I am proud to be an Ilonggo. I am proud to be born in Iloilo City. I am proud that my roots can be traced from the Municipality of Barotac Viejo in the 5^th District of Iloilo. I am also proud to have chosen to reside in Iloilo City specifically in MV Hechanova, Jaro.

I am honored and privileged to be given the strong support and trust of the Ilonggos especially the city residents for giving me a chance to serve them as the youngest city councilor at age 27 in the year 2007 and re-elected as the number 1 city councilor in the recently concluded 2010 elections. Service has no boundaries and limitations. It has been my boyhood dream to be of service to Ilonggos in an official and elected capacity. To the almost hundred thousand Ilonggos who support me, I will forever be grateful. I will continue to give you excellent public service. You are my strength and my boss. Iloilo has not only been good to me in terms of my public service career but also in my other endeavors.

When I transferred my residency to Iloilo City, I was blessed to be given a chance to mold young minds by being a teacher and professor. I was even ranked as number 1 teacher of Iloilo National High School. Moreover, I enjoyed the exchange of ideas with my students in the post graduate lectures and courses in John B. Lacson Foundation Maritime University, the Philippine Christian University and the St. Roberts International Academy. Aside from teaching, I have been also invited to be guest lecturer, guest speaker and resource person by various schools, universities and organizations.

In the field of communications, another blessing came my way when I was invited by Y’d Screen Productions to co-host a cable TV show that focuses on youth issues and activities. Until today, now with my own tri-media production outfit, LEX Express Artistic Productions (LEAP), I am the solo TV host, radio anchor and newspaper columnist of LEX Talk. It is said to be the first tri-media youth oriented show in Western Visayas. Thank you to everyone who has supported it for almost four years already.

It is also in Iloilo City that I took up further education and just last year earned my Doctor of Management with concentration in Public Management Degree from the Central Philippine University and I am said to be one of the youngest to have earned such at age 30. It is the first school I attended in Iloilo since I attended various schools (LSGH, ADMU, AIM, UPD) from kinder to Masters in Metro Manila. Thank you to all of those who believed that I can earn it even at a young age especially to my professors in CPU as well as the Dean. I believe in continuous education and that we have to improve ourselves always.

In my personal life, I have met my closest friends, associates and God parents here in Iloilo City. As they say, real friends are few and that’s why I cherish them. One of my closest friends (God brother) who I met in Iloilo City is even the reason why I met my wife. He set us up and convinced me to take a chance on a very beautiful, pure, religious, compassionate, honest, trustworthy, intelligent woman who is a medical doctor and who comes from a good family. I am so blessed to have found and kept a rare find, an awesome girl and a great catch in the person of my better half.

Thank you Iloilo especially Iloilo City for changing my life for the better.