Joseph Emilio "Jun" Aguinaldo Abaya (born May 28, 1966) is a Filipino politician, lawyer, and military officer. He was the Secretary of the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) of the Philippines under the administration of President

Benigno Aquino III Benigno Simeon Cojuangco Aquino III (; February 8, 1960 – June 24, 2021), also known as Noynoy Aquino and colloquially as PNoy, was a Filipino politician who served as the 15th president of the Philippines from 2010 to 2016. The son of ...

. A member of the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

, he has been elected to three terms as a member of the

Philippine House of Representatives 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 1st District of Cavite. He first won election to the House in 2004, and was re-elected in 2007. He and other Aquino administration officials have been charged over the alleged anomalous contracts for the MRT Line 3 during their tenure.

Early life and education

Abaya is the great grandson of the first Philippine president,

Emilio Aguinaldo Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy (: March 22, 1869February 6, 1964) was a Filipino revolutionary, statesman, and military leader who is the youngest president of the Philippines (1899–1901) and is recognized as the first president of the Philippine ...

through his granddaughter, Consuelo Aguinaldo, daughter of his son, Emilio Aguinaldo Jr., and the descendant of Isabelo Abaya, the revolutionary hero and founding father of

Candon, Ilocos Sur Candon, officially the City of Candon ( ilo, Siudad ti Candon; fil, Lungsod ng Candon), is a 4th class component city in the province of Ilocos Sur, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 61,432 people. Dubbed as the ...

. He is also the second son of the three-term Congressman Plaridel M. Abaya. Abaya finished his elementary education at the Basic Education Unit of the

De La Salle University De La Salle University ( fil, Pamantasang De La Salle or Unibersidad ng De La Salle), also referred to as DLSU, De La Salle or La Salle, is a private university, private, Catholic Church, Catholic coeducational research university run by the I ...

in 1979. During his secondary schooling, he was a consistent honor student at the

Philippine Science High School Main Campus The Philippine Science High School - Main Campus is the flagship campus of the Philippine Science High School System. It was founded in 1964. It is located in Agham Road, Diliman, Quezon City. The Campus The 7.5 hectare campus includes two main bu ...

, and he became a university and college scholar of the

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; fil, Pamantasan ng Pilipinas Unibersidad ng Pilipinas) is a state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by Republic Act No. 9500 (UP Charter of 200 ...

where he took his engineering studies. After a year in UP, he took and topped the entrance examination for the

Philippine Military Academy The Philippine Military Academy ( fil, Akademiyang Militar ng Pilipinas / es, Academia Militar de Filipinas) also referred to by its acronym PMA is the premier military academy for Filipinos aspiring for a commission as a military officer of ...

that he was sent by the government to the

US Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy is ...

(USNA) in

Annapolis, Maryland Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...

where he earned his Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics (1988) with distinction of being a consistent Dean's Lister in all the semesters he was there. Jun then proceeded to

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...

Ithaca, New York Ithaca is a city in the Finger Lakes region of New York, United States. Situated on the southern shore of Cayuga Lake, Ithaca is the seat of Tompkins County and the largest community in the Ithaca metropolitan statistical area. It is named a ...

, and completed a master's degree in electrical engineering (1989 – he was also a fellowship awardee). He was the vice president of PMA Maringal Class of 1988 and is a member of the

Phi Kappa Phi The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi (or simply Phi Kappa Phi or ) is an honor society established in 1897 to recognize and encourage superior scholarship without restriction as to area of study, and to promote the "unity and democracy of education ...

honor society and Friends of Aguinaldo Shrine. He received his

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

degree from the law school of

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 ...

in April 2005. He was admitted to the Philippine Bar in 2007.

Political career

Prior to representing the first district of

Cavite Cavite, officially the Province of Cavite ( tl, Lalawigan ng Kabite; Chavacano: ''Provincia de Cavite''), is a province in the Philippines located in the Calabarzon region in Luzon. Located on the southern shores of Manila Bay and southwest ...

to the House of Representatives in 2004, he first served in the

Armed Forces of the Philippines The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) ( fil, Sandatahang Lakas ng Pilipinas) are the military forces of the Philippines. It consists of three main service branches; the Army, the Air Force, and the Navy (including the Marine Corps). The P ...

as a cadet (1984–1988) and as a naval officer of the

Philippine Navy The Philippine Navy (PN) ( tgl, Hukbong Dagat ng Pilipinas, , Sea Army of the Philippines) ( es, Armada de Filipinas, , Ejército del Mar de las Filipinas) is the naval warfare service branch of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. It has an e ...

(1988–2004). He ran for congressman in 2004 and won against Jeffrey Sescon Uy and represented the 1st District of Cavite to the

13th Congress of the Philippines The 13th Congress of the Philippines (Filipino: ''Ikalabintatlong Kongreso ng Pilipinas''), composed of the Philippine Senate and House of Representatives, met from July 26, 2004, until June 8, 2007, during the fourth, fifth, and sixth years of ...

. He was re-elected in the 2007 elections. During the 14th Congress, he was chairman of the House Committee on Science and Technology. He was also co-chairman of the Joint Congressional Committee on Science and Technology and Engineering with Sen.

Edgardo Angara Edgardo Javier Angara (, September 24, 1934 – May 13, 2018) was a Filipino politician who served as the President of the Senate of the Philippines from 1993 to 1995. He was a Senator from 1987 to 1998 and then served as Secretary of Agricultu ...

. In 2009, he among with fellow representatives of Cavite –

Elpidio Barzaga, Jr. Elpidio "Pidi" Frani Barzaga Jr. (born March 25, 1950) is a Filipino lawyer and politician from the province of Cavite. He is the incumbent Congressman of Dasmariñas and is the mayor of the said city. During the 2020 House hearing on ABS-CBN f ...

and

Jesus Crispin Remulla Jesus Crispin "Boying" Catibayan Remulla (born March 31, 1961) is a Filipino lawyer, politician, and broadcaster currently serving as Secretary of Justice since 2022. He previously served as the representative of Cavite's 7th district from 2 ...

— authored the biggest congressional reapportionment in the history of the Philippines by passin
Republic Act No. 9727
unofficially titled The Cavite Congressional Reapportionment Act of 2009, bringing the representatives of Cavite from three to seven. During the 15th Congress and on his last term, he served as the chairman of House Committee on Appropriations. On October 12, 2012, Abaya was appointed by

as the Secretary of Transportation and Communications, succeeding

Mar Roxas Manuel "Mar" Araneta Roxas II (; born May 13, 1957) is a Filipino politician who served as a Senator of the Philippines. He is the grandson and namesake of former Philippine President Manuel Roxas. He served in the Cabinet of the Philippines as ...

. In February 2016, the

Philippine Senate The Senate of the Philippines (Filipino language, Filipino: ''Senado ng Pilipinas'', also ''Mataas na Kapulungan ng Pilipinas'' or "upper chamber") is the upper house of Congress of the Philippines, Congress of the bicameral legislature of the ...

released a report stating that Abaya and other DOTC officials "may have violated" the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act in relation to questionable contracts with the subsequent maintenance providers. In a Senate report where the line's condition was found to be in "poor maintenance" as per studies made by MTR HK, DOTC officials were reported to be involved in graft in relation to questionable contracts, especially those for the maintenance of the line. Abaya stepped down on June 30, 2016, after Aquino's term ended.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Abaya, Jun 1966 births Living people Joseph Aguinaldo Ateneo de Manila University alumni 21st-century Filipino lawyers Liberal Party (Philippines) politicians Secretaries of Transportation of the Philippines Members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines from Cavite People from Kawit, Cavite University of the Philippines Diliman alumni Benigno Aquino III administration cabinet members Presidents of the Liberal Party of the Philippines