2017 while in 2016, he had PHP 68.8 million actual wealth. Since 2016 up to 2018, he declared no liabilities.[1]

Legislative portfolio

As a member of 16th and 17th Congress, Abellanosa authored 170 bills and co-authored 76 bills.

Abellanosa is the principal author of the House version of the following laws:

Republic Act (House Bill)	Short title	Long title	Source
R.A. 11189 (HB 6620)		An Act Increasing the Bed Capacity of St. Anthony Mother and Child Hospital in Cebu City from Twenty-Five (25) to Two Hundred (200), and Appropriating Funds Therefor	[22]
R.A. 11185 (HB 6030)		An Act Integrating the Cebu City Mountain Extension Campus as a Satellite Campus of the Cebu Technological University and Appropriating Funds Therefor, Amending for the Purpose Republic Act No. 9744, Otherwise Known as "An Act Converting the Cebu State College of Science and Technology System in the City of Cebu and All its Satellite Campuses Located in the Province of Cebu into a State University to be Known as the Cebu Technological University (CTU) and Appropriating Funds Therefor	[23]
R.A. 10928 (HB 4767)		An Act Extending the Validity of Philippine Passports, Amending for the Purpose Section 10 OF Republic Act No. 8239, Otherwise Known as the “Philippine Passport Act OF 1996″, and for Other Purposes	[24]
R.A. 10644 (HB 4595)	Go Negosyo Act	An Act Promoting Job Generation and Inclusive Growth through the Development of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises	[25]
R.A. 10931 (HB 5633)	Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act	An Act Promoting Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education by Providing for Free Tuition and Other School Fees in State Universities and Colleges, Local Universities and Colleges and State-Run Technical Vocational Institutions, Establishing the Tertiary Education Subsidy and Student Loan Program, Strengthening the Unified Student Financial Assistance System for Tertiary Education and Appropriating Funds Therefor	[26]
R.A. 11462 (HB 4933)		An Act Postponing the May 2020 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections, Amending for the Purpose Republic Act No. 9164, As Amended by Republic Act No. 9340, Republic Act No. 10632, Republic Act No. 10656, Republic Act No. 10923 and Republic Act No. 10952, and for Other Purposes	[27]

Electoral history

House of Representatives

2013 Philippine House of Representatives election in the 2nd District of Cebu City[28]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Liberal	Rodrigo Abellanosa	123,757	55.54
	UNA	Aristotle Batuhan	99,073	44.46
Total votes			222,830	100.00
	Liberal hold

2016 Philippine House of Representatives election in the 2nd District of Cebu City[29]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Liberal	Rodrigo Abellanosa (incumbent)	148,838	59.26
	UNA	Gerardo Carillo	97,293	38.74
	Independent	Lea Ong	5,013	2.00
Total votes			251,144	100.00
	Liberal hold

2019 Philippine House of Representatives election in the 2nd District of Cebu City[30]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	LDP	Rodrigo Abellanosa (incumbent)	163,752	61.22
	PDP–Laban	Jocelyn Pesquera	103,717	38.78
Total votes			267,469	100.00
	LDP gain from Liberal

Personal life

Abellanosa has two children namely BG Rodrigo and Angel Vianne.[31][32]

References

1. Mylen P. Manto (14 June 2019). "Bebot is richest among Cebuano lawmakers". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 4 May 2020. Abellanosa, a resident of Barangay Guadalupe, Cebu City and the founder and president of Asian College of Technology (ACT) declared P71.4 million net worth or actual wealth as of December 31, 2018.
2. "Hon. Abellanosa, Rodrigo A." congress.gov.ph. House of Representatives. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
3. "Brief Historical Sketch". ACT. Retrieved 2019-08-19.
4. Princess Dawn H. Felicitas (15 April 2015). "'Abellanosa doesn't own ACT now'". SunStar Cebu. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
5. Alicia Ivy L. Chua (30 December 2019). "Cebu City Attorney: 'Don't pay ACTIEF'". The Freeman. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
6. Gabby G. Malagar (1 February 2007). "CESAFI braces for SWU return and ACT Fiber Knights' entry in 2007 season". The Freeman. Retrieved 26 November 2019.
7. "Tommy O, party mates file COCs". The Freeman. Retrieved 2019-08-21.
8. "Hon. Rodrigo A. Abellanosa". Cebu City Government. Archived from the original on 2004-12-11. Retrieved 2019-08-26.
9. "Hon. Rodrigo A. Abellanosa". Cebu City Government. Archived from the original on 2008-02-14. Retrieved 2019-08-26.
10. "Hon. Rodrigo A. Abellanosa". Cebu City Government. Retrieved 2019-08-24.
11. "Candidates officially proclaimed winners in the 2013 Elections". GMA News. 2013-05-14. Retrieved 2019-08-19.
12. "Cebu City reps Del Mar, Abellanosa reelected". SunStar Cebu. 2016-05-10. Retrieved 2019-08-19.
13. Ador Vincent Mayol, Doris Bongcac (2012-12-14). "Midnight proclamation for Cebu City's south district election winners". CDN Digital. Retrieved 2019-08-21.
14. "Vertigo forces Cuenco to abandon Congress run". CDN Digital. 2012-09-08. Archived from the original on 2013-06-14. Retrieved 2019-08-21.
15. "Cebu ex-lawmaker yields House contest". SunStar Cebu. 2012-09-08. Archived from the original on 2012-11-02. Retrieved 2019-08-21.
16. Fred Languido (2012-09-24). "Totol vs Bebot". The Freeman. Retrieved 2019-08-21.
17. "Abellanosa faces graft probe over scholarships". CDN Digital. 2019-05-15. Archived from the original on 2012-12-15. Retrieved 2019-08-19.
18. "Cebu City Rep Abellanosa charged with graft". Rappler. 2016-10-11. Retrieved 2019-08-21.
19. Razel V. Cuizon (2017-02-14). "Abellanosa cleared of graft case". SunStar Cebu. Retrieved 2019-08-21.
20. People of the Philippines v. Abellanosa (Sandiganbayan 2017).Text
21. "CA allows Bebot to keep serving public". SunStar Cebu. 2018-01-04. Retrieved 2019-08-21.
22. "Republic Act. No. 11189" (PDF). Congress.gov.ph. January 10, 2019. Retrieved August 21, 2019.
23. "Republic Act. No. 10931" (PDF). Congress.gov.ph. January 10, 2019. Retrieved August 21, 2019.
24. "Republic Act. No. 10928" (PDF). Congress.gov.ph. August 2, 2017. Retrieved August 21, 2019.
25. "Republic Act. No. 10644" (PDF). Congress.gov.ph. July 15, 2014. Retrieved August 21, 2019.
26. "Republic Act. No. 10931" (PDF). Congress.gov.ph. August 3, 2017. Retrieved August 21, 2019.
27. "Republic Act. No. 11462" (PDF). Congress.gov.ph. December 3, 2019. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
28. "2013 ELECTION RESULTS: CEBU". Rappler. Retrieved 2019-08-21.
29. "Halalan 2016: Cebu City". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved 2019-08-21.
30. "2019 ELECTION RESULTS: CEBU". Rappler. Retrieved 2019-08-21.
31. "Bebot Abellanosa almost late to son's Ateneo graduation". visayas.politics.com.ph. Politiko. 7 May 2018. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
32. "Bebot Abellanosa proud of daughter's graduation medals". visayas.politics.com.ph. Politiko. 26 March 2018. Retrieved 4 January 2020.