Leaders of the House of Representatives on Thursday called for the posthumous conferment of the congressional medal of achievement to Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Jesse Robredo, who died in a plane crash last Saturday.

 

In House Resolution 2687, House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. and five other House leaders said Robredo should be recognized for his 24 years of “exceptional public service.”

 

“Robredo personified the rare qualities of integrity, ethical leadership and transparency in government service worthy of acclamation bestowed upon him by the Filipino people,” the resolution read.

 

The other authors of the resolution include Robredo’s fellow Liberal Party members: Deputy Speaker Lorenzo Tañada III, House Majority Leader Neptali Gonzales II, Cavite Rep. Joseph Emilio Abaya and Batanes Rep. Henedina Abad. House Minority Leader Danilo Suarez also authored the resolution.

 

Robredo, a recipient of the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Government Service, died in a plane crash off Masbate City last Saturday. The aircraft’s pilot, Jessup Bahinting, and his co-pilot Kshitiz Chand, also died in the incident.

 

Prior to his stint in the Cabinet, Robredo served as Naga City mayor from 1988 to 1998, and then from 2001 to 2010.

 

The congressmen likewise said that Robredo’s leadership in the DILG served as a “benchmark for other government agencies to emulate.”

 

The congressional medal of achievement is bestowed upon political, economic and cultural leaders “who have distinguished themselves through their life work and vision.”

 

A majority of House members must vote in favor of the resolution for it to be adopted.

 

On Wednesday, the Senate also adopted six resolutions honoring Robredo.

Jesse Robredo Awards for Local Good Governance
 
In a separate statement, Tañada also proposed the creation of what he called the “Jesse Robredo Awards for Local Good Governance” to honor “outstanding workers and programs in all aspects of local government service.”
 
“He set the standard in public service. It is now the template for the ages. It is up to us to make sure that the generations of civil servants will look up to it as the model to be followed,” Tañada said.
 
He said the awards could include recognition for the Best Tanod, Best Financially Managed Town and Best Local Government Unit Website.
 
“There are many Robredos on the ground. He can be the honest and hardworking traffic enforcer who does not leave his post come hell or high water, or the barrio doctor who still makes house calls in the dead of the night,” he said.
 
Quezon City Rep. Winnie Castelo, for his part, said the 30-storey DILG building currently being constructed in his district should be named after Robredo.
 
“The building shall serve as a tangible edifice that will remind officialdom and the Filipino people that there was once a public official who raised the quality of public service,” Castelo said in a separate statement. — DVM, GMA News