Raoul Manuel

In this Philippine name, the middle name or maternal family name is Abellar and the surname or paternal family name is Manuel.

Raoul Manuel
Manuel's official portrait for the 19th Congress
Member of the Philippine House of Representatives for Kabataan Partylist
Incumbent
Assumed office June 30, 2022
Preceded by	Sarah Elago
Constituency	Partylist
34th Student Regent of the University of the Philippines
In office 2016–2017
Personal details
Born	Raoul Danniel Abellar Manuel (1994-08-30) August 30, 1994 (age 30) Iloilo City, Philippines
Political party	Kabataan (partylist) Makabayan
Alma mater	University of the Philippines Visayas (B.S.)
Occupation	Student leader Youth activist Politician

Raoul Danniel Abellar Manuel (born August 30, 1994) is a Filipino youth activist and politician serving as the representative for Kabataan partylist,^[1] of which he is the national president. He previously served as the president of the National Union of Students of the Philippines.^[2]

Early life and education

At the Rizal Monument, 2022

Manuel was born on August 30, 1994.^[3] The eldest of five children to Raul Manuel and Clarizel Joy Abellar, he grew up in Arevalo, Iloilo City. Their mother sold beauty products while their father was an Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW).^[4] For his elementary education, he attended SPED Integrated School for Exceptional Children, graduating in 2007 as the valedictorian, then proceeded to the University of the Philippines High School in Iloilo where he also graduated as valedictorian in 2011.^[3][4]

Manuel studied at the University of the Philippines Visayas (UPV) and graduated in 2015 with a Bachelor of Science degree in applied mathematics with a general weighted average (GWA) of 1.099,^{[n 1]} making him the first summa cum laude in the university's history.^[4][5] During his time at UPV he led student protests and was also a cheerleader; during his senior year, he served as chairperson of the College of Arts and Sciences Student Council.^[3][4][5]

Afterwards, he served as national chairperson of Katipunan ng mga Sangguniang Mag-aaral sa UP (KASAMA sa UP), the alliance of student councils in the University of the Philippines (UP) system.^[3] While studying for his Master of Science degree in applied mathematics at UP Diliman, he served in academic year 2016–17 as the 34th UP Student Regent, the sole representative of the UP system's student body in the UP Board of Regents.^[6] He later served as national president of the National Union of Students of the Philippines (NUSP).^[4]

Advocacies

Raoul Manuel speaking against the Anti-Terrorism Act in a protest action, December 2021.

Raoul is an education and LGBTQ-plus advocate. He called for free education among public tertiary schools and the junking of the socialized tuition system in UP.^[2] He criticized the removal of Philippine History among senior high curriculums after housemates from Pinoy Big Brother failed to answer basic questions on Philippine history. He called for the review and overhaul of the K–12 system in the Philippines.^[7] He also criticized the state of education in the Philippines under the COVID-19 pandemic under the Duterte administration, saying that the shortcomings revealed the 'long-standing' problems of Philippine education.^[8] He became a National Convener for Rise for Education, an alliance that pushes through with nationalist, scientific, and mass-oriented Philippine education.^[9]

He has also been an advocate against mandatory implementation of Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) program in the Philippines as well as a critic of said abuses under the Armed Forces of the Philippines.^[10] During a Senate hearing on ROTC on August 22, 2019, he had a heated exchange with Senator Ronald 'Bato' dela Rosa.^[11]

Kabataan Partylist nominees for 2022: Angelica Galimba (2nd nominee), Raoul Manuel, and Jandeil Roperos (3rd nominee).

During the filing for the nominees for the 2022 national elections, Manuel, as the first nominee of Kabataan Partylist, said that "The youth bear a responsibility to advance the politics of change and hope." He also said that Kabataan Partylist prevailed despite moves to disqualify them from Congress and denounced groups that "pretend" to be the voice of the youth.^[12]

In March 2022, a navy officer was condemned by Raoul in social media in which the said soldier posted death threats against the youth activist. The Philippine Navy said that the officer was relieved and became a subject of 'thorough investigation'.^[13]

He opposed both registrations of SIM cards and social media accounts.^[14]

Political career

Entering congress at the age of 27, Manuel became one of the youngest members of the 19th Congress.^[15] He abstained during the election of the speakership and joined the minority bloc.^[16][17]

Electoral history

Main article: 2022 Philippine House of Representatives elections

Manuel was Kabataan's first nominee in the 2022 Philippine House of Representatives elections. The party-list received 536,690 votes or 1.46% of the votes, entitling the party a seat in congress. Throughout the campaign, the party was faced with disqualification cases, posing a risk to its proclamation. Nonetheless, the party was proclaimed as one of the winners of the party-list elections. Manuel, as the first nominee was designated as the party's representative in congress.

References

Notes

1. Most state universities and colleges in the Philippines follow the grade point system scale of 5.00 to 1.00, in which 1.00 is the highest possible grade and 5.00 is the lowest possible grade. see Academic grading in the Philippines.

References

1. "Comelec proclaims new batch of party-list groups in 19th Congress". RAPPLER. May 26, 2022. Archived from the original on September 20, 2022. Retrieved May 27, 2022.
2. Umil, Anne Marxze (November 17, 2021). "Raoul Manuel and his choice to continue serving the Filipino youth". Bulatlat. Archived from the original on September 20, 2022. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
3. Argosino, Faith (June 30, 2022). "Know the Party-list Rep: Raoul Manuel, Kabataan Partylist". The Manila Bulletin. Archived from the original on October 22, 2022. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
4. Burgos, Nestor P. Jr. (June 5, 2022). "New kid in the House Makabayan bloc". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Archived from the original on March 25, 2023. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
5. Naorbe, Elyrose (June 19, 2015). "First summa cum laude for UP Visayas". CNN Philippines. Archived from the original on November 13, 2017. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
6. "UP Visayas' first summa cum laude is next student regent". Rappler. July 18, 2016. Archived from the original on August 7, 2022. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
7. Bernardo, Jaehwa. "'PBB' quiz game raises concerns on Philippine education system". Archived from the original on April 21, 2022. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
8. Diaz, Nina (September 7, 2020). "[B-Side Podcast] The government has failed us — students". BusinessWorld Online. Archived from the original on April 21, 2022. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
9. "iLead Trainings - ALA SIYETE Y MEDIA EPISODE 3 TONIGHT, 7:30PM As we are nearing the end of Voters Registration, we have invited a very special guest for this episode. For our third episode, we will be joined by the National Spokesperson of the KABATAAN PARTYLIST. In line with the launching of iVote, we will talk about Voter Registration, Education, Empowerment and Participation. Our guest speaker for this month is Sir Raoul Danniel Manuel". www.facebook.com. Archived from the original on May 28, 2022. Retrieved May 28, 2022.
10. "Mandatory military service pagkatuntong ng 18 anyos, mungkahi ni Sara Duterte-Carpio kapag nahalal na bise-presidente". manilatoday.net. Archived from the original on February 11, 2022. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
11. "Bato dela Rosa flares up at activist during ROTC hearing". RAPPLER. August 22, 2019. Archived from the original on April 21, 2022. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
12. Mendoza, John Eric (October 7, 2021). "'We will continue the fight': Kabataan files CONA for partylist". INQUIRER.net. Archived from the original on April 21, 2022. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
13. "Navy officer relieved, under probe after threatening party-list nominee". ph.news.yahoo.com. Archived from the original on April 12, 2022. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
14. Locus, Sundy (April 15, 2022). "SIM card registration bill dangerous, activists say as they welcome veto". GMA News Online. Archived from the original on April 21, 2022. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
15. Burgos, Nestor P. Jr. (June 5, 2022). "New kid in the House Makabayan bloc". INQUIRER.net. Archived from the original on June 5, 2022. Retrieved June 5, 2022.
16. "Romualdez named House Speaker". Archived from the original on July 26, 2022. Retrieved July 26, 2022.
17. Lalu, Gabriel Pabico (July 20, 2022). "Youth rep: Postponing barangay polls would paralyze SK programs". Inquirer. Archived from the original on July 21, 2022. Retrieved July 21, 2022.

External links

• Raoul Manuel on Instagram