August 24, 2012 Were entering the 3rd day of Jesses wake at the Archbishops Palace. Two days before, we transferred his casket from its original place inside the Chapel of the Good Shepherd to the Palace grounds because the sheer number of people paying their last respects could no longer be accommodated. The morning after his remains were brought to Naga, I received several proposals from Malacanan: (1) a state funeral will be held for Jesse (2) his body will be brought to Manila because there were still so many people who wanted to also pay their respects to him (3) that he will be buried at the Libingan ng mga Bayani. Those were just offers and they were asking me if these were acceptable to us. I did not know then what a State Funeral entailed so I asked what that meant. They said that he will be given full state honors at his funeral. I thought that sounded something like what Jess deserved so I sad yes to it, not realizing that it would be quite big. I said no to his being buried at the Libingan ng mga Bayani. I just felt that Jess would want to be buried in his beloved Naga and be with the people he loved. I did not object to a Manila wake but when they said, at least two nights, I was worried. I told Sec Dinky that 2 nights might be too long as he didnt have so many friends in Manila and almost all his friends and relatives were in Naga. I was anxious that that there might no longer be people paying respects on the 2nd night. But Sec Dinky assured me that so many people want to attend his wake and 2 nights will be just right. I presumed that his wake in Manila will be at the DILG office in Quezon City or in Camp Crame, where he holds office also several times a week. I was surprised when I learned it will be in Malacanan. I do not remember anymore but they said that it was only the 2nd time, I think, that a wake would be held in the Palace. I just requested that if it will be at the Palace, all people from all walks of life who want to attend the wake be allowed to enter. That request was premised on the fact that we understood that there would be many security concerns involved. I was assured that that was the original intent. Early morning of August 24, 2012, which was a Friday, an early morning mass was held at the ArchbishopsPalace. Immediately after the mass, Jess body was brought out and full military honors took place along Elias Angeles Street. It was the first of many that we had to go through. The name of the March that the military band played each time escapes me now but it was something that haunted me for many months. The melody kept ringing in my ears for a very long time after the funeral. We followed his body to the airport and when we got there, another round of military honors were made. Two planes were already waiting at the tarmac. A big commercial plane which everyone -relatives, government officials, media- took and a smaller one which had Jess body and the four of us. We arrived at the Villamor Air Base mid morning and another round of military honors were made by the Philippine Air Force. It was supposedly a turn over of Jess from the Air Force to the PSG. We were then led to a long convoy of cars from Villamor Air Base to Malacanan Palace. It was unbelievable to see so many people lined up on the streets leading to the Palace - some with confetti, others with placards. Some were crying, others were cheering. We arrived in Malacanan with the President already waiting for us. Another round of military honors was conducted, this time by the PSG. All of Jess colleagues in the Cabinet were there. There were tributes one after another conducted by various groups. I wasnt able to attend everything because for the first time since his plane went missing, I fell into deep slumber in the waiting room provided for us. I remember they woke me up when Cardinal Tagle arrived. They invited the girls and I to attend a private mass he was saying at the Chapel. When we got inside the private chapel, the Presidents four sisters were already there and heard mass with us. After the mass, we all went to the hall were the wake was being held and the Cardinal blessed his casket. It was a long night. We retired early in the morning of the next day already because there was an endless stream of well wishers. It was unbelievable to listen to so many of them talk about how Jess helped them, many of them I am meeting for the first time. Sec Rene Almendras was on top of all the preparations. All the Cabinet spouses were there to take care of food and refreshments. The Cabinet Secretaries took turns rendering duty. There were three of them at a time, just standing beside Jess casket, in formal attire and welcoming well wishers. Their duty was round the clock. Even when they closed the Palace gates already, there were still CabSecs on duty. It was so touching. Even the President did not leave the Palace grounds until we retired for the night. All photos were copied in 2012 from the Presidents Facebook page.
Posted on: Sun, 24 Aug 2014 03:11:13 +0000