Fuentebella’s son is youngest solon-elect

At 26, Felix William Fuentebella, who was officially proclaimed last May 18 as the newly elected representative of the third district of Camarines Sur, is the youngest member of the 12th Congress.

The second of seven children of former Speaker Arnulfo Fuentebella, Wimpy, as his constituents fondly call him, won overwhelmingly in all 10 towns of the district, garnering a total of 54,348 votes over the 35,383 his closest rival, party-list Rep. Eduardo Pilapil, got.

Wimpy comes from a family of public servants. His great grandfather, Mariano Fuentebella, became governor of the province, so did his grand-uncle Jose Fuentebella who became congressman, commissioner, ambassador to Indonesia and senator.

His grandfather, the late Felix Fuentebella, was the only undefeated congressman and governor in the political history of Camarines Sur.

His father, representing the same district, was the first Bicolano to become House Speaker. He, like his son, was also the youngest assemblyman when he was elected to the Interim Batasan Pambansa, where he represented Bicol’s six provinces.

In the University of the Philippines, Wimpy was president of his batch in the College of Business Administration and a senior Nobel Fellow of the Upsilon Sigma Phi.