Gilbert Eduardo Gerardo “Gibo” Teodoro is the only son of former SSS administrator Gilbert Teodoro, Sr. and former Batasang Pambansa member Mercedes Cojuangco-Teodoro. He was born on June 14, 1964 and is married to Congresswoman Monica “Nikki” Prieto-Teodoro. He is also the nephew of San Miguel Corporation chairman, Eduardo Cojuangco, Jr. and the cousin of Senator Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino, who is also running for president.

He spent his elementary and high school years at Xavier School in San Juan City. Growing up, Gibo had an early taste of politics and showed great interest for public service. In 1980, he was elected as Kabataang Barangay President in his hometown in Tarlac and concurrently became the Central Luzon Kabataang Barangay President for 5 consecutive years. From 1980-1986, he was a bonafide member of the Sanguniang Panlalawigan of Tarlac.

He graduated college with a degree in Bachelor of Commerce Major in Financial Institutions in 1984 at De La Salle University, Manila. And pursues a law degree at University of the Philippines and completed it in 1989, where he was awarded the Dean’s Medal for Academic Excellence. He topped the Philippine Bar Exam in the same year. Gibo completed his master’s degree in 1997 at Harvard Law School in Massachusetts and passed the New York State Bar examinations in the same year. Aside from it, Gibo is also a licensed pilot and a Colonel in the Phil. Air Force Reserve. He honed his skill as a lawyer in Estelito Mendoza Law Firm for 7 years, until his congressional candidacy in 1998.

From years 1998-2007, Gibo was a member of the House of Representative, representing the First District of the province of Tarlac. He assumed the position of Assistant Majority Leader in the 11th Congress and head of the Nationalist People Coalition House members. After his three terms in the office, he was succeeded by his wife, Monica “Nikki” Prieto-Teodoro. While in congress, he was a proponent of human rights, economic development and progress. He was also a member of the House contingent to the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council.
   
Gibo was the youngest Secretary of National Defense, having assumed the position at the age of 43 in August, 2007. And as the contemporaneuos Chairman of the National Defense Coordinating Council (NDCC), he is a proactive and involved in management disaster.

He declared his intention to run President for the May 2010 election last March 2009, and a year earlier, he quit his old party (the National Coalition Party) --- to join the merged administration party --- (Lakas-Kampi-CMD) then cast his name in the ruling of party’s contenders for the 2010 election.

With 42-5 votes through secret balloting, Lakas-Kampi-CMD officially selected Gibo Teodoro as their party’s presidential standard bearer for May 2010 election last 16th of September, 2009; edging out MMDA Chairman Bayani Fernando.

His PLATFORMS are:

NATIONAL LEADERSHIP (the strong will to resist temptation)

A good leader must be:

In the end, his/her strength of character and integrity would give him/her the will to resist temptation. This doesn’t come with the office, these traits are nurtured through years of public service.

EDUCATION (Preparing our children for future)

Our children should be well equipped with the right skills and knowledge base to be globally competitive. Gibo pushes for academic excellence and a better curriculum, because he feels, the current curriculum is light in technical skills, mathematics and English. By recommendations, a substantial and additional two years to the original six years is needed to prepare young Filipinos for four years of secondary education.

Exhaust it all means to give everyone the proper college education.

LOAN PROGRAM

Creative solutions should also be implemented aside from the usual scholarships and state subsidies. In order to give Filipinos the education that is rightfully his. One specific example for this is the LOAN SYSTEM for the less fortunate, but deserving students at tertiary level. An SSS number will be given to the student when he/she applies for a loan and immediately after his first paycheck, it will register that the student is getting a salary and subsequent deductions can be made.

GOVERNANCE

(Pork Barrel Competence in fund management in the solution)

Reinforce the capability of the local government units to handle local funds and carry out intended projects. Because the issue ‘according to Gibo’, “pork barrel is not the problem, but how it is managed and utilized.”

(Regional Autonomy)

The congress should determine how much autonomy they allow different regions.

ECONOMY (innovation is the key)

The country needs more innovative ideas to fuel the industry and the economy, to be able to avoid the state of progress plateau. It has exhausted the era of copying and remodeling trends. It is now time for something new, in order for the country to become more globally competitive. The country needs to generate more ideas, and the talents and minds of the countrymen is the greater resource.

Though the he continues to perform dismally in the presidential survey, he enjoys the supports given to him by a numbers of administration members. And with the administration machinery behind him, he is looking forward to become the 3rd National Defense Secretary to become the President after the late President Ramon Magsaysay in 1953 and ex-President Fidel Ramos in 1992.

Visit his website at www.gibo.ph