CCTO Legal Officer, Lawyer Kent Francesco Jongoy (left) and a portion of the CBRT project near the Cebu Provincial Capitol. | photo by CBRT Team.
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama has recently endorsed a new project manager for the Cebu Bus Rapid Transit (CBRT) project.
Meet incoming CBRT project manager Lawyer Kent Francesco Jongoy, the assistant head of the Cebu City Transportation Office (CCTO), the head of its Public Mass Transportation Division, and its legal officer.
Who is Jongoy and what is he capable of should he assume the role once formally appointed?
READ: Newly endorsed CBRT manager Jongoy awaits formal appointment
Work background
A lawyer by profession, Jongoy earned a degree in Political Science at the University of San Carlos (USC) in 2013, specializing in International Relations and Foreign Service.
He then took up law and earned his doctorate degree in law at the University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) and took part in the very first regionalized Bar examinations in Cebu City.
He successfully passed the Bar in 2022.
Moreover, while he was still in law school, Jongoy said that he was “already connected” with the Cebu City government.
It happened when he saw a job vacancy in the Cebu City Hall back then and eventually applied for the position.
He served as the admin head of Councilor James Anthony Cuenco from 2014 to 2019, then became the chief of staff of the latter’s father, the late Councilor Antonio Cuenco from 2019 to 2020. He then worked under James again as his chief of staff from 2020-2023.
James is the current chairman of the council’s committee on transportation and communication.
Furthermore, when Rama assumed office in 2022, Jongoy was holding the ‘chief legal head’ position at the CCTO and was also designated as its assistant department head in March 2023.
READ: Tomas Osmeña threatens to sue Gwen over stoppage of CBRT works
Jongoy, who is a native in Barangay Guadalupe, Cebu City, added that he will be marking his 10th year with the Cebu City government this coming July 2024.
He shared that he grew up singing to “political jingles” and he never imagined that one day, he would become part of the Cuenco legislative staff.
Is he qualified to be the next CBRT project manager?
Jongoy said he could not say he is “one hundred percent qualified” for the job as CBRT project manager.
“But I can say that with the experience that I have and with the current job that I am doing here sa city government, I think I can be qualified,” Jongoy said.
READ: Rama calls for removal of CBRT manager Imbong amid ‘crisis’
Jongoy added that he had not seen the qualifications of a CBRT project manager. It was also the first thing he searched for when Rama endorsed him.
But even if he had not seen it yet, he said he is doing his best to absorb essential knowledge related to the CBRT, so he could give justice to the endorsement.
The Department of Transportation (DOTr) is the lead agency that has the discretion over the CBRT project.
Rama endorsed Jongoy to replace the concurrent CBRT project manager, Engineer Norvin Imbong, due to delays and coordination issues in the project.
But the DOTr and CBRT has issued a statement on Tuesday, March 6, that Imbong remains to be CBRT’s project manager.
Jongoy, in his response, said he’ll assume the role once formally appointed since he knows that an endorsement is different from an official appointment.
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