With an overwhelming mandate from the electorate, Quezon City Vice Mayor Gian Sotto on Saturday promised to work harder than ever as he prepares to start his third term with more projects and programs for each and every Quezon City constituent.

“Thank God and our fellow Quezon Citizens who continue to trust and give strength for genuine and meaningful public service,” Sotto said as he thanked the voters for granting him a decisive victory in the recently concluded midterm local elections.

Like Mayor Joy Belmonte, who received a resounding show of public trust with an unprecedented 1,030,730 votes, Sotto also secured his final term in office as the second-highest official of the city, garnering 938,686 votes from the so-called QCitizens.

The Belmonte-Sotto tandem registered the most number of votes ever garnered by any elected official in the city’s history.

Sotto, the son of Senate-bound Vicente “Tito Sen” Sotto, was proclaimed by the Board of Canvassers on Wednesday over three rivals.

According to Sotto, apart from continuing the projects and programs he has initiated in his six years in office, he is looking forward to implementing more new initiatives in his third and final term.

As presiding officer, VM Sotto led the QC Legislative Council, which was recognized as the most outstanding Sanggunian during the 2023 Local Legislative Awards held in Pasay City. It was named the national winner in the highly urbanized city category, besting all HUCs in the country.

The Department of the Interior and Local Government-National Capital Region commended the QC Council for winning at the regional legislative level with a remarkable performance rating of 99.5 percent.

As the co-chairperson of the Quezon City Anti-Drug Abuse Advisory Council, Sotto said he sees the need to continue the QC Community-Based Drug Rehabilitation Program (BDRP),  which has benefited hundreds of individuals.

CBRDP is an intervention for persons who used drugs. It is a consolidated model of treatment in the community, with services ranging from general interventions to relapse prevention, toward a new path free from illegal drugs.

The vice mayor’s Small Income Generating Assistance program has also been embraced by the poorest residents in the six districts of the city.

Under the program, each beneficiary is given an amount they can use as start-up capital for a small business.

Sotto has made his presence felt in barangays through his community-building initiatives, livelihood programs, and health campaigns, where his medical team brings services directly to the doorstep of barangays.

“Let us continue the clean and honest work, for God and for others. This last term, we want to emphasize strengthening a people-centered government that will focus more on the needs of each family and further enhance the participation of every Quezon Citizen for a God-fearing and patriotic service,” he said.

“We are also currently studying the creation of legislation that we can push to help provide solutions to Quezon City’s traffic situation, protect families, and expand livelihood and employment programs. The drug-clearing program will continue, along with youth and sports programs and additional benefits for senior citizens, women, PWDs and solo parents.”