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Leody de Guzman

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Leody de Guzman
Leody de Guzman filing his certificate of candidacy for president in October 6, 2021.
Born
Leodigario De Guzman

(1959-07-25)July 25, 1959
Naujan, Oriental Mindoro, Philippines
NationalityFilipino
EducationPMI Colleges
Occupation(s)Labor leader, activist
Organization(s)Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino, Sanlakas
Political partyPartido Lakas ng Masa
SpouseMarieza Tolentino
Children3

Leodigario "Ka Leody" De Guzman (born July 25, 1959) is a Filipino unionist and labor rights activist. He was the former President and currently the Chairperson of the Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino, a socialist federation of militant trade unions. He was an aspirant in the 2019 senatorial elections, and is a candidate for the 2022 Philippine presidential elections under the Partido Lakas ng Masa.[1][2][3][4]

Early life

De Guzman was born on July 25, 1969 in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro. He finished a Bachelor of Science in Customs Administration from the Philippine Maritime Institute,[5][6] as he entered work as a leather gloves factory worker at Aris Philippines Inc. leather glove factory to support his family.

Activism

De Guzman became involved in activism in the aftermath of the assassination of popular anti-Marcos figure Benigno Aquino Jr. Galvanized by the wave of pro-democratic, anti-Marcos opposition protests that followed, he joined the “Tarlac to Tarmac” march as well as other protests. He led the Aris Philippines branch of the nascent Justice for Aquino, Justice for All (JAJA) movement.

De Guzman also became involved in organizing the workers of the factory against the dominant union and would become an organizer for Alyansa ng mga Manggagawa sa Pasig (ALMAPAS), a major labor coalition, from 1984 to 1990.

De Guzman was elected to the regional executive council of the militant labor federation Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) in 1991. However, because of increasing differences between KMU NCR and KMU national leadership, De Guzman joined other workers in forming an alternative labor federation, the Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino (BMP)[5] alongside labor leaders such as Romy Castillo, Filemon ‘Ka Popoy’ Lagman, and Victor Briz. He was elected deputy secretary general of BMP at its formation in 1993, serving until 1996.

In 1996, he was elected as general secretary, serving until 2005 when he became president of BMP until 2018. Since 2018, De Guzman has been chairman of BMP. During this time, the BMP was active in organizing during discontent against the Presidency of Joseph Estrada. During the impeachment trial of Estrada and subsequent EDSA 2, BMP and Sanlakas called for all elected officials to resign to pave the way for the overhaul of the country's political system.[7] The federation was also active against measures of later governments such as the 2006 state of emergency under the Arroyo administration and the war on drugs of the Duterte administration.

He is also currently a member of the Board of Trustees in the human rights non-governmental organization PhilRights, and Bulig Visayas, another NGO for aiding calamity victims. He is also the current country representative of the International Council of the International Center for Labor Solidarity (ICLS), and Vice President of the Asia Regional Organization of Bank, Insurance and Finance Union (AROBIFU).

Political career

In the 2016 Philippine general elections, De Guzman participated in the legislative race as the first nominee of the Sanlakas partylist.[8]

In 2019, De Guzman ran as a senator under Partido Lakas ng Masa on a platform of ending contractualization and ending the Mining Act of 1995. De Guzman formed the pro-worker Labor Win coalition for the elections with Neri Colmenares of Bayan Muna, Sonny Matula of the Workers’ Party, independent Allan Montaño, and Ernesto Arellano of Katipunan of Kamalayang Kayumanggi. He was also endorsed by the Makabayan bloc for the senatorial elections.[9][10]

De Guzman placed 38th of 62 candidates with 893,506 (2.17%) of the vote.

On September 28, 2021, De Guzman accepted the nomination of the Partido Lakas ng Masa and various progressive organizations to run for president. Later on October 6, De Guzman filed his Certificate of Candidacy for President, running on a platform of systemic change including labor issues such as raising minimum wage and abolishing contractualization.[11][12]

Luke Espiritu, Roy Cabonegro, and David D’Angelo filed their candidacies under the party, while De Guzman also identified Chel Diokno, Risa Hontiveros, Neri Colmenares, Bong Labog, Sonny Matula, and Leila de Lima as his Senate bets in an endorsement that rejected "transactional politics".[13]

Political positions

In the 2019 elections, De Guzman positioned himself as a member of the labor opposition within the Labor Win coalition. On salient issues, he ran against endo contractualization, the abolition of the Mining Act of 1995, and the suspension of the tax system under the TRAIN law. He also supported renewable energy and a review of existing deregulation laws. Socially, he opposed the return of the death penalty, pushed for stipends for poor students and the implementation of a Universal Basic Income, and supported the legalization of divorce. [5][6][14]

He also supported the legalization of medical marijuana, the passage of the Bangsamoro Basic Law, and same-sex marriage in the Philippines. He was against the passage of a constitutional change under the Duterte administration towards federalism, the lowering of criminal age of liability, the extension of Martial law in Mindanao, and the phenomenon of red-tagging against activists and unionists. He also called for an end to political dynasties in the country.

In 2022, De Guzman reiterated his previous political positions, and included other provisions including the abolition of the NTF-ELCAC and called for the repeal of the Anti-Terrorism Law of 2020, among other measures that signaled a "violent regime" as part of a 25-point progressive agenda.[15][16]

He also stated that he would "opt not to run" if the campaign of Vice President and presidential aspirant Leni Robredo would pursue a platform that included amending the rice tariffication law, reviewing military agreements with the U.S. government, and prioritization of labor affairs, including contractualization.[17]

Personal life

Leody is married to Marieza Tolentino with three children: Prolan, Lea, and Dexter. He currently resides in Cainta, Rizal.[5]

References

  1. ^ "Labor leader Leody de Guzman formalizes candidacy for president". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved October 17, 2021.
  2. ^ "Labor leader Ka Leody to run for president in 2022". BusinessWorld. Retrieved October 17, 2021.
  3. ^ "Ka Leody De Guzman accepts nomination for president in 2022 from labor groups". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved October 17, 2021.
  4. ^ "Labor rights advocate Leody de Guzman files COC for Halalan 2022 presidential bid". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved October 17, 2021.
  5. ^ a b c d "Leody de Guzman biography, education, advocacy, background". Kami. Retrieved October 17, 2021.
  6. ^ a b "De Guzman, Leodigario "Ka Leody" (PARTIDO LAKAS NG MASA)". UP sa Halalan 2022. Retrieved October 17, 2021.
  7. ^ "Let the working class finance its own independent movement". www.oocities.org. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
  8. ^ "Sanlakas says selective justice targets LP foes". Philippine Daily Inquirer. March 13, 2016. Retrieved October 18, 2021 – via PressReader.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. ^ "Labor Senate bets: We have 'real credentials' to push for pro-poor policies". Rappler. Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  10. ^ "PROFILE: Who is Ka Leody de Guzman?". ph.rappler.com. Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  11. ^ News, Adrian Ayalin, ABS-CBN (September 28, 2021). "Ka Leody De Guzman accepts nomination for president in 2022". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved October 18, 2021. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  12. ^ "Labor leader Leody de Guzman files candidacy for president". Rappler. Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  13. ^ News, RICHA NORIEGA, GMA. "Labor leader Leody De Guzman bares 9 senatorial bets for Eleksyon 2022". GMA News Online. Retrieved October 18, 2021. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  14. ^ "Positions on conservative issues set opposition bets apart". Rappler. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
  15. ^ "Ka Leody to scrap NTF-ELCAC, seek repeal of anti-terrorism law if elected". cnn. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
  16. ^ "If elected, Ka Leody wants NTF-ELCAC scrapped, anti-terrorism law repealed". Philstar.com. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
  17. ^ "Ka Leody says he could have dropped presidential run had he aligned with Robredo during unity talks". cnn. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
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