Asian Journal- The Filipino-American Community Newspaper

MORE than twenty years ago, on November 21, 1988, Dr. Rey D. Pagtakhan earned his place in history when he won a seat in Canada’s Parliament, unseating New Democrat David Orlikow, the 26-year-entrenched incumbent. Taking his seat in the House of Commons in Ottawa that following December, he became the first Filipino Canadian to become an MP (Member of Parliament) and the first Filipino to be an elected member of a federal or national legislature in the whole of North America and the world.

"It was not within my dream that I would be a Member of Parliament in Canada," said Dr. Rey, as his constituents often call him. The humble physician, professor and politician has surely come a long way from the poor boy who was educated through the generosity of his community in Cavite and who never forgot his roots.

Dr. Pagtakhan achieved many milestones for himself and for the Filipino community in Canada. Not only was he the first Filipino Canadian MP, serving for 16 years from 1998 until 2004, but he was also the first Filipino Canadian to be appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister (Jean Chrétien), and the first Filipino Canadian to be appointed to the Federal Cabinet. Dr. Rey’s appointment to the Cabinet also made him the highest-ranking Philippine-born elected official serving outside of the Philippines. He was also the 1998 Most Outstanding Young Filipino-Canadian awardee. His long and distinguished career will forever be remembered in the history books.

Born January 7, 1935 in Bacoor, Cavite, Dr. Rey is one of 11 children. Growing up in a large family with a relatively small income presented certain obstacles for the young Dr. Rey who, even in his early years, had been described by teachers as having a "brilliant mind".

Rey at first thought of becoming a journalist or lawyer, but his father enrolled him in premedicine at the University of the Philippines. As a medical student in the College of Medicine at the UP, he served as a Research Associate in Pediatrics at the UP Philippine General Hospital Centre. After graduation, Dr. Rey completed his residency and fellowship at the Washington University Medical Centre/St. Louis Children’s Hospital where he met his wife, Gloria Visarra, who holds a Master of Science in Dietetics degree from the same university. They married in 1964 and Rey took up residency in Pediatrics at the St. Louis Heart Association.

In 1968, Dr. Pagtakhan and his family immigrated to Canada and were granted Canadian citizenship in 1974. They have four sons: Reis, Advin, Sherwin, and Christopher Justin; a daughter-in-law (Mabini Joy), and a granddaughter (Kailani Joy).

A specialist in children’s lung diseases, Rey lived in Winnipeg, Manitoba where he sought to develop his pediatric health skills. He accepted a Post-doctoral Fellowship in Pediatric Respirology at the Children’s Hospital of Winnipeg of the University of Manitoba Faculty of Medicine and pursued his Master of Science studies in Prenatal Physiology. He served as Director of the Memorial Cystic Fibrosis Centre and as President of the Manitoba Pediatric Society in addition to being full-time on the Faculty of Medicine.