BY CARLA P. GOMEZ
Sagay Mayor Alfredo Marañon III, on behalf of his family, yesterday thanked the Senate for honoring and recognizing his father, Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr., for his contributions as a public servant for more than five decades.
The passage of Senate Bill No. 544 , authored by Majority Floor Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri of Bukidnon, and co-authored by all senators present in a virtual session early this week, was a source of comfort for them, especially for their mother, in their time of grief, he said.
Marañon, 84, was governor of Negros Occidental from 2010 to 2019.
He began his career in government service as a councilor of Sagay in 1964, then went on to become vice mayor and mayor of the city, and assemblyman and congressman of Negros Occidental.
“The Senate’s homage, taking into account his father’s work in advancing the protection of the 32,000-hectare Sagay Marine Reef and the Visayan Sea, and other environmental causes as well as advocacies on organic farming, sustainable agri-aqua development, a coal-free Negros, livelihood opportunities for the marginalized, and efforts at uniting Negrenses, indicated that he left a big shoe to fill not only for us, his children, but for all who will continue his legacy for the glory of God and for the greater good of all Negrosanons,” the mayor said.
Zubiri, in Senate Resolution No. 544 , called the late governor a visionary who changed Negros.
“His agricultural and environmental initiatives for the province were groundbreaking”, the resolution said.
“He was a brilliant governor, and he was really able to unite Negros, which was the key to the development of the province,” he added.
Minority Leader Franklin Drilon and senators Cynthia Villar, Sonny Angara, Joel Villanueva, Risa Hontiveros, Imee Marcos, Ramon Bong Revilla, Kiko Pangilinan, Richard Gordon, and Grace Poe also shared fond remembrances and admiration for the former governor, as they manifested their support for the resolution.
All senators were made co-authors of the resolution.*
