Raul del Mar, great lawmaker, proud Cebuano, true gentleman

Raul del Mar was not the type to provoke a fight between a man and his wife. But fight I nearly did with my wife. I have been here in Leyte for close to two years already, initially to help my wife care for her olds, and for the last nine months cooped in pandemic quarantine that is particularly tough on seniors like me.

I have not seen my three daughters for the duration of this quarantine. One is in Spain and two are in Cebu, all undergoing God knows what trials and challenges this unseen virus has subjected the world. These are not the circumstances under which your wife had to go screaming your name with cellphone in hand.

My heart stopped, my vision dimmed. My daughters! These were the two words that seized my throat and locked me momentarily speechless. Her face white, hands clammy, my wife thrust the phone to my face, screaming (well, not really because she could not summon the voice to accompany her intent) read! Read!

But before I could make sense of the tiny words on the screen, it was the picture of Raul del Mar on it that told me everything right away without having to go through the instantaneous pain in the details. Oh no, not Sir Raul. But first I had to confront the wife. What was she doing? I could have died the way she delivered the news. Do it that way and nothing comes to me except those two words seizing my whole being. My daughters!

But it was Sir Raul del Mar. The announcement was made in a Facebook post. My gratifying sense of relief came delivered with an unfathomable sense of grief. Sir Raul was a good and decent man whose love for his family, his work and his Cebu was matched and exceeded only by his love for God, especially the Santo Niño.

  A long-time congressman representing the first district of Cebu City for nine terms, he was not your average lawmaker whose passage through the august halls of Congress leaves nothing more significant and memorable than the record of their attendance. By the way, Sir Raul maintained perfect attendance in all the years he served the House of Representatives. Now he would blemish that record forever at God's behest.

  But he will leave behind a concrete record of accomplishments that will not be easy to match, much less surpass. Two of his greatest legacies were laws that created the Cebu Port Authority and the Mactan-Cebu International Airport Authority, two agencies responsible for showcasing the best of Cebu and the Cebuanos to visitors, that they may leave with a lasting positive impression in addition to keeping much of our own revenues home.

Sir Raul was a friend to everybody. He treated everyone with respect. He never quarreled nor badmouthed political opponents, which is why he never had opponents except token challengers. He was one of the few politicians who can hold their heads high in such an unflattering political environment. Goodbye, Sir Raul. Proud to have journeyed with you some distance. Proud to be your fellow alumnus at Colegio del Santo Niño.