Reluctant at first to enter politics as he was already embarking on a show business career, Quezon City Vice Mayor Gian Sotto had to do a detour after realizing a stronger divine calling to serve the people.

“I was very reluctant to get into politics but as soon as God revealed to me that it’s about servant leadership and serving for His Glory, I surrendered to His will. ‘God doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the called!’” Sotto told the Daily Tribune.

He started as a member of the Quezon City Council from 2010 to 2019. In 2019, he was the running mate of Joy Belmonte.

They both win, and Sotto became the 18th Vice Mayor of the largest and richest city in the metropolis.

He is the son of former Senate President Tito Sotto who once served as the city’s Vice Mayor. Gian said his father is the man he would like to be in politics, his new chosen field.

Eradication of poverty, according to Vice Mayor Sotto was the most pressing issue of the city, which he and Mayor Belmonte plan to address.

“Poverty, lack of opportunities and abuse of power are a few of the issues we wanted to tackle from the start! Praise God, we are winning the battle against these problems, slowly but surely. We must continue to fight for good governance and a people-centered government,” Sotto explained.

“Poverty is still a pressing issue in QC despite the booming economic development. To address poverty, the City is forging partnerships with the private sector to ensure steady economic growth that will provide stable jobs to QCitizens.

Enjoying growth, competitiveness

“QC through Mayor Joy Belmonte passed an Ordinance creating the Economic Development Incentives Code of Quezon City to promote conditions conducive to growth and competitiveness,” Sotto further explained.

Recently, he led 360 beneficiaries of his office’s Small Income Generating Assistance (SIGA) program in receiving their P5,000 livelihood assistance as startup capital for their small business.

Sotto said this would help poor “QCitizens” to start a small business “to have a sustainable income to uplift their living condition.”

The beneficiaries were selected from the city’s poorest in its six districts.

Presiding over the 38-member city council, Sotto is also very instrumental in crafting measures to counter or address poverty.

“Getting to the root cause of poverty, we can develop a plan to improve the lives of the informal settlers. Among the solutions are providing decent homes for QCitizens, quality education and ensuring to give them financial assistance, job opportunities and livelihood programs,” Sotto pointed out.

Viewed by most of his colleagues at the council as “a real family man” extending to the communities his being a father, Sotto always engages with and represents the diverse communities within the city.

“We treat each other individually as Family! Since we advocate strengthening families, no matter what sector you belong to, we will do our best to work with you and find a solution that will help, promote, and empower each member of the community,” Sotto said.

His stance on economic development and job creation within the city is to offer more jobs.

“We need more!... Quezon City continues to manifest a high economic growth and by the year 2040, it is expected to be at 4.6 percent. We, in QC, believe that economic growth is a sustainable solution to alleviating poverty,” he said.

Sotto also wanted to have a plan to address issues related to public safety and law enforcement.

“The Quezon City officials regularly conduct meetings with the law enforcement, barangays and those who are involved in maintaining peace and order through the Peace and Order Council to ensure that we remain informed about developments on the ground and to promptly address any concerns,” Sotto explained.

Convenience foremost

Moving up from the free transportation program within the City called “Libreng Sakay sa Q City Bus Service” which has eight routes, to and from City Hall, Sotto now envisions improving the city’s public transportation and infrastructure.

“We have already launched and continue to improve the dedicated bike lanes across major roads to make our city bike-friendly.

To Sotto, promoting and encouraging mass transportation should be a priority.

Sotto said traveling should be a breeze and so with the pathways within the city.

“Given our country’s intense heat and humidity during summer and heavy rains during the wet season, it is essential to address these conditions, particularly at waiting sheds, bus stations and footbridges. We should aim to make our streets walkable and friendly to both pedestrians and people with disabilities,” the Vice Mayor explained.

About housing, Sotto said the City Council is devising ways and strategies to address the affordability and homelessness in the city.

“By ensuring economic growth and providing employment to homeless constituents, we can empower the people to afford and maintain decent housing. The City also has a department handling the socialized housing program for the suitable relocation or resettlement of the Informal Settler Families,” Sotto said.

To achieve these goals, the Vice Mayor plans to work closely with the city council members and Mayor Belmonte.

“We have been blessed to have a very healthy working relationship with members of the City Council and the Executive Department. We usually convene to formulate, “Executive Legislative Agendas, which contain the thrusts and priorities of both the executive and legislative departments to address the pressing concerns and new developments in the City,” he said.

“The City Council members are a cohesive team. We all make sure that we are aligned with the City Development Plan goals,” Sotto added.

On environmental sustainability and climate change mitigation at the local level, Sotto said the City being the largest among the other LGUs and having the most number in terms of population, really has a tremendous effect on carbon footprint.

“We are very conscious of our contribution to pollution. That’s why we have instituted measures to combat plastic waste pollution by prohibiting the use of plastic. We advocate the use of reusable bags and water bottles,” Sotto explained.

On transparency and accountability, as a Vice Mayor, Sotto adheres to leading by example.

“It is a key in ensuring transparency and accountability. We are also developing full automation of government transactions to help eradicate corruption and red tape,” Sotto made clear.