Ignacio Bunye
Encyclopedia
Ignacio Rivera Bunye is a Filipino politician who is currently serving as the Monetary Board Member of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and commonly abbreviated as BSP is the central bank of the Philippines. It was rechartered on July 3, 1993, pursuant to the provision of the 1987 Philippine Constitution and the New Central Bank Act of 1993...

 since July 3, 2008. Prior to his appointment as monetary board member, he previously served as the Press Secretary, acting Executive Secretary
Executive Secretary (Philippines)
The Executive Secretary of the Philippines is the head and highest ranking official serving in Cabinet of the Philippines and the head of the Office of the President of the Philippines. The office-holder has been nicknamed as the "Little President" due to the nature of the position...

 under Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is a Filipino politician who served as the 14th President of the Philippines from 2001 to 2010, as the 12th Vice President of the Philippines from 1998 to 2001, and is currently a member of the House of Representatives representing the 2nd District of Pampanga...

, Congressman, and Mayor of Muntinlupa City
Muntinlupa City
The City of Muntinlupa is the southernmost city in Philippine National Capital Region. It is bordered on the north by Taguig City; to the northwest by Parañaque City; by Las Piñas City to the west; to the southwest by the city of Bacoor, Cavite; by the city of San Pedro, Laguna; and by Laguna de...

.

Early life

Ignacio R. Bunye was born April 19, 1945 to Dr. Alfredo M. Bunye, Sr. and Sofia V. Rivera, a pre-war movie actress with the screen name Gloria Imperial whose younger sister Mila del Sol was also a movie darling of her time..

He took his early education at Itaas Elementary School and his secondary at Muntinlupa National High School
Muntinlupa National High School
Muntinlupa National High School is one of the public schools in Muntinlupa. Located in NBP Reservation, Brgy. Poblacion, Muntinlupa City. The school is now headed by Dr. Estrella C. Aseron....

 where he graduated valedictorian. He took up Bachelor of Arts at Ateneo de Manila University
Ateneo de Manila University
The Ateneo de Manila University is a private teaching and research university run by the Society of Jesus in the Philippines. It began in 1859 when the City of Manila handed control of the Escuela Municipal de Manila in Intramuros, Manila, to the Jesuits...

 and graduated in 1964 and Bachelor of Law in 1969. He also holds a Masters in Management degree from the Asian Institute of Management.

He worked at the Filipinas Foundation Inc. as Assistant Corporate Secretary from 1970 to 1975, Assistant Vice President of BPI Investment Corporation from 1976 to 1983 and Assistant Vice President for Corporate Banking and Treasury at the Bank of the Philippine Islands from 1983 to 1985.

Atty. Ignacio R. Bunye was a working student. He was a news reporter for the Philippine Daily Star from 1967 to 1969, for the DZMT News from 1965 to 1967 and a war correspondent in South Vietnam. As a DZMT reporter, he covered the Vietnam War and wrote a documentary entitled “The Other War,” a first-person account of the activities of the Philippine Civic Action Group in Tay Ninh, South Vietnam. At the Daily Star, he wrote a number of articles, including a four-part series entitled “War Vignettes,” a first-person account of events immediately after the Tet Offensive in South Vietnam in 1968.

He has been inducted as a member of the Manila Overseas Press Club. He is also a life-time member of the National Press Club.

A lawyer by profession, Bunye has served in various executive positions at the Ayala Group of Companies, including as Assistant Vice President of the Ayala Investment and Development Corporation and the Bank of the Philippine Islands.

Mayor of Muntinlupa City

When former Corazon Aquino
Corazon Aquino
Maria Corazon Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino was the 11th President of the Philippines and the first woman to hold that office in Philippine history. She is best remembered for leading the 1986 People Power Revolution, which toppled Ferdinand Marcos and restored democracy in the Philippines...

 assumed presidency after the People Power Revolution in 1986, Bunye was designated Officer-in-Charge of the Municipality of Muntinlupa.

He was elected as Mayor of Muntinlupa from 1988 to 1995. As Muntinlupa Mayor, Bunye also served in a concurrent capacity as Chairman of the then Metropolitan Manila Authority (MMDA) from 1991 to 1992. The Metropolitan Manila Authority is the forerunner of the Metro Manila Development Authority.

In 1995, Bunye was again reelected as Mayor of Muntinlupa for his last three-year term. During his 12-year stewardship, Muntinlupa metamorphosed from a fifth-class municipality into a highly urbanized city. Adopting proven corporate practices that he gained from working in the private sector, Bunye initiated the computeratization of Muntinlupa, streamlined operations and cut red tape, thus making Muntinlupa City the business-friendly community that it is today. During his watch, Muntinlupa was consistently ranked by the Department of Finance as number one in Metro Manila in terms of realty tax collection efficiency.

He founded the Muntinlupa Polytechnic College, the city’ public college, which has since been converted into the Pamantasang Lungsod ng Muntinlupa. He upgraded the public health centers and also established the city cemetery for Muntinlupa’s poor.

Toward the end of his term as Mayor, Bunye laid the foundation for the establishment of the Ospital ng Muntinlupa through the acquisition of a five-hectare lot within Filinvest Corporate City, which is also the site of the future Civic Center Complex.

House of Representatives

Barred by law from seeking a fourth consecutive term as Mayor, Bunye ran for Congress
Philippine general election, 1998
The senatorial election was held in the Philippines on May 11, 1998. The two main competing coalitions in the senatorial election were the Lakas-NUCD-UMDP and the Laban ng Makabayang Masang Pilipino -led coalition composed of the Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino , Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino , the...

 in 1998 and became the first Congressman from the newly-created lone district of Muntinlupa City.

In Congress, Bunye continued to champion the cause of local governments, especially in providing them with greater fiscal autonomy.

Originally a member of the minority, Bunye was one of the fiscalizers of the 11th Congress
11th Congress of the Philippines
The Eleventh Congress of the Philippines is the meeting of the national legislature of the Republic of the Philippines, composed of the Philippine Senate and House of Representatives...

. With the change of leadership toward the end of the 11th Congress, he became the Senior Deputy Majority Floor Leader of House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte, Jr.
Feliciano Belmonte, Jr.
Feliciano "Sonny" Racimo Belmonte, Jr. is a member of the Philippine House of Representatives representing the Fourth District of Quezon City. He is also the house speaker of the Congress from 2010 to present. He was the mayor of Quezon City from 2001-2010.-Early Life and Career:Belmonte was born...

.

Cabinet Member

Bunye had served as Press Secretary from July 16, 2002 to January 19, 2003, before he formally assumed the post of Presidential Spokesperson on January 20, 2003.

On August 24, 2004, he was again appointed as Press Secretary this time concurrently as Spokesperson. He was designated as Acting Executive Secretary from October 21 – 30, 2007, during which time he signed the papers pardoning former President Joseph Estrada
Joseph Estrada
Joseph "Erap" Ejercito Estrada was the 13th President of the Philippines, serving from 1998 until 2001. Estrada was the first person in the Post-EDSA era to be elected both to the presidency and vice-presidency.Estrada gained popularity as a film actor, playing the lead role in over 100 films in...

. He also briefly held the position of Presidential Adviser on Political Affairs before assuming his position at the Monetary Board.

Bunye writes weekly columns for the Manila Bulletin
Manila Bulletin
The Manila Bulletin , is the Philippines' largest broadsheet newspaper by circulation, followed by the Philippine Daily Inquirer. It bills itself as "The Nation's Leading Newspaper", which is its official slogan...

, Tempo, People’s Tonight, Sun Star and Filipino Reporter.

Personal life

Bunye is married to Miraflor T. Oca, a pediatrician
Pediatrics
Pediatrics or paediatrics is the branch of medicine that deals with the medical care of infants, children, and adolescents. A medical practitioner who specializes in this area is known as a pediatrician or paediatrician...

. They have three children: Patricia Angela (m. Jose Ferdinand Rojas), Alfredo and Frances Myra.

External links

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