Margot Osmeña, who is the standard bearer of the Bando Osmeña Pundok Kauswagan in the coming elections, explains during the party’s grand rally the reason the BOPK is endorsing Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III (seated left in blue T-shirt) as the party’s vice president. | Screen grab from Delta Dyrecka live video
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III is Cebu City’s Bando Osmeña Pundok Kauswagan’s (BOPK) Vice President.
The Osmeña-led party has officially endorsed Sotto for the national elections in a grand rally at the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC) on Saturday evening, April 2, 2022.
“I have come again to this beloved city to meet my fellow Cebuanos. I traced my roots here. My lola used to sell fish at the Carbon Public Market and my lolo used to be a kargador in the pier area. We have relatives who are still living here in Cebu City,” Sotto said.
In his continued support to the Cebuanos, Senate President Sotto placed the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center as one of the priority recipients of government annual budget, to ensure that Cebuanos get a premier health care services from its regional hospital.
The grand rally on Saturday afternoon featured Eat Bulaga artists as special guests.
Cebuano roots
Sotto’s grandfather and namesake, Vicente Yap Sotto, served as a senator from 1946 to 1950 and the House of Representatives from 1922 to 1925, representing Cebu’s 2nd district.
The older Sotto was the main author of the Republic Act No. 53, the Press Freedom Law also known as the Sotto Law.
Apart from being a playwright, director, and producer, he is regarded as the father of Cebuano language and letters, and published the first Cebuano newspaper, Ang Suga in 1900.
Republic Act No. 114581, the enhancement of the Sotto Law was signed by President Rodrigo Duterte. It would allow not only journalists in print media but also in broadcast and online media to protect their sources.
Sotto is also the second Senate President who is a Cebuano, next to Marcelo Fernan. Fernan served as leader of the 24-member Senate in July 27, 1998 to June 28, 1999, after Neptali Gonzales and succeeded by Blas Ople.
“I bring the pride and honor of the Cebuanos in carrying the baton of Senate leadership with stellar accomplishments. During the 18th Congress, I have been hailed as having a 100 percent attendance in the Senate. The Cebuano brand of public service, like that of the late Senate President Marcelo Fernan, should reverberate in all levels of governance,” Sotto said.
Sotto authored and relentlessly followed up for the implementation of a program for the Cebu Normal University, in partnership with the VSMMC, to offer a College of Medicine as a way to operationalize government effort to providing one doctor per barangay and to make primary health care accessible especially in rural or underserved area, as mandated under Section 25.3.e of the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of the Universal Health Care (UHC) Act.
On Sunday morning , the group will hold a Zumba event with Mrs. Helen Gamboa Sotto and other Eat Bulaga Stars in the same venue.
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