The Sixth Commission (2022-2029)

HON. RICHARD P. PALPAL-LATOC (2022-2029)
Chairperson

Atty. Richard Paat Palpal-latoc will sit at the helm of the CHR Commission en banc VI as its new Chairperson. Chairperson Palpal-latoc, 48, will serve a full seven-year term from 2022 to 2029. The term of the previous Commission ended on 5 May 2022.

His appointment paper was signed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on 15 September 2022.

Prior to his appointment in CHR, Chairperson Palpal-latoc served as Deputy Executive Secretary for Legal Affairs under the Office of the President.

In 2020, he was appointed as Assistant City Prosecutor at the Office of the City Prosecutor in Quezon City.

Rising from the ranks, he similarly served the government in the past in various capacities, including as a lawyer at the Department of Social Welfare and Development Field Office IV-A and several positions under the Office of the Ombudsman, particularly as Graft Investigation and Prosecution Officer as his last position in the said office.

Chairperson Palpal-latoc also has a robust private practice career. He is a trial lawyer and partner at the Rodriguez Esquivel Palpal-latoc Law Firm.

He is an alumnus of the University of Santo Tomas—Philosophy (1995) and Bachelor of Laws (2001)—and was accepted to the Bar in 2002.

Marking its 35th year, Chairperson Palpal-latoc assured further strengthening CHR, particularly its mandates on human rights protection, promotion, policy, and prevention, to create a lasting legacy and meaningful impact in the lives of each and every Filipino.

He signified strong desire to expand the Commission’s work in the arena of economic, social, and cultural rights, alongside his core advocacies in upholding the rights of families, children, and women. 

HON. BEDA A. EPRES (2022-2029)
Commissioner

Atty. Beda Angeles Epres is one of the commissioners under the 6th Commission en banc (CEB).

Commissioner Epres is the first out of the five anticipated appointments of the new members of CHR Commission en banc, the highest decision and policy-making body of the Commission. 

His appointment letter, dated 15 September 2022, was signed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr and was transmitted to CHR on 21 September 2022.

Commissioner Epres is set to serve a seven-year term—from 2022 until 2029.

Commissioner Epres, 51, is alumnus of the Far Eastern University (Political Science, 1990) and Arellano University School of Law (LL.B., 1995). He was admitted to the Bar in 1995.

His career stands on a strong foundation and experience in investigation work. Prior to his appointment, he has long been a civil servant as part of the Office of the Ombudsman (OMB) since 1997.

He started as Graft Investigation and Prosecution Officer I working at the OMB-Military and Other Law Enforcement Offices and steadily rose the ranks. In 2008, he headed the Monitoring Team of the OMB Field Investigation Office (FIO), then became head and team leader of the FIO’s Intelligence Bureau the following year. He assumed the position of acting director of the OMB Intelligence Bureau-FIO II in 2010 and was finally appointed as director of the same office in 2011. He eventually moved to the Office of the Special Prosecutor and remained in the said office until 2016. His last position held was as Director IV of the General Investigation Bureau-A of FIO I at OMB before being appointed as Commissioner at CHR.

In his earlier career, he was also an officer at the National Power Corporation and a part-time lecturer at the Far Eastern University. 

With the track record of Commissioner Epres, CHR welcomes his expertise and credibility in conducting independent probe which is crucial to human rights protection.

Aside from focusing on investigations, which touches on CHR’s protection mandate, Commissioner Epres would also like to advance the rights of older persons and children.

HON. FAYDAH MANIRI DUMARPA (2022-2029)
Commissioner

The Commission on Human Rights welcomes Atty. Faydah Maniri Dumarpa as the third member of the sixth Commission en banc (CEB).

Her appointment paper was signed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on 28 December 2022 and was formally transmitted to CHR on 05 January 2023. Along with the rest of the CEB, Commissioner Dumarpa shall serve full term of seven years from 2022 to 2029.

In 2001, Commissioner Dumarpa worked as a political affairs officer in the House of Representatives (HOR). Having been with the HOR for nine years, she has built the foundations for a strong background in addressing social, political, and economic concerns requiring legislative action.

She became further involved in policy and research work in 2012 as a legislative staff officer in the Senate of the Philippines, eventually earning a supervising role in the same office in 2013. She further broadened her portfolio when she joined the National Power Corporation in 2013 as a corporate lawyer.

Prior to being appointed Commissioner to the CHR, Commissioner Dumarpa served as Deputy Executive Director III for Administrative and Financial Service in the National Nutrition Council of the Department of Health in 2021. Apart from her duties to coordinate international, local, and private agencies with regards to administration and financing of the agency’s nutrition programs, she was also responsible in helping execute policies and guidelines set by the governing board. In September 2022, she joined the Procurement Service – Department of Budget and Management assuming the position of Director IV for Administrative and Financial Group.

A native of Lanao del Sur, Commissioner Dumarpa not only offers her expansive experience in the legal, socio-political, and administrative and finance fields, her Southern and Muslim roots also reflect plurality crucial to the Commission’s highest decision-making body.

Commissioner Dumarpa is a member of the Philippine Bar since 2012 after obtaining her law degree from San Beda University in 2010. She also holds a Master’s degree in Business Administration and a bachelor in business degree from the Far Eastern University and the Philippine School of Business Administration, respectively.

Commissioner Dumarpa is the daughter of former Lanao del Sur 1st District Congresswoman Faysah Racman Pimping Maniri Dumarpa and former National Labor Relations Commission Commissioner Atty. Salic Biston Dumarpa.

HON. MONINA AREVALO ZENAROSA (2022-2029)
Commissioner

Retired Court of Appeals Justice Monina Arevalo Zenarosa is the newest member of the sixth Commission en banc of the Commission on Human Rights (CHR).

Her appointment paper was signed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr and was transmitted to CHR on Thursday, 23 March 2023. Commissioner Zenarosa’s term shall extend until May 2029.

Prior to her appointment in CHR, Commissioner Zenarosa has built a solid career in the judiciary and the legal profession where she started with private practice, then as a prosecutor for 15 years (1975-1990), thereafter as a Regional Trial Court Judge for 14 years in different cities and courts (1990-2004), before getting appointed as Associate Justice in the Court of Appeals (2004-2009), the second highest judicial court in the Philippines.

After her retirement from the Appellate Court, she was appointed as Commissioner at the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission, and concurrently served as Chairperson of the Independent Commission Against Private Armies, also dubbed as the “Zenarosa Commission,” which helped in the peaceful conduct of national and local elections after being able to forge an agreement with private armies for them to surrender their arms.

In 2015, she was appointed as Member of the Board of Pardons and Parole under the Department of Justice—a position she held until March 2022.

Commissioner Zenarosa joins as the second female member in CHR’s sixth Commission en banc (CEB), further improving gender balance in their present composition. She introduces plurality in the CEB for her comprehensive experience in applying and interpreting the law as a member of the judiciary for decades. Born in Masbate in 1939, she hails from Visayas, which brings to the CHR en banc an equal geographical representation in the discussion.

Commissioner Zenarosa earned her Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Santo Tomas. At 20, she took and passed the Bar exam in 1959. She also attended the Far Eastern University Institute of Law for her Master of Laws, where she completed her academic requirements from 1961-1963

Members of the Commission on Human Rights Republic of the Philippines

FIRST COMMISSION

(1987 – 1992)

Mary Concepcion Bautista
Chairperson

 Abelardo L. Aportadera, jr.
Samuel M. Soriano
Hesiquio R. Mallillin
Narciso C. Monteiro
Commissioners

 

 (1992 – 1994) 

Sedfrey A. Ordoñez

Chairperson

Samuel M. Soriano
Hesiquio R. Mallillin
Narciso C. Monteiro
Paulyn P. Sicam
Commissioners

SECOND COMMISSION

 

(1994 – 2001)

Aurora P. Navarrete-Reciña

Chairperson

Jorge R. Coquia
Vicente P. Sibulo
Mercedes V. Contreras
Nasser A. Marohomsalic
Commissioners

 
THIRD COMMISSION

(2002 – 2008)

Purificacion C. Valera Quisumbing

Chairperson

Eligio P. Mallari
Dominador N. Calamba II
Wilhelm D. Soriano
Malik G. Marandang
Quintin B. Cueto III
Commissioners

FOURTH COMMISSION

 
(2008 – 2010)

Leila M. de Lima
Chairperson

Cecilia Rachel V. Quisumbing
Victoria V. Cardona
Norberto Dela Cruz
Jose Manuel S. Mamauag

Commissioners

 

(2010 – 2015)

Loretta Ann ‘Etta’ Rosales
Chairperson

Cecilia Rachel V. Quisumbing
Victoria V. Cardona
Norberto Dela Cruz
Jose Manuel S. Mamauag

Commissioners

FIFTH COMMISSION

 
(2015 – 2022)

Jose Luis Martin C. Gascon (2015 – 2021)
Leah C. Tanodra-Armamento (2022)

Chairpersons

Karen Lucia S. Gomez-Dumpit
Gwendolyn Ll. Pimentel-Gana
Leah C. Tanodra-Armamento (2015-2021)
Roberto Eugenio T. Cadiz

Commissioners