Former Transportation Undersecretary Thomas “Tim” Orbos is gearing up for the congressional seat of the first district of Pangasinan, the province that has raised great leaders like former President Fidel V. Ramos and illustrious legislators such as former House Speakers Eugenio Perez and Jose de Venecia, Senators Cipriano Primicias, Geronima Pecson, Eva Estrada-Kalaw, Senate President Pro Tempore Leticia Ramos-Shahani, Jeremias Montemayor, Jacobo Clave, Vicente Millora, and Hernani A. Braganza.
No less than President Rodrigo Roa Duterte expressed confidence in Orbos’ capabilities and assured Orbos full support in his bid for a seat in the House of Representatives. “Kaya mo iyan, ha! Huwag kang titigil. Huwag kang kabahan. Ako ang bahala. Basta ituloy mo ang laban,” Duterte told Orbos, former Transportation undersecretary.
Orbos, younger brother of former Executive Secretary Oscar Orbos comes from a family of public servants.
His father Guillermo Orbos was a government official while his mother Concepcion Orbos was a public-school teacher. He is also the younger brother of a man of God, Fr. Jerry Orbos, SVD.
Educated at the Ateneo de Manila University and armed with post-graduate degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Georgetown University, Orbos has put into practice what he learned in the various government posts he was appointed in.
Although these appointments were in the executive branch of government, his close to 30 years in public service has afforded him the opportunity to witness how the legislature works. He has worked as Special Assistant to then Congressman Oca Orbos and has been invited to Congressional and Senate hearings while in government which gave him an insight of how the branches of government works. “It has given me the valuable insight on how co- equal branches of government work side by side to create, refine and define laws that are for the good of our country and assures the necessary checks and balances are in place,” he said. “It has taught me how to come in prepared; consult with stakeholders; how to be patient and how to sufficiently respond and comply with our legislative counterparts,” he added.
As members of the legislative branch of government, legislators—Senators or Representatives—craft laws or amend existing laws to respond to the needs of their constituents. They participate in debates on proposed legislations, create policies, budgets and programs contrary to the popular perception that legislators, especially those in the House of Representatives, only provide projects for their constituents.
Older brother Oscar Orbos who has served as a two-term Pangasinan representative shared that given his younger brother’s experience in both legislative and executive branches of government, Tim “is more prepared to be in Congress” than he was during his first stint in politics.
Orbos served as general manager of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority ensuring that basic services are availed of by residents of Metro Manila’s component cities and municipalities. To carry out this mandate, Orbos had under his supervision, 8,000 personnel who take care of traffic management, public safety, solid waste management, and disaster management, among others.
While serving as Undersecretary for Roads and Infrastructure in the Department of Transportation, Orbos was also concurrent supervising undersecretary for Land Transportation Office (LTO), Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB), Toll Regulatory Board (TRB), Office of Transport Cooperatives (OTC), Office of Commuter Affairs (OCA), and Inter – Agency Council on Traffic (I-ACT). He studied, consulted, defended and implemented various transport policies that affected the livelihood of more than one million public transport operators and the welfare of over 100 million commuters—an opportunity he is grateful for. “I am thankful for this very valuable opportunity. Public service is a privilege that one should always be thankful for,” he expressed.