Kiko Barzaga | |
---|---|
![]() Official portrait, 2025 | |
Assistant Majority Floor Leader | |
Assumed office July 29, 2025 | |
Leader | Sandro Marcos |
Member of the Philippine House of Representatives from Cavite's 4th district | |
Assumed office June 30,2025 | |
Preceded by | Elpidio Barzaga Jr. |
Member of the Cavite Provincial Board President of the Philippine Councilors League Cavite Chapter | |
Ex officio | |
In office 2022 –June 30,2025 | |
Preceded by | Anne Jomille Humarang (interim) |
Succeeded by | TBD |
Member of the Dasmariñas City Council | |
In office June 30,2019 –June 30,2025 | |
Personal details | |
Born | Francisco Austria Barzaga September 12,1998 Dasmariñas,Cavite,Philippines |
Political party | NUP |
Relations | Third Barzaga (brother) Lorenzo Barzaga (brother) |
Parents |
|
Occupation | Politician |
Nickname(s) | Kiko, Congressmeow |
Francisco "Kiko" Austria Barzaga (born September 12, 1998) or self proclaimed "Congressmeow" is a Filipino politician and animal welfare advocate who has served as the representative for Cavite's fourth district and an assistant majority leader since 2025. A member of the Barzaga political dynasty based in Dasmariñas, Barzaga previously served as a member of the Dasmariñas City Council from 2019 to 2025 and is the second youngest member of the 20th Congress after Tingog party-list representative, Andrew Julian Romualdez. He is a member of the National Unity Party (NUP).
Francisco "Kiko" Austria Barzaga was born on September 12, 1998 at Dasmariñas, Cavite, [1] to then Dasmariñas Mayor Elpidio Barzaga Jr. and then Barangay San Simon councilor Jenny Barzaga (née Austria). He is also the older brother of incumbent Dasmariñas Vice Mayor Elpidio “Third” Barzaga III and Lorenzo Barzaga.
Barzaga ran for a seat in the Dasmariñas City Council during the 2019 elections and 2022 elections and successfully won both of them. [2] In 2022, he was named president of the Philippine Councilors League Cavite Chapter, earning him an ex officio seat at the Cavite Provincial Board. [3]
Barzaga ran for House Representative of Cavite's fourth district, aiming to replace his late father, Elpidio Barzaga Jr., who died on April 27, 2024 in California, United States. [4] [5] [6] He, along with his mother and brother, won the election. [7] [8] In a post-election interview by News5, Barzaga stated he has no plans to run for National level positions. [9]
Barzaga's 2025 campaign jingle for congressman was a cover of Haring Manggi Miguelito Malakas's song “Lupaypay” and even sang by Haring Manggi himself. [10] The jingle went viral due to its catchy tunes and the fact that Barzaga's campaign was very associated with cats. Labor leader and 2025 senatorial candidate Luke Espiritu criticized Barzaga, saying he won not because of his campaign style but because he was a member of a dynasty. [11]
Barzaga supported House Speaker Martin Romualdez and became a part of the majority bloc on July 28, 2025. [12] Barzaga was named as an assistant majority leader under Ilocos Norte's 1st district representative Sandro Marcos on July 29, 2025. [13]
Barzaga proposed regulation for AI in a facebook post and in another separate post he said that AI is a violation of copyright and believes it will damage the art industry. Barzaga wrote:
"AI-generated videos, audio, and images will be practically indistinguishable from reality within the next decade, I propose a national legislation that mandates disclosure of its usage on content made for political and commercial purposes"
Barzaga also advocates for political reform for the party-list system. [9]
Barzaga stated that "Penalties for small crimes like littering should gradually become more severe for repeat offenders.", if the offender reaches the 50th offense, they should get imprisoned and by the 100th offense, they should get the death penalty, [15] however, the death penalty was abolished nationwide in the Philippines in 2006. [16] Barzaga later defended this proposal. [17]
Barzaga also proposed legislation for the death penalty of animal abusers by firing squad. [18]
Barzaga proposed the death penalty for mass murderers and child rapists, stating "Mass murderers and child rapists deserve the death penalty" and adding "Why waste government resources keeping alive in prison for decades when there's a simpler way to deal with them?". [19] [20]
Barzaga indirectly said "Rapists, including minors, must be given the death penalty...If you're still aminor and you're already sexually abusing people, there's no future for you in our society," [21]
Inspired by Senator Bong Go's Malasakit Centers, Barzaga wants to provide medical assistance for cats and dogs and create a Malasakit Center for them. [22] [23] This proposal, however, overlooks existing starvation concerns in his jurisdiction's local pound. [24]
Candidate | Party | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Kiko Barzaga | NUP | 165,942 | 50.37 | |
Jesse Frani | Independent | 150,316 | 45.63 | |
Osmundo Calupad | Independent | 9,583 | 2.91 | |
Leysander Ordenes | PLM | 3,591 | 1.09 | |
Total | 329,432 | 100.00 | ||
Registered voters/turnout | 432,844 | – | ||
NUP hold | ||||
Source: [7] [25] |
{{cite AV media}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)