Cebuano Top 100 Tomas R. Osmeña

CEBU, Philippines —  Tomas “Tommy” de la Rama Osmeña was born on July 26, 1948. He is the son of former senator Sergio Osmeña Jr. and grandson of former president Sergio Osmeña Sr.

He has the distinction of being the longest serving mayor and architect of Cebu City’s development.         Tomas first won as mayor in 1987 without the support of a national party. He completed three terms in office until 1995. He was again elected for another three terms from 2001 to 2010.

Constitutionally barred from seeking reelection after completing three consecutive terms, Tomas ran for congress where he was elected member of the House of Representatives for the South District from 2010 to 2013.

After a three-year hiatus following his defeat to Michael Rama in 2013, Tomas staged a political comeback in 2016 and won against Rama in a hotly contested rematch. In the recently concluded midterm elections, Tomas lost to his vice mayor, Edgardo Labella, who was backed up by no less than President Rodrigo Duterte.

During his first term, Tomas chaired the Metro Cebu Development Project (MCDP) where he obtained multi-billion peso in financial aid for Metro Cebu. Among his notable projects is the priced South Road Properties. (FREEMAN)