Benjamin Abalos
Benjamin Santos Abalos Sr. (born September 21, 1935) is a Filipino politician who served as a former chairman of the Commission on Elections. He was also a former chairman of the MMDA and mayor of Mandaluyong, Metro Manila. He is the father of former Mandaluyong mayor and Metro Manila Development Authority chairman Benjamin "Benhur" Abalos Jr.
Contents
- 1 Early life
- 2 Political career
- 2.1 Chairman of MMDA
- 2.2 Chairman of COMELEC
- 2.3 Impeachment complaint
- 2.4 Return as Mayor of Mandaluyong
- 3 Personal life
- 4 References
Early life
Abalos was born into a poor family in Pangasinan on September 21, 1935. He studied Economics at Ateneo de Manila University and graduated from the Manuel L. Quezon University in 1957. Abalos was admitted to the roll of attorneys of the supreme court in 1958 and then into the Integrated Bar of the Philippines in 1973. Abalos supported himself through college by taking several jobs, working as a janitor, factory worker, and a caddy at the Wack Wack Golf and Country Club.
Political career
In 1963, Abalos ran for vice mayor of Mandaluyong, which was then part of Rizal and lost to the scion of a political family.
He ran for Mandaluyong mayor in 1980, losing to the candidate of former President Ferdinand Marcos. In 1986, shortly after Marcos was ousted through a popular uprising, President Corazon Aquino appointed him as Officer-in-Charge (OIC) of the then municipality of Mandaluyong.
As OIC of the town, he ran for the post of mayor and won in the local elections of 1988, the first local elections under the 1987 Cons*ution. He was re-elected two times in the elections of 1992 and 1995, making him one of the two Aquino OIC appointees who survived and secured the cons*ution-mandated three consecutive terms limit for local officials. Abalos made Mandaluyong's cityhood in 1994. In 1998, Abalos ran for congressman but lost to Neptali Gonzales II.
Abalos was a former member of the Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino later joining the then newly formed Lakas NUCD-CMD.
Chairman of MMDA
On January 20, 2001, Abalos was appointed chairman of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, a post he held until the following year.
Chairman of COMELEC
On June 5, 2002, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo appointed Abalos to replace Alfredo Benipayo after the latter failed to secure the confirmation of his appointment from the Commission on Appointments.
Impeachment complaint
On September 27, 2007, Iloilo Vice Governor Rolex Suplico filed a 64-page impeachment complaint against Commission on Elections Chairman Benjamin Abalos, Sr. before the House of Representatives of the Philippines regarding the NBN–ZTE deal corruption scandal. It was endorsed by Representatives Teofisto Guingona III of Bukidnon and Teodoro Casiño of Bayan Muna, and Zamboanga City Representative Ma. Isabelle Climaco. Affidavits from Romulo Neri and Jose de Venecia III supported the complaint. On October 1, 2007, Abalos resigned during a press conference. The Commission on Elections appointed Resurreccion Borra as Acting Chairman.
Return as Mayor of Mandaluyong
Abalos ran for mayor of Mandaluyong in 2022 under PDP-Laban, with his daughter-in-law, in*bent mayor Menchie Abalos, as his running mate for vice mayor. He said that he would run to fulfill his promise to his deceased wife that he would spend his remaining years serving the people of Mandaluyong. He won the elections in a landslide victory, securing a comeback as mayor after 24 years.
Personal life
He married Corazon de Castro in 1960 with whom he has five children, including mayor Benjamin Abalos, Jr., who also served as Metro Manila Development Authority chairman and mayor of Mandaluyong. His wife died on January 25, 2021 due to severe sepsis, secondary to pneumonia caused by COVID-19.