2 former governors who battled dynasties give praise to LJM

FORMER Isabela Gov. Grace Padaca sees INQUIRER editor in chief Letty Jimenez-Magsanoc’s passing as providential, one that came with a purpose: It was God’s way of reminding Filipinos about the ills of martial law.

“It comes at a time when our people seem to have forgotten about martial law, as we see a Marcos among the front-runners in the vice presidential race,” she said, referring to Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.

As one of the symbols of the struggles against the Marcos regime, Magsanoc seems to have given Filipinos, especially the youth, a reason to discuss the evils of the Marcos dictatorship and guide them in the choice of their next leaders in next year’s elections, said Padaca, a former commissioner of the Commission on Elections.

“If in 2010, it was Cory; in 2015, it’s LJM,” she said.

Having spent her younger years as a broadcast journalist, Padaca said she had always emulated Magsanoc, along with INQUIRER founder Eugenia Duran Apostol, as her role models.

‘Her struggle for truth, progress, justice and democracy ... is deep and passionate’

“My mantra as a journalist back then was exactly what the INQUIRER espoused: balanced news, fearless views,” she said.

Padaca cited her encounters with Magsanoc when the newspaper held roundtable discussions with her at the paper’s Makati City office, especially after her first election victory as Isabela governor.

“The way she always sees to it that she found fun in her work is what struck me most. I guess that is her secret in having stayed that long; she enjoyed what she was doing,” she said.

In Pampanga province, former Gov. Eddie Panlilio said Magsanoc cherished people power, even the kind that a number of Kapampangans mounted in 2007.

Panlilio, a Catholic priest, referred to a photograph taken during the May 2007 campaign in which thousands filled the grounds of Villa del Sol, usually the venue of the coronation of the province’s patron, Virgen de los Remedios.

This, he recalled, was the on- ly picture hanging on the wall of the INQUIRER conference room during the first time that Magsanoc invited him for an interview by the paper’s editors.

Panlilio, also a Catholic priest, was chosen by INQUIRER editors as the Filipino of the Year in 2007.

“After three years, I was again in a roundtable discussion in the same room. LJM said, ‘There, you see that pic is still there.’ Macananu ke regu calingwan (How can I forget her)?” Panlilio said in a text message.

Magsanoc made Panlilio’s victory at the polls in 2007 the banner headline.

“Miracle in Pampanga,” the headline went, quoting Panlilio who regarded his win in that light.

“Her struggle for truth, progress, justice and democracy, which she had pushed since the reign of the dictatorship [of Ferdinand Marcos] to the present is deep and passionate,” said Panlilio.

In Pangasinan province, former Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said Magsanoc was a pillar not only of the media “but of the rebirth of Philippine democracy.”

De Lima, who was in the province on Monday, said Magsanoc played a significant role in the overthrow of the dictatorship and the reestablishment of a free press.

“Her demise signifies the passing of an era in Philippine journalism when members of the press not only fought for press freedom but for freedom itself,” she said. Melvin Gascon and Gabriel Cardinoza, Inquirer Northern Luzon; and Tonette Orejas, Inquirer Central Luzon