Arthur "Art" Cua Yap (; born November 10, 1965) is a

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

who is the former governor of

Bohol Bohol (), officially the Province of Bohol ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Bohol; tl, Lalawigan ng Bohol), is an island province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas Regions of the Philippines, region, consisting of the island itself and 75 m ...

from 2019 to 2022. He was the secretary of the Department of Agriculture under the Arroyo administration from 2004 to 2005 and from 2006 to 2007. He became a member of the

House of Representatives of the Philippines The House of Representatives of the Philippines ( fil, Kapulungan ng mga Kinatawan ng Pilipinas, italic=unset, ''Kamara'' or ''Kamara de Representantes'' from the Spanish language, Spanish word ''cámara'', meaning "chamber") is the lower house ...

, representing the 3rd District of Bohol from 2010 to 2019.

Early life and education

Yap was born on November 10, 1965 in

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

. He is the eldest among the three children of Domingo Yap and Natividad Cua. His father was born in

Jolo Jolo ( tsg, Sūg) is a volcanic island in the southwest Philippines and the primary island of the province of Sulu, on which the capital of the same name is situated. It is located in the Sulu Archipelago, between Borneo and Mindanao, and has ...

Sulu Sulu (), officially the Province of Sulu (Tausug language, Tausūg: ''Wilāya sin Lupa' Sūg''; tl, Lalawigan ng Sulu), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province of the Philippines in the Sulu Archipelago and part of the Bangsamoro, Bangsamor ...

and is of

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

- Tausug descent while his mother was from

Dagupan Dagupan, officially the City of Dagupan ( pag, Siyudad na Dagupan, ilo, Siudad ti Dagupan, fil, Lungsod ng Dagupan), is a 2nd class independent component city in the Ilocos Region, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a populatio ...

Pangasinan Pangasinan, officially the Province of Pangasinan ( pag, Luyag/Probinsia na Pangasinan, ; ilo, Probinsia ti Pangasinan; tl, Lalawigan ng Pangasinan), is a coastal province in the Philippines located in the Ilocos Region of Luzon. Its capit ...

. For his elementary and high school education, Yap studied at

Xavier School English: ''Let your light shine!'' , religious_affiliation = Roman Catholic (Jesuit) , established = , founders = , president = Fr. Aristotle Dy, SJ , chairman = Johnip Cua , administrator = , re ...

from 1973 to 1983. He went to

Ateneo de Manila University , mottoeng = Light in the Lord , type = Private, research, non-profit, coeducational basic and higher education institution , established = December 10, 1859 , religious_affiliation = Roman Catholic (Jesuits) , academic_aff ...

for college and graduated in 1987 with a degree in Management Economics. He was a Dean’s lister during this time and had

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal Arroyo (, born April 5, 1947), often referred to by her initials GMA, is a Filipino academic and politician serving as one of the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Philippines, House Deputy Spe ...

as his economics professor. He then went to the Ateneo de Manila University School of Law for his Juris Doctor's degree. He was admitted to the Philippine Bar in 1992.

Career

While studying, Yap was recruited by his professor to join the Balane, Barican, Cruz, Alampay Law Office. He worked there for about two years. After being admitted to the bar, he was recommended by Fr.

Joaquin Bernas Joaquin G. Bernas SJ (July 7, 1932 – March 6, 2021) was a Jesuit priest, lawyer, college professor and writer who was Dean Emeritus of the Ateneo de Manila Law School in Makati, Philippines. He was a member of the 1986 Constitutional Commiss ...

to join the law office of former

Associate Justice Associate justice or associate judge (or simply associate) is a judicial panel member who is not the chief justice in some jurisdictions. The title "Associate Justice" is used for members of the Supreme Court of the United States and some state ...

Adolfo Azcuna Adolfo Sevilla Azcuna (born February 16, 1939) is a Filipino jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines from 2002 to 2009. He was appointed to the Court by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo on October 2 ...

. Because of that, he became an associate lawyer of the Azcuna, Yorac, Sarmiento, Arroyo, Cua Law Office. In the late 1990s, Yap co-founded the Ejercito-Yap-Butchong Law Office. He was affiliated also with the Yap, Jacinto, Jacob Law Office as Co-Founding Partner. He was once the National President of the Philippine Association of Paint Manufacturers. Yap first entered government service in August 2001 as President and CEO of the Philippine International Trading Corporation under the Department of Trade and Industry. Thereafter, he served as the Administrator of the National Food Authority for two years and as

Agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

Undersecretary for Luzon Operations, after which was a brief stint as the Secretary of Agriculture. He was one of the youngest to be appointed to the Cabinet of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. He was also designated as the Development Champion for the North Luzon Agribusiness Quadrangle (NLAQ). He then left the post in July 2005 to give way to Domingo Panganiban. In December 2005, he became Presidential Adviser for Job Creation. He then became the 15th Director General of the Presidential Management Staff, the fifth post he had been designated to in the Arroyo administration. He was appointed again as Agriculture Secretary in 2006. He resigned from his position in February 2010 to run as a member of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

. From 2010 to 2019, Yap was a congressman representing the third district of Bohol. While there, he held various positions such as being assistant minority leader of the Committee on Rules, vice-chairman of the Committees on Globalization And WTO, Government Enterprises And Privatization, and Ecology, chairman of the Committees on Reforestation and Economic Affairs, and being the deputy speaker from 2018 to 2019. During the

2019 Philippine gubernatorial elections Gubernatorial elections were held in the Philippines on May 13, 2019. All provinces elected their provincial governors for three-year terms, who will be inaugurated on June 30, 2019 after their proclamation. Governors that are currently serving ...

, Yap ran for governor of Bohol under

PDP–Laban Partido Demokratiko Pilipino–Lakas ng Bayan (), abbreviated as PDP–Laban, is a democratic socialist List of political parties in the Philippines, political party in the Philippines founded in 1982. It was part of the country's ruling party al ...

, the party of

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Rodrigo Duterte Rodrigo Roa Duterte (, ; born March 28, 1945), also known as Digong, Rody, and by the initials DU30 and PRRD, is a Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the 16th president of the Philippines from 2016 to 2022. He is the chairperson ...

. His opponents included former Cabinet Secretary Leoncio Evasco. Yap won by a slim margin of 2,161 votes garnering 326,895 votes against Evasco’s 324,734. He took his oath on June 30, 2019, officially becoming Bohol's 26th governor.

Personal life

Yap is married to Carolyne Varquez-Gow, a native of

Loboc, Bohol Loboc, officially the Municipality of Loboc ( ceb, Munisipalidad sa Loboc; tgl, Bayan ng Loboc), is a 4th class municipality in the province of Bohol, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 17,418 people. Located ea ...

. Together they have 2 children.

References

, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Yap, Arthur 1965 births Living people People from Manila Governors of Bohol Members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines from Bohol Secretaries of Agriculture of the Philippines Advisers to the President of the Philippines Heads of the Presidential Management Staff of the Philippines Lakas–CMD politicians PDP–Laban politicians Ateneo de Manila University alumni Arroyo administration cabinet members Filipino politicians of Chinese descent Deputy Speakers of the House of Representatives of the Philippines Grand Crosses of the Order of Lakandula