"Mr. Sipag at Tiyaga"

Full Name: Manuel "Manny" Bamba Villar, Jr.1[]
Date of Birth: December 13, 1949[1]
Place of Birth: Moriones, Tondo, Manila[1]
Father: Manuel Montalban Villar, Sr. (government employee; from Cabatuan, Iloilo)[1]
Mother: Curita Bamba (seafood dealer; from Pampanga and Bataan)[1]
Siblings: 8 siblings, 2nd of 9 children[1]
Spouse: Cythia A. Villar (Congresswoman of the Lone District of Las Piñas)[1]
Children: [4 sons, 1 daughter] Paolo, Mark and Camille[1]
Educational Attainment:[1]

• Master in Business Administration and Accountancy
  University of the Philippines

Career as Public Servant:[1]

International Involvement:[1]

• House Representative - International Monetary Fund (IMF), Washington D.C. (1992)

Other Involvement:[1]

• President, Nacionalista Party: Feb. 2004
• Built more than 100,000 houses for the poor and middle class Filipino families, thus becoming the housing industry leader, and the biggest homebuilder in Southeast Asia
• Sponsor, “Sipag at Tiyaga” Caravan Kaalaman (livelihood training program providing skills and inspiration to people that will allow them to venture into their own businesses)
• Led the inauguration of Las Piñas-Muntinlupa-Laguna-Cavite (LPMLC) link road, more commonly known as Daang Hari (road improvement program aimed at easing traffic in the south of Metro Manila)
• Introduced the “Friendship Route” (subdivision homeowners open up their roads to the general public in order to ease traffic)
• He initiated a privately funded tree planting drive in his district. He developed a P10-million tree nursery beside his home. He also quietly led a dedicated tree-planting drive complete with maintenance and watering of tree seedlings planted in the open spaces of the community.
• Organizer, Manpower on Wheels Program (livelihood training school housed in a van that makes the rounds in depressed areas)
• Launched “Sagip-Bukas” Drug Prevention Program on all the private and public schools of Las Piñas to educate the youth about the dangers of drug abuse

Accomplishments as Senator:[1]

• Authored 44 laws during the 12th Congress, including:
• RA 9178, Barangay Micro Business Enterprises Act
• RA 9189, Overseas Absentee Voting Act
• RA 9208, Anti-Trafficking of Persons Act
• RA 9257, An Act Granting Additional Benefits and Privileges to Senior Citizens
• RA 9262, Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children Act

• Author: RA 8289, New Magna Carta for Small and Medium Enterprises
• Pioneering Measures shepherded into law: Retail Trade Liberization Act, the New Central Bank Act, the New Securities Code, and the New Banking Act
• Filed Bills aimed at providing business opportunities for the people and improving the Filipinos’ quality of life through basic health care, decent shelters, responsive social services, and high quality education.

Agenda:[2]

1. Entrepreneurship - training (providing Filipinos opportunities to start a business)
2. Providing basic, technology infrastructure and decent homes
3. Empowerment of agriculture and fisheries sectors
4. Making education accessible to the masses
5. Improving the quality of life through accessible health care services
6. Protecting the welfare of women, OFWs, Veterans, Elderly, and the Disabled
7. Disallowing cartels and monopolies that jack up the prices of goods and services
8. Good governance
9. Maintaining peace and order
10. Protecting the environment