The daughter of Congressman Aurelio “Dong” Gonzales, Jr. will be among the candidates who will vye for a seat in the provincial board of Pampanga come the May 9, 2022 elections.
Alyssa Michaela “Mica” M. Gonzales, 27, will try to win one of the three seats of Pampanga’s Third District in the Sangguniang Panlalawigan, one that her father occupied before running for a berth in the House of Representatives.
Mica was born and raised in the City of San Fernando where she spent her early elementary school years. In 2008, she moved to the United States to complete her secondary education at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Returning to the Philippines, she took up Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, majoring in Management at the University of Asia and the Pacific.
Mica joined the corporate world as intern in Rockwell Land Corporation’s human resource department in 2014; intern in Abbott Laboratories’ marketing department in 2015; and, as management trainee in the Shopping Center Management Corporation until 2016.
In June 2018, Mica enrolled in the Ateneo Law School but took a leave of absence after just one semester to focus more on her work as Corporate Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer of their family-owned A.D. Gonzales, Jr. Construction and Trading Co. Inc., a AAA-category construction firm.
“We were trained on how to work harmoniously with people, not just as owner of a company dealing with employees, but also as employees working for their superiors. We need to feel what an employee feels or needs for us to fairly act on concerns when we manage our own people,” Mica explained when asked why she had to take on jobs in other companies.
This kind of training awakened Mica’s innate compassion towards the people her father serves in the district. So, it was easy for her to accept the invitation to work at the House of Representatives where she assumed the position of Chief Political Affairs Officer.
Like his brother, Aurelio Brenz, who will run for a seat in San Fernando’s city council next year, Mica drew inspiration from her father’s closeness to the people when she decided to run for board member of the district.
The pandemic, Mica said, further fanned her will to be of better service to the people, no matter their social status.
She said she could offer the infusion of youthful energy in the field of public service.
“The pandemic has made us realize that everyone needs help—be it the rich or the poor. There should be a shift on the way we look at government service. It should be encompassing, serving not just the few but the greater majority,” she said.
“Currently, I am focused on my role as a chief of staff of my father. I continue to support his programs in the various fields like health, education, livelihood, infrastracture and agriculture in the district. If I’ll be given the chance to become a member of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan, I can work efficiently and effectively in any of these departments,” Mica said.
Congressman Gonzales, for his part, said he fully supports his children’s decision to follow in his footsteps.
“I am proud of my children. Though they could have just chosen to lead a comfortable life with their professional careers, they want to offer themselves to the people whom I have served for the most part of my life. Teaching my children the value of service to the people will be my legacy,” the solon said.
