Bienvenido "Benny" Mirando Abante Jr. (born May 15, 1951) is a Filipino politician and Bible Baptist pastor who is currently serving as the

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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 ...

's 6th district since 2019, a position he previously held from 2004 to 2010. He also served as a House Deputy Speaker from 2020 to 2022,

House Minority Leader Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives, also known as floor leaders, are congresspeople who coordinate legislative initiatives and serve as the chief spokespersons for their parties on the House floor. These leaders are ele ...

from 2019 to 2020, and a councilor of Manila from the 6th district from 1992 to 1995. He is also the host pastor of the Metropolitan Bible Baptist Church and Ministries in Santa Ana, Manila.

Early life and education

Abante was born in Santa Mesa,

on July 15, 1951, the eldest of four sons of the Rev. Ben O. Abante Sr. and Priscilla Mirando. He has two younger brothers, who both grew up to be ministers. He grew up taking on odd jobs such as shining shoes, selling newspapers and corsages and working on a construction site at a young age to support himself. He also worked as an auditor. He earned his bachelor's degree from

Far Eastern University Far Eastern University (Filipino language, Filipino: ''Pamantasan ng Malayong Silanganan''), also referred to by its acronym FEU, is a Private university, private non-sectarian Liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Manila, Philippines ...

in 1971. He later graduated with a bachelor's and graduate degrees in theology at Citadel Baptist College in

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and Baptist Bible College in

Makati Makati ( ), officially the City of Makati ( fil, Lungsod ng Makati), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. Makati is the financial center of the Philippines; it has the highest concentration ...

, respectively. He also holds a master's degree in Government Management from the

Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila The Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (from 'University of the City of Manila', abbreviated as PLM) is a city-government-funded local university situated inside the historic walled area of Intramuros, Manila, Philippines. It was established on ...

Ministerial career

In 1975, he started the Metropolitan Bible Baptist Church and Ministries in Santa Ana, Manila. He is also in the academe, having been named as the president of Metropolitan Lighthouse Theological School and Institute in

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and administrator of the Metropolitan International Christian Academy in Manila in 1985. He was conferred a honorary degree in theology at Citadel Baptist College in 1985 and honorary doctor of theology at Indianapolis Baptist College in 1987. In 1986, he founded the Bible Believers League for Morality and Democracy (BIBLEMODE), and also heads the Abante International Ministries (AIM), the Grace and Truth Community International Foundation, Inc., and the Ben O. Abante Baptist Bible College.

Political career

He served as a councilor of Manila from the 6th district from 1992 to 1995. He was recognized by the Manila City Hall Press Club as the Outstanding Councilor of Manila in 1994. After his term as councilor, he served as commissioner of Presidential Commission for Urban Poor, Manila from 1996 to 1998. He was also named special assistant to national chairman of Lakas–NUCD in 2000.

House of Representatives

He ran and won a seat in the House of Representatives in May 2004. He was subsequently named chairman of the Committee on Public Information. His major undertakings in his district focused on health, education, social services and infrastructure development and/or improvement. Abante's committee also scrutinized the

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Bill that was criticized by the media organizations as a curtailment to the freedom of the press. He also proposed an Anti-Sex Video Bill that imposes stiffer penalties of the people involved in the manufacture of sex videos. He was one of the principal authors of the Freedom of Information (FOI) Bill during the 14th Congress. The FOI bill was defeated in Congress after its opponents questioned if there was a

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on the final session day. Abante unsuccessfully defended his seat in the 2010 election, losing to former representative Rosenda Ann "Sandy" Ocampo. He attempted a comeback to the Congress in

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

and

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

but was unsuccessful, losing both to Ocampo. Abante was elected as Representative of Manila's 6th District in

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

with the previous incumbent Ocampo ineligible for reelection. He ran against Councilor Cassy Sison and newcomer Yvette Ocampo, Sandy's sister. He ran under the banner of Asenso Manileño with Isko Moreno running for Mayor. On July 10, 2020, he is one of the 11 representatives who voted to grant the franchise renewal of ABS-CBN. He is one of the two Manila Lawmakers to grant the franchise along with Edward Maceda. He was re-elected in

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

Positions

LGBT issues

Abante has made some legislative proposals that affects the LGBT community. In 2010, he filed a bill that proposed the criminalization of conducting

same sex unions A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, created primarily as a means to provide recognition in law for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage ...

, which he views "highly immoral, scandalous and detestable", which aims to penalize couples and the solemnizing officer by fine an imprisonment. He has also filed a bill to institutionalize the rights of heterosexual people including guaranteeing them being able to express opinions about LGBT issues according "to their religious beliefs and practices and to biblical principles and standards." Since there were efforts to introduce bills to protect the rights of LGBT people, Abante argued that in the spirit of "justice, equity, and fair play", a bill on heterosexuals, who he says are "actual and direct creations of God" is apt. He also believes that LGBT people who face discrimination ought to "to be what God created us to be". Abante has opposed the passage of a legislation guaranteeing rights of members of the LGBT community, believing that such measure would eventually lead to the legalization of same sex unions. He believes that LGBT rights is more of a "moral issue" rather than a "rights issue". He opposed the

SOGIE Equality Bill The Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Expression (SOGIE, ) Equality Bill, also known as the Anti-Discrimination Bill (ADB), are a series of House and Senate bills that were introduced in the 17th and 18th Congress of the Philippines which ai ...

, saying the constitution grants already sufficient rights. Despite his stances, Abante says he does not discriminate against the LGBT community, noting that he had supporters who are LGBT.

Pornography

Abante has aimed to legislate a measure banning pornography. His House Bill No. 3305 was passed by the House of Representatives in 2008, which would prohibit the production of pornographic videos regardless if the subjects are adults or children; consensual or non-consensual.

Personal life

Abante married Marie Paz Toledo in 1977, and has three children. His daughter Priscilla Marie is a lawyer and had served as a councilor of Manila from the 6th district from 2013 to 2022. His son Benny Fog III is an incumbent councilor from the same district since 2022.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abante, Benny 1951 births Living people Members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines from Manila Filipino Baptists People from Sampaloc, Manila People from Manila Lakas–CMD (1991) politicians Lakas–CMD politicians United Nationalist Alliance politicians National Unity Party (Philippines) politicians Far Eastern University alumni Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila alumni Manila City Council members Metro Manila city and municipal councilors Minority leaders of the House of Representatives of the Philippines