PRESIDENT Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. declared a 10-day national mourning over the passing of former President Fidel V. Ramos.
Proclamation No. 33 issued by Executive Secretary Victor D. Rodriguez set the period of mourning from July 31 to August 9, 2022.
During that period, the national flag shall be flown at half-mast from sunrise to sunset on all government buildings and installations in the country and abroad as stipulated by Republic Act No. 8491 or the Flag and Heraldic Code of the Philippines.
Marcos said the proclamation aims “to pay tribute to an esteemed leader who has declared his life to public service and has left a lasting mark to our country.”
Aside from being the country’s 12th president, Ramos also served as Secretary of National Defense, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and Chief of the Constabulary.
During his presidency, Ramos became known for his comprehensive economic reforms and initiatives to broker a peace agreement with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF).
He also played a crucial role in initiating the EDSA People Power Revolution that ousted President Marcos Sr. from power, together with now Presidential Chief Legal Counsel Juan Ponce Enrile. At that time, in February 1986, Enrile was defense secretary and Ramos, vice chief of staff of the AFP.
Ramos died last Sunday at the age of 94.
Marcos Jr. was among those who mourned the death of Ramos, who is also his distant uncle.
More senators pay tribute
Also on Monday, more senators conveyed their “deepest condolences” to the family of former President Ramos, billed as the man who introduced far-reaching reforms and helped the country withstand the fallout from the 1987 Asian crisis.
“President FVR shall be remembered as the man who sincerely pursued people empowerment and implemented many reforms and innovative ideas such as the Build Operate Transfer Law,” said Senator Koko Pimentel, adding: “Maraming nagawa si FVR na napapakinabangan hanggang ngayon ng mga sumunod na administration. Rest in Peace President Ramos. Please say hello to my Tatay Nene in Heaven,” referring to Koko’s father, the late ex-Senate President Aquilino Pimentel Jr.
Senator Juan Edgardo Angara, in a separate statement, cited Ramos’s success in leveraging a minority mandate into major reform victories, showing how crucial changes in governance can be done.
“He [Ramos] did it through consultations, by listening, and by reaching out to all stakeholders, even to those who are not in his camp,” Angara recalled.
For instance, Angara recalled that “in order to channel good ideas to a forum where these can be discussed, he [Ramos] created with my late father [then Senate President Edgardo Angara] sounding boards like the Legislative Executive Development Advisory Council or the LEDAC.”
Angara also remembered Ramos as a practitioner of “big tent politics,” while respecting the diversity in opinions. “[He did not suppress the] opposition. Instead of curtailing constructive criticism, he cultivated it. And he took action on complaints, through handwritten orders to the concerned agencies. Rest in peace, Mr. President!”
In a separate statement, Senator Jinggoy Estrada also conveyed the Estrada family’s “deepest condolences” to the family of Ramos, who was the President when their father, Sen. Joseph Estrada, was elected the vice president.
“Under his [Ramos] leadership, our country experienced a period of political stability and massive economic growth that positioned the Philippines as a potential Asia’s tiger economy,” said the younger Estrada.
Estrada also listed among Ramos’s legacies the major peace agreements with Muslim separatists, communist insurgents and military rebels that earned for him and the country the coveted 1997 UNESCO Peace Prize; the deregulation of key industries and liberalization of the economy; privatization of public entities including modernization of public infrastructure through the expanded BOT law; and a comprehensive Social Reform Agenda that mostly benefitted the poor and underprivileged members of the society.
Senator Risa Hontiveros said Ramos “will forever be remembered as a major game changer during the People Power Revolution,” recalling that “even then, his [Ramos] unexpected courage was a force of nature, encouraging many other longer-standing freedom fighters.”
Hontiveros added: “He [Ramos] made such solid progress that the world billed the Philippines as ‘Asia’s next tiger economy’ during his time,” even as the senator admitted she did not agree with some of his policy reforms, especially in the hastened liberalization of key economic sectors.