1. 17th Congress of the
Philippines
Cong. Teddy Baguilat

2. Teddy Baguilat
• Teodoro "Teddy" Brawner Baguilat Jr. (born July 30, 1966) is a
Filipino politician and journalist, activist and advocate of indigenous
peoples' rights and the rights of minority groups.
• Baguilat is a member of both the Tuwali indigenous tribe
in Ifugao and the Gaddang indigenous tribe of Nueva Vizcaya. He
is the president of the Global Consortium for Indigenous and
Community Conserved Areas (ICCA Consortium), an advisory body
to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity.[1] He is
also the vice president for internal affairs of the Liberal Party.

3. Early life and education
• Teodoro Brawner Baguilat Jr. was born in Manila on July 30, 1966,
to Teodoro Baguilat Sr., a retired official of the Department of
Agriculture and resident of Kiangan, Ifugao, and Felisa Brawner, a
lawyer and resident of Solano, Nueva Vizcaya. At the age of 13,
Baguilat returned to Kiangan where he studied at the Saint Joseph
School Kiangan for his secondary education. He then pursued his
Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication, Major in Journalism at
the University of the Philippines Diliman and became an active
student leader on campus.

4. Career
• Early career
• From 1987 to 1991, Baguilat worked at the Department of
Environment and Natural Resources as an executive assistant to
an undersecretary. He also worked as a production assistant
for GMA Channel 7, as a reporter for the People’s News Service,
and as an executive assistant for the Philippine Ecological Network.
In 1991, he returned to Ifugao to establish a foundation that aimed
to help students and protect the local environment.

5. • In 1992, Baguilat ran for the municipal council of Kiangan. He
would at the time become the youngest councilor in the Philippines
at the age of 25. From 1995 to 2001, Baguilat served as mayor of
Kiangan. In 1996, Baguilat received the Dangal ng Bayan Award
and recognition as one of the Ten Most Outstanding Civil Servants
of the Philippines awarded by then-president Fidel V. Ramos.

6. Governor of Ifugao (2001 - 2010)
• Baguilat ran for the governorship of Ifugao in the 2001 election and
won under the banner of the Liberal Party. Baguilat narrowly lost in
a re-election bid in the 2004 election. He afterwards served as the
president of the Save the Ifugao Rice Terraces Movement, a non-
government organization that seeks to promote and protect the
cultural treasures of Ifugao and its indigenous people. Baguilat ran
again in the 2007 election and was elected anew as Ifugao's
governor.

7. • In 2009, the Ifugao Provincial Board filed a case against Baguilat
through the Ombudsman of the Philippines for "grave misconduct
and gross neglect of duty" after failing to notify the board of his
travels to several countries.[4] The Ombudsman ruled Baguilat guilty
and imposed a fine equivalent to a one-year salary. In 2015,
the Court of Appeals reversed the Ombudsman ruling and cleared
Baguilat of all charges.

8. Representative of Ifugao (2010 - 2019)
• Baguilat won in the 2010 election as the representative of the lone
district of Ifugao. As representative, Baguilat continued to campaign
for the preservation of the Rice Terraces of the Philippine
Cordilleras,[6] which was officially removed from the list of
endangered world heritage sites in 2012.[7] Baguilat would again
win in the 2013 general election as Ifugao representative.

9. • In the 2016 election, Baguilat won a third and final term as Ifugao
representative. He ran for speakership of the 17th Congress but lost
to Pantaleon Alvarez. He was then chosen as the leader of the minority
bloc via tradition of voting on the speakership. Baguilat was the first
person from an indigenous community to be elected for the position.
However, a few days after, he was booted from the position after more
than 20 lawmakers from the majority shifted to the minority to take control
of the bloc, therefore, voting Baguilat's ouster from minority leadership
and replacing him with a pro-majority lawmaker, thus forming a
supermajority in the House of Representatives.

10. • As representative, Baguilat is a proponent of human rights and a vocal
critic of President Rodrigo Duterte, particularly the controversial war on
drugs.[10] In 2016, Baguilat protested against the proposed House probe
of senator Leila de Lima, which he claimed was tantamount to a "witch
hunt."[11] Baguilat condemned the burial of Ferdinand Marcos at
the Libingan ng mga Bayani, and filed for a temporary restraining order
from the Supreme Court to halt the burial.[12][13] In 2017, Baguilat has
voted against the re-imposition of the death penalty,[14] and opposed the
drastic reduction of the Commission on Human Rights budget to
just ₱1,000.[15] He also sought to prioritize the investigation of
alleged extrajudicial killings committed by state forces.

11. • Baguilat is the principal author of the Philippine Indigenous and
Community Conserved Area Bill.[17] He has also filed and supported
several bills that focus on indigenous rights, such as the Cordillera
Organic Law,[18] the Chico River Basin Bill, the Indigenous
Education Bill, and the Indigenous Barangay Bill.

12. • Other bills Baguilat has authored or supported include
the Reproductive Health Bill,[21] the Freedom of
Information Bill,[22] the SOGIE Equality Bill,[23] the Universal Access
to Quality Tertiary Education Act, the Higher Teacher's Pay Bill,
the Divorce Bill,[24] the National Land Use Act,[25] the Free Wifi
Law,[26] the Department of Fisheries Bill, Philippine Mental Health
Law,[27] Expanded Maternity Leave Bill[28] and the Philippine HIV
and AIDS Policy Act.[29]
• .

13. • On February 9, 2018, the Ombudsman filed graft charges against
Baguilat for the overpriced purchase of a secondhand vehicle in
2003, during his first term as Ifugao governor, and ordered his
dismissal from government service.[30][31] The Sandiganbayan ruled
in favor of Baguilat on August 21, 2018, after government
prosecutors failed to file the necessary petitions. On January 2,
2019, the Court of Appeals cleared Baguilat of all charges.[32][33]
• Baguilat again ran for governor of Ifugao province in the 2019
election, but lost to Banaue mayor Jerry Dalipog.

14. 2022 Senate bid
• On October 8, 2021, Baguilat filed his candidacy for senator in
the 2022 senatorial election[35] running under Vice President Leni
Robredo's senatorial ticket. Baguilat lost after placing 28th in the
final results and garnering over 4.2 million votes.