November 8: Public Forum on Federalism with Secretary Lambino

Secretary Raul Loyola Lambino

Secretary Raul Loyola Lambino serves as the Administrator and Chief Executive Officer of the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA), a government-owned and controlled corporation tasked to manage the development of the Cagayan Special Economic Zone and Freeport (CSEZFP) into a self-sustaining industrial, commercial investment, financial and tourism-recreational center with suitable retirement  and residential areas. The Cagayan Freeport is located at the northeastern tip of the Philippines at the crossroads of international shipping routes between the West Coast of North America, Far East and Southeast Asia.

Lambino is the Vice-President for International Affairs and leads the International Department of President Duterte’s ruling party, PDP Laban.  He was formerly the Party’s Deputy Secretary-General for Constitutional Reforms.

Since 2016, he has been Lead Convener of the PDu30 Constitutional Reformers (CoRe) to Federalism. From 2006 to 2008, he was vice president for Constitutional Reforms of the Philippine Constitution Association (Philconsa). He was appointed by then President Gloria Arroyo as member of the 2005 Constitutional Consultative Commission. In 2006 he was strategist and campaign spokesman of the “Sigaw ng Bayan” group that called for people’s initiative to reform the 1987 Philippine Constitution.

Prior to his appointment as the head of the CEZA, Secretary Lambino was reviewer and lecturer in Remedial Law and Political Law for more than twenty (20) years and managing director of Lambino Law Firm, which handles corporate and litigation cases.Secretary Lambino has been a Consultant and Coordinator for the Philippine House of Representatives contingent to the Commission on Appointments, a Consultant in the Office of the Speaker of the Philippine House of Representatives from 1995 to 1998, and from 2000 to 2001; the Chief-of-Staff in the Office of Senator Loren Legarda from 1998 to 2000; the Chief of Staff in the Office of Speaker Jose De Venecia from 1995 to 1998; and the Officer-in-Charge Provincial Board Member of the Province of Pangasinan from 1987 to 1988. Secretary Lambino earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, cum laude, from the University of Pangasinan in 1981. He obtained his Bachelor of Laws degree, valedictorian and cum laude also from the University of Pangasinan in 1986.