Former Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) secretary Corazon “Dinky” Juliano-Soliman, who had roots in Cauayan, Negros Occidental, passed away Sunday, September 19.
Soliman, who served as DSWD secretary under President Benigno Aquino III, was 68.
She had roots in Cauayan being related to the Juliano family, Rafael Coscolluela, former Negros Occidental governor, said.
“She was one of the most decent, hard-working and effective Cabinet secretaries…Dinky wasn’t flashy nor ambitious, just driven by her servant leader values and civil society organization involvement. We lost another good public servant today,” he said.
In August, Soliman, her husband Hector and thirteen other family members contracted COVID-19 and recovered. However, she succumbed to renal and heart failure on Sunday, and her death was confirmed by Vice President Leni Robredo.
“Sec. Dinky served as the head of DSWD during the Aquino administration. Under her tour of duty, the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program was expanded to reach millions of Filipinos more. She devoted her entire self to serving those who have less in life, believing that each one deserves to live with dignity and respect,” Robredo said.*