Do you know how Alan met Lani?
It all started when, straight out of college, Lani went to work in the Senate as a Political Affairs Officer for Alan’s father, the late Rene Cayetano.
After his passing, she stayed on and eventually worked with Alan, who was already a congressman at that time, on his sister Pia’s senatorial campaign. He was quickly smitten and it was obvious to everyone, though Lani continued to brush off any suggestion that he had a crush on her.
One day while they were in Baguio City, Alan asked Lani if courting her would ruin her working relationship with his sister, given that Pia was a senatorial candidate, Alan was a congressman, and Lani was their employee. She replied that it inevitably would.
In response, he pulled out a ring on the spot and asked her to marry him instead so there wouldn’t be any intrigues. Even then, he was already sure, deep in his heart, that Lani was The One.
“I know she is the one God chose for me. Alam ko na eh so bakit ko pa patatagalin?”
he explained in a 2013 interview.
However, she asked him if they can go through a traditional courtship first, and he relented. For the next 4 months he did just that, driving her everyday to work before bringing her home to Bulacan where she lived at that time. Finally, Lani’s mother gave them her blessing.
Their wedding was a simple and intimate affair, with one special detail: They got married in the same spot in Baguio where Alan first proposed to Lani. How’s that for romance?
Though it was an unlikely courtship, the Cayetano family helped make the decision for her. “Yung family ni Alan napaka-supportive, napaka-loving. It made everything easy,” said Lani in the same interview.
Together, the couple embarked on a career in public service. Alan went on to become Senator, DFA Secretary, and House Speaker, while Lani became the first female and youngest Mayor of the City of Taguig and now Congressional Representative.
Alan shares, “We have achieved so much together, and there’s much more to do. No one can do it alone. Through God’s grace, we will work harder and smarter to get things done!”
