Atty. Erico Boyles Aumentado

Governor

Province of Bohol
President

League of Provinces of the Philippines
Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines

Chairman

Central Visayas Regional Tourism Council

He is a classic example of the adage poverty is not a hindrance to success.

Born under the sign of Taurus on May 18, 1940 in Ubay, Bohol, the 17th elected governor of this province had humble beginnings but worked his way to the top, with the doggedness and resilience of a bull, to become one of the most distinguished statesmen this province has ever produced.

Orphaned at eight years old by his father's death, Erico learned early on the value of hard work and self-reliance. He persevered from the primary grades through college and always emerged at the top of his class. He went on to become a scholar, journalist, lawyer, civic and religious leader, Senior Provincial Board Member, Vice Governor, and Congressman for three consecutive terms, the first Boholano Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, chairman of the 52-man Visayas Bloc and today, Governor of the Province of Bohol.

Governor Aumentado is happily married to a Sevillahanon, the former Peregrina Adlaon Cabagnot with whom he has eight children and sixteen grandchildren.

As an outstanding student and scholar, he fought for the rights of students in the Visayas. He was campus editor, orator and debater. When he became a lawyer, he was chosen "Outstanding Lawyer of 1974" by the Citizens Legal Aid Society of the Philippines (CLASP), headed by then Sen. Salvador Laurel, for bringing justice within the reach of the poor.

In the political arena, Aumentado's list of accolades is a long one. He is the only undefeated elective public servant in Bohol from 1967 up to the present.

As a Senior Provincial Board Member, he went out of his way to negotiate for the surrender of the Rizalian rebels in their mountain citadel of Lundag, Pilar, Bohol, in 1975. This courageous move earned him the military citation for valor beyond the call of duty.

As Vice Governor, he also successfully negotiated with the NPA's headed by Kumander Vargas in 1990 to withdraw its demands for the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to pay the insurgents P7.1 million as access fee for Japan's multi-billion peso projects in Bohol. This paved the way for the implementation of the Capayas Irrigation Project, Bohol Circumferential Road Improvement Project (BCRIP), Bohol Irrigation Project (BHIP) and the Leyte-Bohol Interconnection Project (LBIP).

His peers at the House of Representatives best remember him for two unprecedented events. First, as Vice Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, he stood for 12 hours to defend the General Appropriations Act of 1999, sometime in October 1998, in what was to be the longest budget defense in the history of Congress. Second, as Chairman of the Committee on Ethics he stood alone to successfully foil a House Resolution asking the Supreme Court to allow a congressman convicted of statutory rape, to attend the sessions and public committee hearings of the House of Representatives pending the resolution of his case. Aumentado's fearless discourse triggered the withdrawal by about 40 congressmen (out of the 119 signatories) of their signatures, which led to the defeat of the measure on the floor during the marathon debate on the issue in 1999. Philippine Daily Inquirer columnist Belinda Olivarez-Cunanan, in a rare public commendation for a solon, raved about Erico's valiant efforts.

While at the House of Representatives, this Ubayanon gained membership to various committees such as the powerful Commission on Appointments, Committees on Public Works and Highways, Agriculture, Education, Foreign Affairs, Energy, Transportation and Communications, and was chairman of the Committee on Appropriations, Sub committee on Justice and Constitutional Bodies, Agriculture and Natural Resources.

Moreover, he was elected unopposed by his peers as Deputy Speaker for the Visayas on January 24, 2000 and then as chairman of the 52-man Visayas Bloc. He holds the distinction of being the first Boholano to ever hold these positions. The Visayas Bloc sponsored the multi-billion peso Trans-Visayas Intermodal Transport Network System (Trans-Viz Link) approved by Congress and designated to establish Ro-Ro ports, fastcraft services and access highways in the Visayas provinces, cities and municipalities.

As an esteemed member of Congress, he was invited to be one of the keynote speakers during the International Symposium on Human Rights on May 15 to 18, 1993 in Budapest, Hungary, and the Inter-Parliamentary Union Conference on March 24 to 30, 1999 in Brussels, Belgium.

He was also one of the keynote speakers in the 102nd IPU Conference in Berlin, Germany from October 10 to 16, 1999 and the only member of the House of Representatives invited to speak on "Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice and International Drug Control" before the United Nations General Assembly in New York, U.S.A. on December 17 to 24, 1999.

He led the Philippine delegation of senators and congressmen to the 2001 ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Organization (AIPO) in Singapore where he delivered the Philippine position on various concerns in Asia including the Spratly Islands flash points.

He was chosen by the Philippine News Agency as One of the Top 10 Performers in the 10th Congress for filing 133 bills of local and national application. These include the Limited Portability Scheme (RA 7699), Philippine Health Insurance Corporation Act of 1995 (RA 7875), Agricultural Tarrification Act (RA 8178), Social Security Act of 1997 (RA 8282), Official Development Assistance Act of 1998 (RA 8555), GSIS Act of 1997 (RA 8291), Agricultural and Fisheries Modernization Act of 1998 (RA 8435), Home Guaranty Corporation Act of 2000 (RA 8763) and the Fair Election Act (RA 9006), among others.

Aumentado was also cited by then President Fidel V. Ramos as the "Philippines 2000 Advocate for Bohol's Development" for securing the approval of flagship projects such as the first phase of BCRIP, LBIP and BHIP, as well as other vital projects for the province amounting to P6.9 billion.

He also played a major role in the approval of the P2.38 billion BHIP II, and the P1.4 billion BCRIP II, for funding under the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) 23rd Yen Loan Package. He pushed for the approval of these projects when he represented Congress to the Tokyo Pledging Session on the loan package in April 1999. He then worked for their favorable action by the National Economic Development Authority, the National Irrigation Administration-Department of Agriculture and the Department of Public Works and Highways as project proponents.

Aumentado likewise worked with another Boholano, NPC executive vice president Asisclo Gonzaga, for the implementation of the P2.4-billion LBIP I and the P2.1-billion LBIP II for a power generation of 100 megawatts to spur the economic development of Bohol. The mega projects which are under implementation amount to P5.88 billion, or a total of about P12 billion worth of projects he brought to Bohol during his nine-year stint in Congress.

A landslide victory in the May 14, 2001 elections where he garnered a 39,550-vote lead over the incumbent governor catapulted this workaholic Ubayanon to the highest public office in Bohol - as provincial governor.

A little more than a month after he officially assumed office at the Capitol on July 1, 2001, Aumentado added another feather to his cap when he was elected chairman of the Central Visayas Regional Development Council after getting overwhelming support from its members. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo later confirmed his appointment to the post.

Thereafter he was also elected unanimously as chairman of the Central Visayas Regional Tourism Council.

President Arroyo cited Gov. Aumentado for making the Regional Development Council and the Regional Tourism Council of Central Visayas as a role model for regionwide development and progress during his watch which dovetails with the national programs and thrusts.

In his reelection on May 10 ultimo, he won with a bigger majority of 50,720 votes over his opponent in 2001, and Aumentado delivered to President Arroyo a majority of 243,000 votes in Bohol, the fourth biggest in the country.

He is now working for the civil works implementation of the JBIC-funded mega projects. He also supervises the completion of the provincial flagship projects in agriculture, eco-tourism and livelihood.

As governor of this province, Aumentado hopes to duplicate, if not surpass, his accomplishments at the House of Representatives where he earned the titles of Mr. Performance and Mr. Achiever. In Bohol he is better known as Mr. Clean, for despite all the criticisms and black propaganda about this man, his name remains unsullied to this day.

Finally, he intends to strengthen the autonomy of provinces and other local government units by lobbying with the President and Congress to honor the Supreme Court decision in Batangas versus Romulo, et. al which sustains the Constitutional provision on the automatic release of the Internal Revenue Allotment as pre-determined every three years in accordance with the provisions of the Local Government Code without being included in the General Appropriations Act.


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