METROPOLITAN Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Danilo Lim, one of the most active officials during the Covid-19 pandemic, passed away around 7 a.m. of January 6 due to cardiac arrest, his family said. He was 65.
The MMDA family condoled with his relatives, even as several staff who had face-to-face dealings with him went on quarantine, since Lim had announced on December 29 he was infected with Covid-19. They all underwent RT-PCR tests but all tested negative for it, Assistant Secretary Celine Pialago said in a radio interview.
A former Army general, Lim is survived by his wife Rep. Aloysia Tiongson-Lim and daughter Aika.
In a statement, Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said Lim, who is known for his “professionalism, competence and integrity,” will be missed in the Cabinet.
For his part, Presidential chief legal counsel Salvador Panelo remembered Lim for his principle and being a gentleman.
“Behind the exterior of gentleness and humility was an iron-clad ferocity of a man trained in the art of warfare and strategy and deep-seated conviction of protecting the people’s welfare,” Panelo said in a separate statement.
Lim was part of the Philippine Military Academy Makatarungan Class of 1978 and a graduate of the United States Military Academy (USMA) at West Point.
During his military career, he earned multiple accolades, including the Presidential Medal of Merit.
Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III said that the Department of Health expressed its sincerest condolences to the MMDA and the family of Lim, whom he called a “true leader and frontliner.”
Lim served as MMDA chairman under the Duterte administration, from May 2017 to present.
Lim was credited with initiating efforts in alleviating problems confronting Metro Manila by going back to the basics.
He also focused on instilling and implementing strict discipline among agency employees.
Under his helm, the welfare of the employees got priority, as Lim ensured they receive accident insurance and other appropriate benefits. He also envisioned the MMDA to be one of the most transparent government agencies that the public can trust.
Lim was never embroiled in any scandal despite being jailed for his role in the 1989 coup plot against President Corazon Aquino. He was later involved in an alleged destabilization plot against President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.
Mayors remember
Both San Juan City Mayor Francis Zamora and Pasay City Mayor Emi Calixto-Rubiano said they will remember Lim as a remarkable public servant and said his death is a big loss to the country.
“On behalf of the Local Government of Pasay and our people, I express my deepest condolences to the family, loved ones, friends and colleagues of MMDA Chairman Danny Lim who passed away today, January 6. I have known Chairman Danny Lim, or General Danny Lim as he is also called by many because of his extraordinary performance in the military, as a strong and visionary leader,” Calixto-Rubiano said.
As chairman of the MMDA, the mayor recalled, Lim had provided the local government units the needed “enabling support” in the implementation of measures aimed at enhancing life and mobility in the metropolis, and especially in their Covid-19 response through the Metro Manila Council.
“I particularly witnessed his remarkable leadership and discipline during the numerous activities which we either both supervised or participated in. May his soul rest in eternal peace, through the mercy of our Almighty God. He is a truly great loss to our country,” she concluded.
For his part, Zamora said San Juan is saddened by the passing of “an officer and a gentleman.”
Zamora added, “Our nation has lost a true public servant, whose integrity and leadership are worth emulating. As a military officer he had served with courage and bravery, and as the Chairman of Metropolitan Manila Development Authority he had served with discipline and dynamism.”
Zamora felt honored and humbled to have worked with Lim on programs and initiatives to make San Juan City and the whole of Metro Manila a safer and better place. From road clearing to reclaim and bring back the public roads to pedestrians, to easing the traffic flow in and out of San Juan, to instilling discipline to his constituents, and in their “fierce fight against this pandemic in the Metro Manila Council—truly the wisdom, knowledge and experience he had shared with me and the Metro Manila mayors are indeed valuable.” With Samuel P. Medenilla
Image credits: mmda.gov.ph