JESSE ROBREDO: Inquirer's 2012 Filipino of the Year

JESSE ROBREDO: Inquirer's 2012 Filipino of the Year

Source: Inquirer

Mayor Pogi is Inquirer's 2012 Filipino of the Year. The (PDI) Philippine Daily Inquirer annually honors a living Filipino who has made the most positive impact on the life of the nation. It is only the second time since the beginning of the Filipino of the Year series in 1991 that the Inquirer voted for a nonliving Filipino. The first one being Fernando Poe Jr. who died in December 2004 and was named that year.

Sec. Jesse Robredo deserves to be honored. Maybe not a lot of you has been given the chance to know him personally when he was still alive because he is a very simple man with a big heart in public service. He is not the type that grab headlines or waste people's money or talk about other people's trash. He is a man of action.

Jesse's tsinelas leadership inspires, lending a wealth of insight into the virtues of people-empowered governance and of unparalleled devotion to his constituents, spouse and children, parents and siblings. If only all the politicians in the Philippines will emulate Jesse's tsinelas leadership...

He is a very hands on mayor. A guest in Naga City recalls how he personally saw Pogi's tsinelas leadership:

"Let me share one experience I had with this man they call POGI. Jesse Robredo was walking in the city center when he noticed a drainage canal in front of the hotel where we are staying, he saw that it was clogged with trash,  without a second thought he cleaned it with his bare hands and and all the people around were shock to see the mayor cleaning a canal."- Binatang taga Bukid

The Inquirer editors and assistant editors voted Jesse Robredo the Filipino of the Year for 2012. Of 63 votes, Robredo received 17; Luis Cardinal Tagle, 11; and President Aquino, 8. The rest of the nominees were, in the order of number of votes received: Cris Valdez, Sen. Pia Cayetano, Rep. Edcel Lagman, Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago, government and MILF peace panels, Dolphy, Filipino women, Filipino Indie makers, Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile and Kevin Balot.