Gary Alejano

Gary Cajolo Alejano Sr. is a Filipino politician and former soldier who was a member of the House of Representatives for Magdalo Party-List. He was a major participant in the Oakwood mutiny in 2003 and the Manila Peninsula siege in 2007, both involving military personnel who expressed grievances against perceived corruption in the Arroyo administration.

Early life and education Gary Alejano was born in 1973 in Sipalay, Negros Occidental. He is the third eldest among a brood of five born to a farmer and a teacher. He pursued a degree in electrical engineering for two years at the University of Cebu before taking the physical admission examinations at the Philippine Military Academy with his trip to Manila supported by a South Korean martial arts group.

Alejano kept his attempt to enter the PMA a secret from his mother who initially opposed him in becoming a soldier.

Military career Alejano was part of the Philippine Marines and held the rank of captain.

Oakwood mutiny

In July 2003, he was part of the Oakwood mutiny against the administration of president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and led by Antonio Trillanes, Gerardo Gambala and Nicanor Faeldon, where more than 300 armed forces personnel occupied the Oakwood Premier building in Makati and demanded the resignation of top military and police officials due to grievances in how the government supervised the military. Alejano at the time was part of the Presidential Security Group. The mutiny failed and the soldiers were arrested and faced rebellion charges.

After his loss, Alejano filed an election protest against mayor Montilla, and soon after filed another case against him before COMELEC that charged Montilla with vote buying and illegal use of government funds. The latter case, supported by human rights lawyer Harry Roque, was the first lawsuit filed with the help of Center Law, a group of lawyers largely from the University of the Philippines Diliman that aims to bring reforms to the Philippine electoral system.

President Benigno Aquino III, Arroyo's successor who took office in 2010, granted Alejano and his companions in the two mutinies pardon. The case was dismissed by the House Justice Committee as chaired by Reynaldo Umali after they deemed it to be insufficient in substance. He has been critical of Duterte's war on drugs and his policy on the South China Sea dispute.

Magdalo kept its seat in the 2019 election, but Manuel Cabochan took over since Alejano ran for the Senate. Magdalo failed to win any seats in the 2022 and 2025 elections.

2019 Senate bid Alejano ran in the 2019 Senate election under the Liberal Party banner. He was part of opposition Otso Diretso coalition. Like the rest of the slate, Alejano eventually lost, receiving 4,726,652 of votes and placing 23rd in the official results.

Electoral history