A WEEK ahead of the official opening of the Senate session this year, all legislators were already expected to resume their respective committees’ hearings to tackle urgent matters as well as buckle down to hearing several lined up bills.
At the same time, citizens were earnestly looking forward to the feisty line of questioning and strong presence of Senator Raffy “Idol” Tulfo, chairperson of the Committees on Energy and Migrant Workers.
Modesty aside, Tulfo has proven himself to be the most active neophyte senator as though he were an old-timer.
Known for grilling personalities embroiled in anomalies and fiercely throwing mind-boggling questions to resource persons, the senatorial greenhorn by far has attended roughly 50 committee hearings since he assumed his post less than a year ago.
Aside from leading committee hearings on energy and the plight of the migrant workers, he has also dipped his finger in the committee deliberations on health and demography, public information and mass media, labor/employment and human resources development, agriculture/ food and agrarian reform, justice and human rights, public order and dangerous drugs, local government, among others.
If that’s not what you can call it multi-tasking, we don’t know what is.
As the public very well knows, Idol — as he is addressed by his teleradyo following — is a known defender of the poor and the aggrieved.
Name it, Idol has listened to and continues to listen to their never-ending tales of woes. After all, Idol’s 20-year career as a broadcaster has been dedicated to genuine public service.
This did not escape even the watchful eye of the officers and members of the Philippine Movie Press Club (PMPC) which bestowed on him the Excellence in Broadcasting Lifetime Achievement Award in the recently concluded Star Awards for Television.
So, you might eagerly ask: what does it take to be a Raffy Tulfo?
Popular for his brand of public service where he acts swiftly on the problems of ordinary citizens, Idol is bringing his experience and expertise in crafting meaningful laws in his first term in the 19th Congress.
Living up to his monicker, he is the go-to man behind the multi-awarded and widely popular programs, “Raffy Tulfo in Action” and “Wanted sa Radyo” on Radyo Singko/TV5.
As a media person, he began his broadcasting career as a disc jockey in a local radio station in Puerto Princesa City in Palawan. It didn’t take long enough before he clinched his first big break in the broadcast industry when he became a newscaster/reporter of PTV 4.
Since then, Raffy hosted several public service programs one after another on then-ABC 5. Such a break had given him the opportunity to provide immediate remedies to disputes of whatever kind.
As fate would have it, Raffy soon became the anchor of primetime TV newscast, “Frontline Pilipinas.”
His advocacy includes promoting and protecting the rights of families, OFWs and locally based workers.
Using the might of the pen to keep the public well-informed and vent out his opinions on burning yet timely issues, his hard-hitting columns were widely followed in several tabloids such as Abante and Bulgar.
Not at all content with merely doing newspaper opinion pieces, Raffy later ventured into publishing a nationwide tabloid called Iskandal.
His storied life chapters way before he became who he is now might strike your fancy.
Unknown to many, Raffy wore different hats and took on different — if not odd — jobs both in the Philippines and the US in the sanctimonious name of survival.
Did you know that he worked as a vegetable vendor, dishwasher, waiter, nursing aide, account receivables clerk, shoe salesman and insurance representative?
Born on March 12, 1960 in Quezon City, Raffy is the eighth of the 10 children of Ramon Tulfo Sr. and Caridad Teshiba-Tulfo.
He pursued his studies in Holy Trinity College of Puerto Princesa City, Trinity College of Quezon City and Ateneo De Davao University.
Hiding his light under a bushel so to speak, he is currently one of the top social media influencers with 25M solid subscribers in his YouTube account, 20M followers on his Facebook account, 3.2M in his TikTok account and 1.5M in his Instagram account.
So, who says only female showbiz celebrities reign supreme on social media?
Originally published on The Manila Times.
