33 Facts About Manny Villar

Manny Villar previously served as senator from 2001 to 2013 and as the 20th President of the Senate of the Philippines from 2006 to 2008.

Manny Villar became the speaker of the House of Representatives from 1998 to 2000; in this term, he presided over the impeachment of President Joseph Estrada.

Manny Villar was born to a poor family in Tondo, an impoverished and densely populated district of Manila.

Manny Villar's companies have built over 200,000 homes, and his business career made him the wealthiest person in the Philippines.

Manny Villar ran for president in the 2010 presidential elections under the Nacionalista Party, but lost to Benigno Aquino III.

Manuel Manny Villar was born on December 13,1949, in Tondo, an impoverished and densely populated district of Manila.

Manny Villar was the second-born of the nine children of his parents in a poor family.

Manny Villar's mother, Curita "Curing" Bamba, was a seafood vendor from a poor family in Orani, Bataan.

Manny Villar's father was eventually granted a year-long scholarship for higher education in the United States, which led to a job promotion to a director position in the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources upon his return.

Manny Villar assisted his mother in selling shrimp and fish at the Divisoria Public Market, as early as age six, in order to help earn the money to support his siblings and himself to school.

Manny Villar was then enrolled at Tondo Parochial School, a private school in Tondo run by priests, to complete his elementary education.

Manny Villar finished his high school education at the Mapua Institute of Technology in Santa Cruz, adjacent to Tondo.

Manny Villar attended the University of the Philippines Diliman and earned his bachelor's degree in business administration in 1970 his master's degree in business administration in 1973.

Manny Villar later characterized himself as being impatient with formal schooling, and eager to start working and go into business.

Manny Villar then worked briefly as a financial analyst for the Private Development Corporation of the Philippines, where his job was to sell World Bank loans.

Manny Villar initiated mass housing projects through economies of scale, utilizing the cost advantages of developing a large-scale project in order to bring down housing prices.

The number of homes built by Manny Villar's companies totaled to over 200,000 units.

Manny Villar produces over 170 million liters of treated water daily, supplied by more than 250 deep wells and surface water resources, and is directly involved in delivering water to more than 150,000 households across the Philippines.

Vista Land and Lifescapes Inc, a family-owned business of Manny Villar, is listed in the privately owned Philippine Stock Exchange.

Manny Villar has received several awards for his achievements during his professional and business career, including being one of the Ten Outstanding Young Men in 1986, the Agora Award for Marketing Management in 1989, Most Outstanding CPA by the Institute of Certified Public Accountants in 1990, and Most Outstanding UP Alumnus in 1991.

In 2015, the MB Manny Villar Group formed another company, Vitacare Healthgroup, Inc.

Manny Villar entered politics when he was elected as the representative of Las Pinas-Muntinlupa's at-large district in 1992.

Early in his congressional career, Manny Villar was a prolific filer of House bills; in the first 100 days of the Ninth Congress, Manny Villar filed the most number of local bills in the House of Representatives.

Manny Villar became the speaker of the House of Representatives in 1998, during his third term in congress.

Manny Villar ran and won a seat as a senator in the 2001 elections.

Manny Villar ran as an independent candidate, but campaigned as a member of the People Power Coalition.

Manny Villar was later reelected in 2007, running as a member of the Genuine Opposition coalition.

In July 2006, Manny Villar became the Senate president, making him the first post-World War II public official to head both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

In November 2008, due to issues regarding the construction of a road extension in C5, Manny Villar lost support and resigned as president of the Senate.

Manny and Cynthia Villar have been linked to the pork barrel scam.

Manny Villar ran in the 2010 presidential election under the Nacionalista Party, with Senator Loren Legarda as his running mate.

Manny Villar clarified that his brother was admitted as a charity patient because the family was unable to afford treatment.

Manny Villar lost the election to Benigno Aquino III after placing third with 5,573,835 votes.