“His heart was truly for the countryside and the rural poor and (he) was an energetic champion for inclusive development long before that phrase became part of our vocabularies”.
That was how Dr. Cielito Habito, National Economic and Development Authority director general during the administration of President Fidel V. Ramos, described former Negros Occidental governor Daniel “Bitay” Lacson Jr. who passed away on Sept. 6.
Habito said he has fond memories of working with Lacson during the Ramos Cabinet days.
“I worked closely with Bitay when he was FVR’s Presidential Assistant for Countryside Development,” he said.
“His passion and energy were hard to match. Truly a great, yet so humble and unassuming man,” Habito said.
Ramon del Rosario, secretary of finance during the Ramos administration, said Lacson was “a highly professional, honest and competent public servant and a good man”.
Former representative Genaro Alvarez spoke of how he sought Lacson’s help for many public school teachers drowning in debt, which meant their monthly take home pay was only about P3,000.
He said Lacson who was the Government Service Insurance System chairman, acted on his concern that resulted in larger take home pays for teachers not only in the 6th District of Negros Occidental, but in the entire country.
This was because the GSIS addressed the teacher’s debt problem, he said.
Alvarez called Daniel Lacson the best governor of Negros Occidental.
At a memorial mass for the former governor at the Carmelite Monastery on Wednesday, Sept. 11, his daughter Teepee thanked all those who shared “beautiful stories about our Dad over the past few days. It’s a touching reminder that, in the end, it’s the time we spend and the little acts of kindness we give to others that truly matter”.
“Our hearts are truly touched seeing him honored for the love and devotion he poured into the country, especially for the people of Negros…May his life continue to inspire us all to be a blessing to one another,” she said.
“His life was lived with integrity, compassion, generosity, and quiet strength. A man without faith might have given up or given in to the temptations of power, but because he believed his life was an offering to God, he remained a good and faithful steward until the end,” she added.*