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Mar Roxas: From Mr. Palengke to PNoy’s choice


Could this finally be the time for the grandson and namesake of President Manuel Roxas, co-founder of the Liberal Party in 1945, to shine? 
 
Nearly six years after he gave way to then-Senator Benigno Aquino III, Interior Secretary Mar Roxas was offically endorsed by the former as his preferred successor.
 
This son of former Senator Gerry Roxas and Judy Araneta has been in politics for some 23 years now.
 
He first entered politics in 1993, at the age of 35, as representative of his hometown Capiz after winning a special congressional election to replace his brother Dinggoy who died of cancer. He was later elected as majority leader of the House of Representatives.

Legislative work
 
In the House of Representatives, he espoused consumer protection, underscoring the right of every Filipino to affordable medicines, as his personal advocacy.

Among the laws he helped pass were:
 
  • RA 8759 - establishing in all municipalities a Public Employment Service Office which serves as employment facilitation and information center, and links all job opportunities within the region;
  • RA 8748 - amending the Special Economic Zone Act by directly allocating to the municipality or city 2 percent (out of the 5 percent) gross tax to be collected from the establishments operating in the ecozone and providing for disturbance compensation for persons to be displaced or evicted by publicly-owned ecozones; and
  • RA 8756 - incentivizing the establishment of regional headquarters to encourage investment and operation of multinational companies in the country and to generate more jobs.
 

Roxas was also the principal author of RA 7880 which ensures fair distribution of the education capital budget among all the provinces. This gave life to his advocacy for fair and equitable access to education, free from regional bias and political patronage considerations.

At the Executive Department
 
His congressional stint was cut short when President Joseph Estrada appointed him as Secretary of Trade and Industry in 2000.
 
He returned to DTI when then-President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo tapped him to lead the agency again. He took the opportunity to push for the development of the "palengke" as the basic unit of the economy and the root of progress, staunchly advocating not only consumer welfare and protection but also sound trade and investment policies, particularly SME development.
 
During his stint, Roxas also intensified his commitment to quality education through the Personal Computers for Public Schools (PCPS) Program, which distributed over 30,000 computers to 2,000 public high schools all over the country.
 
His work regarding trade policy was highlighted during the 2003 WTO Meeting in Cancun, Mexico, where he fought for increased market access for Philippine exports, particularly agricultural products and a rationalized Philippine trade regime so domestic industries would not be unduly harmed.
 
Roxas was also hailed as the "Father of the Call Center and Business Process Outsourcing Industries" when he launched "Make IT Philippines" and organized the first IT-enabled services (ITES) to the US which inevitably led to the biggest global industry names to invest in the country, thereby creating thousands of jobs for Filipino IT workers.
 
He also pioneered the establishment of high-technology industry centers and the promotion of the business process outsourcing (BPO) market in the country, particularly call center operations which provided more jobs and incomes to Filipinos. 
 
He likewise worked for the reopening of the National Steel Corporation which provided thousands of jobs, income and livelihood to Iligan City, Northern Mindanao and adjacent regions. 
 
Roxas also launched the Garment Export Industry Transformation Plan and Assistance Package to enhance the competitiveness of the industry and ensure its viability and vibrancy beyond 2004. 
 
He also initiated the Motor/Vehicle Development Program to promote exports, create a viable market base for our car manufacturers and secure jobs for our workers.
 
He pushed for micro, small and medium enterprises or MSMEs believing that it will serve as the prime engine for job generation.
 
Mr. Palengke
 
Roxas used his familiarity with consumers and their issues as a strategy to be a victor in the 2004 polls. He introduced himself as “Mr. Palengke” when he ran for Senate under the administration’s K-4 (Koalisyon ng Katapatan at Karanasan sa Kinabukasan). 
 
This proved effective as he topped the senatorial elections, beating even the more popular candidates that time, with 20 million votes.
 
He continued his advocacies in the Senate as a principal author of the Cheaper Medicines Law; and initiated investigations on smuggling, defective and substandard products, proper labeling of milk, toys, and food products containing genetically modified organisms (GMOs), stronger safeguards against pyramiding and other similar scams, and mismanagement of pre-need companies.
 
He led the Senate Committees on Trade and Commerce and Economic Affairs; and co-chaired the Congressional Oversight Committee on the Electronic Commerce Law during his stint in the Senate.

Gave way in 2009
 
As early as 2009 or months before the 2010 elections, Roxas was one of the leading presidential contenders even though he has yet to officially announce his bid.
 
But this changed when former President Corazon Aquino died in August and the clamor for his son, then-neophyte Senator Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, to run for president snowballed.
 
Roxas gave way to Aquino in a press conference held at the Club Filipino in Sept. 2009. Weeks later, Aquino and Roxas officially announced their tandem for 2010.
 
Unfortunately, then-Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay defeated Roxas in the vice presidential race. Roxas filed an electoral protest claiming that the election results did not reflect the actual votes due to alleged high incidence of null and misread votes in the certificates of canvass.
 
A year after elections, President Aquino tapped Roxas to head the Department of Transportation and Communications. He was later transferred to the Department of Interior and Local Government when Secretary Jesse Robredo died in a plane crash in 2012.

Education, work
 
Roxas, just like Aquino, is a true-blooded Atenean. He finished his elementary and high school at the Ateneo de Manila University. He entered the Wharton School of Economics at the University of Pennsylvania in 1974 and graduated four years after. 
 
He worked as an investment banker in New York for seven years, mobilizing venture capital funds for Small and Medium Enterprises, before his stint in the government.
 
But in 1985, he took a leave of absence to join the presidential campaign of Corazon Aquino. When Aquino, already installed as President, went to the United States in 1986, Roxas organized investment discussions with American business community for her.
 
Roxas’ family owns Araneta Coliseum, Gateway Mall in Cubao, Quezon City, and the Pizza Hut franchise in country. 

Roxas is married to ABS-CBN broadcaster Korina Sanchez. The two tied the knot on October 27, 2009. —KG/RSJ/KBK, GMA News
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