LAST Monday (July 31), we commemorated the first death anniversary of Fidel V. Ramos (FVR), the country’s 12th president who died at 94 due to complications from COVID-19 at the Makati Medical Center.
I joined FVR’s family led by former First Lady Ming Ramos and the rest of the former chief executive’s staff, ex-Cabinet men, friends, and supporters at his gravesite at the Libingan ng Mga Bayani for the 9 a.m. Thanksgiving mass.
There was a heavy downpour early Monday morning and I was a bit worried about the hassle of attending the occasion.
But lo and behold, by 8 am, an hour before the Holy Mass and just when the guests have started to arrive, the skies cleared up. It was as if the heavens gave us a four-hour reprieve so we can proceed with the activities smoothly.
By lunchtime, it was raining hard again. I am delighted to see that the construction of the tomb of the late president was completed in time for his death anniversary. Called the FVR Memorial, which is located between the gravesites of former Presidents Ferdinand Marcos, Sr. and Elpidio Quirino, is elegant in its simplicity.
It perfectly captured the combination of the old man’s simplicity and no non-sense leadership. Indeed, his final resting place was fit for a statesman par excellence.
According to ARC LICO, the architectural firm behind the structure, the FVR Memorial “takes inspiration from the crenelated fortress architecture alluding to Ramos’ professional life as an engineer, military man, and public servant.”
FVR’s iconic statements – such as “Kaya Natin Ito,” and “Caring, Sharing, Daring” – are etched on the marble floor allowing visitors to reflect on his life’s philosophy as they sit on curved segmental benches surfaced by pebble dash.
The tomb is formed by a classical mass of marble punctured by a niche containing the urn with the ashes of the late president. As I traveled to Fort Bonifacio from Makati, I cannot help but look back at the three decades of knowing the man who I only heard on the radio and saw on TV and in newspapers before working with him as his close-in writer in Malacañang in 1992.
He was my mentor and, post-presidency, became like a second father. I tried to remember what I was exactly doing on July 31 last year. It was a Sunday and I was busy arranging the shipping of the copies of “Behind the Red Pen,” which we released in late March as a tribute to his 94th birthday.
By 4 p.m., all my communication channels- messenger, Viber, SMS, etc- were flooded with inquiries as rumors of FVR’s death were circulating on social media. I was clueless and hoped that as in the past, the news of FVR’s death was just a prank.
When journalists began to message to confirm the news they got from sources at the Makati Med, I worried that it could be true, after all.
I sent a message to my friends at the Ramos Peace and Development (RPDEV) Foundation. It was already in the evening when Jaime Ancheta, FVR’s aide, replied “Wala na si boss.”
For a while, my world stood still.
One year later, we gathered at the Libingan last Monday to celebrate his life and legacy. It was a bittersweet occasion. Seeing old friends, colleagues and former Cabinet officials and military officers after a long while was again an occasion to renew ties and relive our years with FVR.
Watching Mrs. Ramos, who is still strong and sharp at 95 (Praise God!), playing their favorite love songs on the piano in honor of her husband was endearing. While time is catching up on her, I pray that the former first lady will still be given many years to be with us.
President Ramos, who aspired for the country to be a “Tiger Economy” and worked hard for it, died without seeing the realization of his dream.
Before the pandemic isolated him in 2020, FVR continued to serve the Philippines as a senior statesman and RPDEV chairman, extending support to the government and providing “unsolicited” to his successors since 1998, from former Presidents Estrada to Duterte. FVR’s vision of a prosperous Philippines is also the aspiration of the 110 million-strong Filipinos.
As good and responsible citizens of this country, let us do our share in nation-building and make that dream come to life.
