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Page 1 of 6  Senator Francis ‘Kiko’ Pangilinan
Interview by RACHEL C. BARAWID, ANGELO G. GARCIA, INA H. MALIPOT, RONALD S. LIM, JASER A. MARASIGAN, MA. THERESA ARRIZA
Taken from Manila Bulletin/Manila Bulletin Online
Even as a student, Senator Francis “Kiko” Nepomuceno Pangilinan was already strong-willed, one who would not take matters sitting down.
This was further fueled when he entered UP, the hotbed of student activism, where he evolved from a mere observer to being a street parliamentarian. His journey on his personal “Road to Damascus’’ thus began.
“In UP, you cannot help but become affected by all of it. As Student Council president, I was immersed in the parliament of the streets and that’s where I draw my lessons in terms of being a public official until today,” recalls the 45-year old, two-term senator.
In Diliman, Sen. Kiko immersed himself in campus politics – living it and surviving it. “It was the hottest place in hell, but it was a badge of honor for me to have done that and to have risked my life for the country during those dark days of the dictatorship,” he proudly says.
This is rather ironic for someone whose first ambition in life was not to walk the august halls of the Senate, but to step on the moon. He wanted to become an astronaut, he says, a goal only to be replaced in his college years by his vision of himself running off to the mountains and going underground.”I thought eventually mamumundok ako eh because that was a dictatorship. Bundok ang iniisip ko, hindi senado o kongreso.’’
Fortunately, EDSA Revolution happened before he could pack his bags and give his parents further heartache. Sen. Kiko shared in the Filipino people’s newfound euphoria and believed – a new era had dawned on our country!
He then set out to help empower the people, as a human rights lawyer, by educating them about their rights. He gave them free legal assistance on-air through several television and radio programs. In 1988, he entered government as the youngest Quezon City councilor. Although a neophyte in politics, Sen. Kiko took this opportunity to unite and impress upon fellow legislators a strong, principled leadership by establishing the National Movement of Young Legislators (NMYL).
In the Senate, he has drafted laws that champion the rights of the marginalized and the youth. Several of the landmarks bills he sponsored and co-sponsored that were enacted into law, have significantly addressed the pressing problems and needs of the education, judiciary and youth sectors. Among these are the new UP charter; the Balik-Turo Program to address the shortage of teachers; and Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act which seeks to improve the plight of juvenile delinquents who are kept in prisons along with hardened criminals.
But even with his hands full of solon duties, Sen. Kiko does not forget to send his two young girls Frankie and Miel to bed at 8:30 p.m., sing to them their mother’s songs, and occasionally read them bedtime stories. Not to mention that he brings them along to work! “I bring them along with me to the Senate. Ang tawag nga ni Miel sa Session Hall eh the Talking Room, eh siyempre, ano ba ginagawa namin dun kundi magsalita? Sasabihin niya, Daddy, are you going to the Talking Room?’’
In this 60 Minutes interview, Senator Kiko Pangilinan shares with us more of his adventures as a student leader, his role as prime motivator of the youth with the TAYO (Ten Accomplished Youth Organizations) awards, his crusade against traditional politics, his favorite Sharon Cuneta song and movie, and his fulfillment as a hands-on father to three lovely girls. (Rachel Castro-Barawid)
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