MANILA, Philippines—Accepting the posthumous Philippine Legion of
Honor award in her husband’s behalf, the wife of Secretary Jesse Robredo
on Tuesday said the entire family was honored though the pomp and
pageantry would make “Jesse a little uncomfortable.”
“If we could hear Jess speak, sasabihin nya sobra sobra na ’to (this
is too much already),” said lawyer Leni Robredo in her acceptance speech
after the concelebrated funeral Mass late morning at Naga City.
She thanked members of the Cabinet who were with Robredo until the
end, naming Transportation Secretary Mar Roxas, Budget Secretary Butch
Abad and Cavite Representative Joseph Abaya.
She also cited Social Secretary Corazon “Dinky” Soliman,
Communication Secretary Ricky Carandang and Peace Process Adviser
Teresita “Ding” Deles for helping the family in organizing the burial
rites.
Hands-on father
Recounting some of their happy moments, Leni said Robredo was always there for their three daughters despite his busy schedule.
“He would drop everything for the girls,” said Leni. She recounted
how Robredo would badger Secretary Roxas for tickets at the UAAP
basketball games whenever the Ateneo team played to give to their
eldest, 23-year-old Aika, a student of Ateneo de Manila University.
She said her husband would ask her to pray
before the Blessed Sacrament whenever their second child, 18-year-old
Patricia, had an exam. Robredo would also tutor her on her math
assignments their youngest, 13-year-old Jillian, by telephone.
“He was never too busy for all of us,” she
said. Aika and Patricia live with Robredo in Manila while Jillian lives
in Naga City with Leni.
She said Robredo would send her text messages
only to inform her they had just finished eating dinner and his evening
ritual would follow.
“The ritual means signing documents he had brought home.”
She said when he was still mayor of Naga City,
he never made the children feel a sense of entitlement. “In the end,
what’s best is leaving a good name,” she said.
Dreams fulfilled
She said Robredo’s dream for himself was simple and that he never dreamt of becoming Interior and Local Government secretary.
“He told me, ‘quoting quota na ako (I’ve reached my quota).’ His cup was overflowing,” she said.
During the tragic day of his death, Leni said
she told Robredo to take the bus to Naga instead and not hurry home.
But Robredo took a plane to be with them at once. “That was Jess to the
very core, always working so hard, always rushing home to be with his
family.”
When he knew that death was certain, she said
in his calm voice, Robredo a few was able to call her only to tell her
he’ll call again later because he had to attend to something important.
The next call never came.
“He would always shield me from fear,” she said.
President Aquino in his speech said what Robredo had shown was that being successful in politics doesn’t mean being a ‘trapo’ (traditional politician).
Robredo’s final rites ended when his remains were taken to the Funeraria Imperial for cremation past 1 p.m. Tuesday.
