Win Gatchalian

Sherwin Ting Gatchalian (born April 6, 1974), commonly known as Win Gatchalian, is a Filipino politician and businessman. He was elected to the Philippine Senate in 2016. He was the representative of Valenzuela's first district from 2001 to 2004 and from 2013 to 2016; he also served as the city's mayor for three consecutive terms from 2004 to 2013.

Early life and education

Gatchalian was born on April 6, 1974, the eldest of four children of Chinese-Filipino business tycoon William Tiu Gatchalian and Dee Hua Ting. Gatchalian's siblings include Rexlon, Weslie and non-politician Kenneth. Gatchalian made public his high regard for his father as a model for hard work and perseverance.^[1]

His family has business interests in the plastic manufacturer Wellex Group^[2] and in Waterfront Hotels and Casinos.^[3]

Political career

Gatchalian is the first generation of politicians from his family. His other relatives serving in government include brother Rexlon, who was the representative for the first district of Valenzuela and later the city's mayor, and brother Weslie, who also held the same Lower House office.

Gatchalian has been a member of the Nationalist People's Coalition (NPC) since joining politics in 2001.^[4] From March to May 2013, he went on a political hiatus from NPC when he became the deputy campaign manager for United Nationalist Alliance.^[5]

House of Representatives (2001-2004)

Gatchalian was first elected to the House of Representatives of the Philippines in 2001, at the time when Valenzuela's congressional representation was divided into two separate districts. He defeated the second district representative-elect Magtanggol Gunigundo's father in the race.^[6]

Mayor of Valenzuela (2004-2013)

Gatchalian, during the awarding ceremony of TOYM 2011 in the Malacañang Palace.

After then incumbent Valenzuela mayor Bobbit Carlos' term expiration in 2004, Gatchalian ran and won the mayoralty position for the first time, defeating Carlos' wife, Margarita.^[7]

Gatchalian formulated the "WIN ang Edukasyon Program" (Education Wins Program) for public schools to address immediate needs of Valenzuela's schoolchildren. This included feeding programs, the purchase of additional textbooks, and construction of more classrooms.^[8] The program also aimed to improve the level of reading proficiency of all public school children in the city.^[9]

In 2009, Gatchalian started the "Disiplina Village" (Discipline Village) in barangay Ugong, a housing project for the relocation of families displaced by the Northrail Project of the Philippine National Railways and those victimized by Typhoon Ondoy.^[10] The project initially benefited some 1,800 from the city.^[11] Gatchalian opened the second phase of the housing project in 2012.^[12]

Before the expiration of his term, Gatchalian was ranked as the fourth richest mayor in Metro Manila, with a net worth of ₱85.47 million.^[13]

House of Representatives (2013-2016)

Gatchalian initially considered running for the Senate in the 2013 midterm election as part of then incumbent vice-president Jejomar Binay's United Nationalist Alliance senatorial slate. He later dropped his bid after the release of Pulse Asia's September 2012 survey placing him in the 26th-35th mark among people's choice for the Senate.^[14] He instead ran for a House of Representative post for Valenzuela's first district, the post he first held in 2001.

Gatchalian returned to the Lower House in 2013, as allowed by the 1987 Constitution's prescription on term limitations for local posts. He replaced his younger brother, Rex, who was the incumbent representative at the time.

Some of his proposed bills during this 2013 term include acts regulating parking fees in malls and commercial areas,^[15] including ROTC among the prerequisites for tertiary level graduation,^[16] increasing the budget for NAIA to transform its global image,^[17] abolishing the Road Board (a government agency that handled motor vehicle users' tax and road users' tax),^[18] protecting passengers against abusive and itinerant taxi drivers,^[19] for the declaration of candidates seeking to profit from election polls as nuisance candidates,^[20] as well as a proposed bill requiring proofs of parking space to car purchasers as a means to lessen traffic congestion.^[21]

Gatchalian is one of the main advocates of free higher education in the Philippines, advocating for the fully subsidized tuition and other scholastic needs of qualified students with good academic and moral standing.^[22] He also supports the implementation K–12 education in the Philippines as an investment for the future of younger generations.^[23]

In 2015, Gatchalian, including some members in his family, were indicted by the Ombudsman for graft and malversation charges for an anomalous purchase of a rural thrift bank in 2009 using government fund from the Local Water Utilities Administration.^[24][25] He later posted bail for himself.^[26]

Senate (2016-present)

On June 2015, in an event in Quezon province, Gatchalian announced his bid for a Senate seat in the 2016 general election. On October 2015, in a political assembly at Club Filipino, senator and presidential candidate Grace Poe announced her senatorial slate under the coalition Partido Galing at Puso; the slate included Gatchalian.^[27]

Gatchalian is the chair of the Senate committees on Economic Affairs and Energy during the 17th Congress.^[28]

Awards and recognition

Gatchalian received various awards and recognition during his term as a politician, including the following:

• The Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) in 2011 for public service, conferred by President Benigno Aquino III for his outstanding government service.^[10]

References