Eric Yap

The Honorable Eric Yap
Member of the Philippine House of Representatives for ACT-CIS party-list
Incumbent
Assumed office June 30, 2019 Serving with Jocelyn Pua-Tulfo and Niña Taduran
show House committee chairmanships Chair of the House Committee on Appropriations Incumbent Assumed office March 2, 2020 Preceded by Isidro Ungab Chair of the House Committee on Games and Amusements In office July 22, 2019 – March 2, 2020 Preceded by Gustavo Tambunting Succeeded by Joseph Bernos
Personal details
Born	Eric Go Yap (1979-05-11) May 11, 1979 (age 42)
Nationality	Filipino
Political party	ACT-CIS

Eric Go Yap (born May 11, 1979) is a Filipino politician serving as a party-list representative for ACT-CIS since 2019, and concurrently since January 2020, as the legislative caretaker of Benguet. He is the chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations since March 2020. With his humble beginnings came an enormous vision. Yap's younger years taught him how to overcome obstacles through faith and hardwork, values which would shape his whole life.

Personal life[]

On March 25, 2020, Yap initially announced that he tested positive for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) but turned out to be negative a result of an "encoding error". The lawmaker took the test on March 15 for he was exposed to several people and not for being symptomatic for the disease. During the eleven-day wait period for the test result he divulged that he still attended and visited governmental meetings, like on March 21 at the Malacañang Palace and on March 23 at the special session of the House of Representatives.^[1][2][3] Two days after the confirmation, on March 27, the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM), who tested his samples, have stated that Yap's result was actually negative but was listed initially as positive due to an "encoding error". Yap accepted the apology of the research center.^[4][5]

Yap was one of the judges at the finals night of Miss Universe Philippines 2020, the pageant's first edition.^[6]

Political career[]

House of Representatives[]

Partylist Representative

Eric Yap, along with Jocelyn Pua-Tulfo and Rowena Niña Taduran, were elected as party-list representatives for ACT-CIS in the 2019 elections.^[7][8] Garnering 2.6 million votes (9.45% of the turnout), ACT-CIS topped the party-list election and won the maximum three seats.^[7][9] Even as a first-term legislator, Yap has already been an embodiment of effective leadership in the House of Representatives. He quickly earned a reputation with his two-fold agenda: promptly propose people-oriented legislations and efficiently deliver public service.

His appointment as the Chairperson of the Games and Amusements Committee.^[10][11] was a momentous feat for partylist representatives as it was the first time for a partylist neophyte to hold a Committee Chairmanship post. The Committee tackled all matters directly and principally relating to all forms and places of gaming and amusements.

Since entering Congress, he authored hundreds of bills and resolutions, some of which were signed into law by President Rodrigo Roa Duterte. These legislations addressed a wide spectrum of issues, including but not limited to, healthcare, education, national security, public safety, and appropriations. Yap was one of the principal authors of House Bill No. 5477 which was signed into law as Republic Act No. 11463 by President Duterte in December 2019 which institutionalizes the Malasakit Centers—a one-stop shop for government medical and financial assistance.^[12][13]

As the representative of the oppressed and marginalized in the society, he amplified their concerns through legislation. His first stride into proposing a house measure is to conduct consultations with the stakeholders to ensure that the measure shall reflect the realities they experience first-hand. Yap went beyond the bounds of Congress to reach out to the Filipino people, offering various kinds of assistance through his Congressional office and through ACT-CIS Partylist Action Centers strategically located in many parts of the country.

Benguet Legislative Caretaker

In January 2020, he was appointed as the Legislative Caretaker of the Lone District of Benguet.^[14] As formal acceptance as their Caretaker and in recognition of his sincere support to the province, the Members of the Provincial Board passed a resolution adopting Yap as a son of Benguet.^[15][16]

Yap has remained a steadfast leader on issues of importance to the people of Benguet. He worked closely with local leaders and the community itself to know more about their needs and to develop solutions with them. His competence as a public servant became more apparent during the onset of the COVID-19 in the country. As a partylist representative and a district caretaker, he managed to introduce and implement policies and programs in both the national and district level.

In response to the effects of the community quarantine in Benguet, he launched the 'Mobile Tulong'^[17] program - an initiative extending relief and services to his constituents. It even went beyond as 'Aerial Mobile Tulong' where it reached even the remotest areas to bring help closer to the people. Seeing it as an effective and efficient way to provide assistance, it was then institutionalized as the standard means to reach the vulnerable and marginalized sectors in the province.

Appropriations Chairperson

In March 2020, he was appointed as the Chairperson of the Committee on Appropriations. He is the first neophyte congressman and first party-list representative to lead the Committee on Appropriations.^[11] He spearheaded the thorough deliberation and timely passage of the 2021 National Budget. He closely coordinated and worked with the Executive and Legislative branches to ensure that the budget reflects the government's mission to reset, rebound, and recover from the pandemic by investing for resiliency and sustainability.

Currently, he also serves as the Vice Chairperson of the Committees on Accounts, Games and Amusements, Good Government and Public Accountability, Government and Privatization, and Ways and Means. He is also an active member of the Committees on Banks and Financial Intermediaries, Energy, Flagship Programs and Projects, Foreign Affairs, Higher and Technical Education, Justice, Legislative Franchises, Overseas Workers Affairs, Public Accounts, Public Works and Highways, and Transportation.

References[]