Jocelyn "Jocjoc" Isada Bolante (born August 27, 1951Joc Joc Bolante: A Capizeño
Capiznon.wordpress.com, January 22, 2009) is a Filipino politician who formerly served as an

Undersecretary Undersecretary (or under secretary) is a title for a person who works for and has a lower rank than a secretary (person in charge). It is used in the executive branch of government, with different meanings in different political systems, and is a ...

of the

Department of Agriculture An agriculture ministry (also called an agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister f ...

of the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. He was implicated by the

Philippine Senate The Senate of the Philippines () is the upper house of Congress, the bicameral legislature of the Philippines, with the House of Representatives as the lower house. The Senate is composed of 24 senators who are elected at-large (the country f ...

to the ongoing investigation related to corruption concerning fertilizer funding while serving as a government official. Bolante left the Philippines on December 11, 2005. He returned to the Philippines on October 28, 2008, after being detained at an immigration office in the United States.''Arrival statement of former Agriculture Undersecretary Jocelyn Bolante''
ABS-CBNNews.com, October 28, 2008''Jocelyn Bolante Returned to the Philippines''
October 30, 2008Depasupil, William

, ManilaTimes.net, November 4, 2008 The corruption related to fertilizer funds was exposed when news broke that a Filipino journalist, Marlene Garcia-Esperat (who was from Tacurong City,

Sultan Kudarat Sultan Kudarat, officially the Province of Sultan Kudarat (; Maguindanao language, Maguindanaon: ''Dairat nu Sultan Kudarat'', Jawi Alphabet, Jawi: دايرت نو سولتان كودرت; ; Ilocano language, Ilocano: ''Probinsia ti Sultan Ku ...

, Philippines), was killed on March 24, 2005.

Personal profile

A native of

Dao, Capiz Dao, officially the Municipality of Dao ( Capiznon/ Hiligaynon: ''Banwa sang Dao''; ), is a municipality in the province of Capiz, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 33,842 people. Dao is from Roxas City. Histor ...

, Bolante was born to parents Vicente Bolante, Sr. (deceased) and Salvacion Isada (deceased). He has three siblings, namely Vicente Jr., Anabelle and Cecilia.

Political career

Bolante was appointed by President

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal-Arroyo (; born April 5, 1947), often referred to as PGMA or GMA, is a Filipino academic and politician who served as the 14th president of the Philippines from Presidency of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, 2001 to 2010 ...

as Undersecretary of Agriculture for Finance and Administration in 2001. He served in this capacity for almost three years. He resigned on September 6, 2004. Bolante ran unsuccessfully for governor of his home province of

Capiz Capiz (), officially the Province of Capiz (Capiznon language, Capiznon/Hiligaynon language, Hiligaynon: ''Kapuoran sang Capiz''; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the central part of the Western Visayas Regions of the Philippines ...

in the 2010 general elections under the local party Ugyon Kita Capiz (Unite Capiz), where he was defeated by incumbent governor Victor A. Tanco. The said party endorsed the

Nacionalista Party The Nacionalista Party (Filipino language, Filipino and Spanish language in the Philippines, Spanish: ''Partido Nacionalista''; , NP) is a political party in the Philippines which is the oldest existing party in the country and in Southeast Asi ...

and supported presidential candidate Senator

Manny Villar Manuel "Manny" Bamba Villar Jr. (; born December 13, 1949) is a Filipino businessman and former politician. He previously served as senator from 2001 to 2013 and as the 20th President of the Senate of the Philippines from 2006 to 2008. Before ...

and his running mate Senator

Loren Legarda Lorna Regina "Loren" Bautista Legarda (born January 28, 1960) is a Filipina politician, environmentalist, cultural worker, and former journalist who is currently serving as a Senator and served as the president pro tempore of the Senate of the ...

on the same year.

Corruption case

Bolante was implicated by the Philippine Senate to a fertilizer fund scam which amounts to P728 million. Based on his statements, the fund was "taken from" the Department of Agriculture's "2003 budget and distributed to local government officials (105 congressmen, 53 governors, 23 mayors) as project proponents two weeks before the 2004 elections, and was believed to have been diverted to the campaign pot of President Gloria Arroyo."

References

External links

*Photograph o
Jocelyn Bolante
from Capiznon.wordpress.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Bolante 1951 births Living people People from Capiz Nacionalista Party politicians Arroyo administration personnel Visayan people