2. Neptali "Boyet" Medina Gonzales II (born August
29, 1954) is a Filipino politician serving as the
Representative of Mandaluyong's Lone District since
2019, and previously in
the 10th, 11th, 12th, 14th, 15th and 16th Congress.
He was also one of the House Deputy
Speakers during the entire 18th Congress and has
been the House Majority Leader from 2001 to 2004
and again from 2010 to 2016.
3. EARLY LIFE AND EDUCATION
Gonzales was born on August 29, 1954, in Mandaluyong, Rizal to
former Senate President Neptali Gonzales and Candida Medina-
Gonzales. He is their youngest child and only son. He has three
sisters, Myrna, Sorohayda, and Rhodora.
He attended the Mandaluyong Elementary School and received
his secondary and college education at the Union High School of
Manila of the Philippine Christian College (now the Philippine
Christian University). He finished his degree in political science at
the Far Eastern University (FEU) in 1975 and took up law at
the Ateneo de Manila University, where he graduated in 1979.
4. CAREER
Before entering public service, Gonzales was a senior partner of the law firm
Gonzales, Batiller, Bilog, and Associates from 1980 to 1995. He also served briefly as
a bar reviewer and professor in criminal law and constitutional law at the FEU Institute
of Law.
5. POLITICAL CAREER
Gonzales was the first Congressman of Mandaluyong when it was converted into a
city in 1995 and separated from what used to be the San Juan-Mandaluyong
Congressional District. He was City Mayor of Mandaluyong from 2004 to 2007 and
Congressman for the city during the 14th Congress of the Philippines (2007–2010).
In the 10th Congress, he served on eight congressional committees, including
the Committee on Rules. In the opening session of the 11th Congress, he was
selected as one of the two vice–chairmen of the Committee on Rules, which was then
chaired by Majority Leader Mar Roxas of Capiz City. Gonzales became Majority
Leader toward the end of the 11th Congress and held the position into the 12th
Congress. From 1995 to 2004, he authored 33 bills and was co-author of 92 bills. He
was one of two newly elected members of Congress to have the greatest number of
bills passed into law.
6. During his first 9-year period in Congress, Gonzales passed a bill
allowing the construction of the City of Mandaluyong Science High
School and leading the conversion of the Rizal Technological Colleges
into Rizal Technological University. In recognition, the RTU awarded
him a PhD in Public Administration (Honoris Causa) in October 2003.
During his three-year term as Mayor of Mandaluyong, Gonzales
supported the implementation of improved physical and social
infrastructure in Mandaluyong. He also initiated innovations
in computerization, social infrastructure and urban renewal. He pushed
for improvement in health care in the city by strengthening its only
public hospital and empowering[clarification needed] all health centers for
preventive health care. He instigated fresh initiatives in local fiscal
reforms and tax collection. He urged private bodies to support the
program of housing for the poor. His administration's partnership with
the Gawad Kalinga and the Pasig River Rehabilitation
Commission provided adequate housing for more than a thousand
families in the city.
7. Gonzales was Senior Deputy Majority Leader of the
14th Philippine Congress. As such, he was an ex
officio member of all House Committees. He was also
Senior Vice-Chairman of the Committee on Rules,
and headed the caucus of NCR[clarification
needed] Congressmen. In the 15th and 16th Congress,
he was the Majority Floor Leader of the House.
In the 18th Congress, Gonzales was elected to be
one of the Deputy Speakers of the House.
8. PERSONAL LIFE
Gonzales' first wife was Josephine Olivia
Francisco, who died in May 2001. They
had one daughter, Kristine Olivia. In
December 2002, Gonzales married
Alexandria Pahati, a television reporter,
with whom he had twins, Neptali III and
Isabel Candida.
