Jesse Robredo remembered—with affection

When Jesse Robredo’s plane crashed into the sea off Masbate in August two years ago, we saw a surge of genuine sorrow in the country from all types of people, from the urban poor to people like Archbishop Leonardo Legaspi, OP, who was archbishop of Naga all the years that Jesse was mayor of that city. In the words of Angel Ojastro, a close associate of Jesse, Legaspi “mourned for Jesse as a father for his son.” President Aquino spent days in the crash area, realizing perhaps that he had lost one of the most dedicated members of his team—maybe, the most dedicated. Jesse is still remembered fondly.

Why such sorrow? He was a great success as mayor of Naga for three terms—he doubled the city’s GDP and refashioned the city’s legislative offices to give all sectors of the city’s population, including the poor, a voice in government, although he was not such a big success as interior and local government secretary—in our view, because he lacked the necessary political power and political support. He is therefore, mostly remembered outside Naga City not so much for what he accomplished as for the very respectful way he worked with people. He treated the rich and poor the same way, according to people who knew him. He is remembered also for his efforts to democratize power and influence in Philippine society.

He spent more time outside his office among the poor and in trouble spots than he did in his office. Traveling these past two years to different urban poor areas, I found out that Jesse had been there before me, sometimes several times. These include places not easy to get to, such as Barangay San Juan, Taytay, Rizal, which is located at the tip of the Manggahan Floodway. Bella dela Rosa, a leader in that place, tells visitors all about Jesse’s visit—how he arrived there, what he said about her creative dike and other matters, and how he spent time simply talking to people about their lives and problems. To understand a community’s problems well, an official should know their human context: Are these people willing to struggle? Do they have reliable leaders? What is their history? Are they realistic? Can you rely on them? Jesse was able to learn these important matters.

The new president-elect of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, has a similar practice. He said in an interview on TV this June that he spent 90 percent of his time as governor of Jakarta outside his office, checking to make sure his government was working well at all levels.

Plans proposed by those at top levels of the Philippine government are usually helpful; and at the other end of the cycle, the poor people are ready and able to use the help. But the bureaucratic “stretch” in between the top and the bottom is the problem; it is a near-impassable swamp that impedes, distorts and frustrates efforts to improve the lives of the poor. Bureaucrats there react to change like devils to holy water. A constant hands-on, close-up attention to the workings of this intermediate group will improve our development work. Jesse knew this. Ramon Magsaysay was famous for his barrio drop-in visits, which served the same purposes.

Jesse was tireless. If he couldn’t meet with a group or a person during the day, he would invite them to come to his office at 7 or 8 p.m. He could always fit for one more meeting.

My wife Alice was stopped by a traffic enforcer at 11 p.m. one night. The enforcer wanted P2,000 from her in lieu of a traffic violation ticket. Alice argued and then told the enforcer she would call Secretary Robredo. She had hoped that would scare the man, but he only smiled dismissively and asked for the money. She called Jesse’s number and he answered. She told him about the problem and he told her that her “crime,” a wrong turn, had a fine of only P150. He asked her to put the enforcer on the line. The enforcer wouldn’t take the phone and walked off. “Thank you, Jesse,” she said.

The poor could argue with Jesse and even raise their voices. He, too, could get angry and raise his voice. But they always parted as friends.

The concept of people’s plans flourished under Jesse. This was the very democratic and sensible idea borne out of the assumption that because the people know best what housing they need, they should be encouraged to plan their houses and communities with the help of architects and engineers. People’s plans blossomed everywhere. In many places, they gave rise to people’s belief they could change their future.

Jesse was a very talented person, but he was also a very holy one, even in the older classical sense. He was devoted to Our Lady of Peñafrancia, he confessed regularly and did all a good Catholic should do. He showed in his meetings with people deep compassion for their misfortune. Poor people felt he knew their problems and worked as hard as he could for them.

He had a social strategy which was worked out during his first term as mayor of Naga. He worked with the urban poor groups when they came to him for help. He had no special experience with the poor before this, but he found that the poor could be just as reliable a constituency as business federations or civil society bodies. He worked with them and attributed his success in Naga in large part to the bonds of respect he had with the poor. In the process, he helped create, as was mentioned above, a more prosperous and democratic Naga. That was his plan for the country.

He won many awards for innovative use of information technology and for good government. Most precious of all, he won the hearts of the poor.

Denis Murphy works with the Urban Poor Associates (urbanpoorassociates@ymail.com).