Carlos M. Padilla

Carlos Mapili Padilla (; September 19, 1944 – May 5, 2023) was a Filipino politician who served as the governor of Nueva Vizcaya from 2016 until his death in 2023. Padilla was elected to his first term as governor in 2016 and was re-elected in 2019 and 2022. As an illegitimate child whose father died when he was 13, he was raised by his mother, Victoriana Mapili of Aringay, La Union, and Tayug, Pangasinan, along with his two siblings. He studied at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP), where he served as President of the Supreme Student Council.

Political career Padilla first served as mayor of the then-undivided municipality of Dupax, Nueva Vizcaya from 1971 to 1975. He was the last mayor of an undivided Dupax and the first mayor of Dupax Del Norte after Dupax was split into three municipalities in 1975 namely, Dupax del Norte, Dupax del Sur and Alfonso Castañeda.

Batasang Pambansa; opposition leader in Nueva Vizcaya

In 1978, he was among eight assemblymen elected to represent Region II (Cagayan Valley) in the Interim Batasang Pambansa as a member of the Kilusang Bagong Lipunan party of President Ferdinand Marcos. He ran again in 1984 as an opposition candidate to represent Nueva Vizcaya in the Regular Batasang Pambansa but lost to former Congressman and Senator Leonardo Perez after a bitterly disputed campaign marred by allegations of fraud.

When the People Power Revolution erupted in February 1986, Padilla, an ally of opposition figure Cory Aquino, was noted to have been in hiding due to the government's manhunt for him.

House of Representatives Padilla was finally elected to represent Nueva Vizcaya in the restored Congress in 1987.

While in Congress, he served as deputy speaker and a minority leader. He became a member of very important congressional bodies such as the Commission on Appointments and the House of Representative Electoral Tribunal (HRET). He became the co-chair of the Congressional Commission on Education (EDCom), a body to assess Philippine education. and lost. He ended up at the 24th spot garnering 3,863,693 votes which represents 11.53% votes.

Governor of Nueva Vizcaya Padilla ran for governor in 2016 and won, receiving 91,105 votes. He ran again for a second term in 2019 winning by a bigger margin. He secured his last term after winning in the 2022 local elections, garnering 143,552 votes.

During his time in office, he was a critic of large-scale mining operations in the province such as the Didipio mine operated by the Australian mining firm OceanaGold in the town of Kasibu. After the firm's permit to operate the mine expired on June 20, 2019, Padilla issued a directive to the company to cease its operation. However, it was overruled by the national government, which renewed the permit for another 25 years.

Views As congressman, Padilla opposed capital punishment, being a leading proponent for its repeal in the 2000s.

Personal life and death Carlos M. Padilla was married to Ruth Raña Padilla, who also served as governor of Nueva Vizcaya and commissioner of the Professional Regulatory Commission (PRC). They had three children: Carlos Jr. (Jojo), Ruthie Maye (Maye), and Carlo Paolo (CP). He was later interred at his ancestral home in Dupax del Norte.

Awards Padilla was a recipient of the outstanding alumnus award at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP), where he also received his doctorate degree in public administration, honoris causa. He likewise received the same honorary degree in education, and in humanities, from the Philippine Normal University and the Nueva Vizcaya State Institute of Technology and the Nueva Vizcaya State Polytechnic College, now the Nueva Vizcaya State University (NVSU) respectively. In 2022, he was awarded the Dangal ng Wika by the Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino (KWF) in recognition of his contributions and achievement in the furtherance of the use of the Filipino language.

Legacy Anti-mining advocates in El Salvador commended Padilla for his contribution to the historic unanimous vote of the country's legislature banning metal mining to protect rivers, thus making El Salvador the first nation to do so. The decision was made in 2017 following Padilla's testimony before Salvadoran legislators and public