Nene Pimentel, Freedom Fighter, Father Of Local Government Code

Mindanao is mourning yet another statesman and politician who staunchly represented the region and its people’s interests in national government.

Former Senate president Aquilino “Nene” Pimentel Jr. died early morning yesterday less than a week after being confined in the intensive care unit of a hospital due to complications from lymphoma. He was 85.

“Our beloved Tatay Nene has joined his Creator at 5 a.m. today October 20, 2019,” his son, Sen. Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III, said. “We thank all those who have been a part of his life. We ask for prayers for the repose of Tatay Nene’s soul. Thank you to all.”

Pimentel was taken to an undisclosed hospital in Metro Manila on Oct. 14. Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) spokesperson Ron Munsayac first disclosed Pimentel’s condition through a Twitter post.

Staunch and vocal constitutionalist

Born on Dec. 11, 1933 in Claveria, Misamis Oriental to a political family from Cagayan de Oro City, Pimentel first rose to prominence after he was elected as Misamis Oriental’s delegate to the 1971 Constitutional Convention (ConCon).

The convention was held to draft a new charter to replace the 1935 Constitution, which had been in place since the American colonial period.

In Augusto Caesar Espiritu’s 1993 book How democracy was lost: A political diary of the Constitutional Convention of 1971-1972, Pimentel was described as one of the vocal critics of then president Ferdinand Marcos’ efforts to influence the convention to draft a charter that would grant him absolute power and a term extension.

With Marcos’ imposition of martial law on Sept. 21, 1972, the convention was interrupted. In early 1973, Pimentel was among the ConCon delegates arrested by the dictatorship and spent three months in detention at Camp Crame.

He was released just when the ConCon unanimously approved the 1972 Constitution, which at the time was already drafted to suit Marcos’ political agenda. Pimentel, along with a few other delegates, refused to sign the charter.

In 2018, Pimentel lent his legal prowess again to revising the Constitution when he was appointed by President Duterte as vice chairman of the consultative committee (ConCom) tasked to review the 1987 Constitution.

A fervent advocate of federalism, Pimentel crafted several provisions in the draft charter that promoted further decentralization and devolution of powers while strengthening local government independence in managing their resources and affairs.

Duterte received the ConCom’s draft constitution but Congress largely ignored it. The House of Representatives drafted its own version while the Senate stood firm in opposing changes that would effectively abolish the chamber.

“(Nene) Pimentel was not just a public servant. He was, above all, a steadfast advocate of true reforms and real change, a defender of the rights of all, a man of humility, honesty and integrity, a constitutionalist and a great Filipino and patriot,” former chief justice Reynato Puno, chairman of the ConCom, said.

“The Filipino nation will forever be grateful to Pimentel for his unselfish service and great sacrifice. He will surely be missed, but his legacy will live on and continue to inspire Filipinos in seeking and aspiring for a better nation for themselves and their children,” Puno added.

Vanguard of democracy

A true believer in democracy, Pimentel was jailed a second time in 1978 after he led a street demonstration to protest the results of the Interim Batasang Pambansa elections.

Pimentel ran in the election under the banner of the Lakas ng Bayan (Laban) party, which he founded together with jailed opposition leader and former senator Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr. However, candidates from Marcos’ Kilusang Bagong Lipunan (KBL) party swept the elections through reported massive vote buying, ballot switching and voter disenfranchisement tactics.

Pimentel was jailed for two months at Camp Bicutan in Taguig.

When he ran and won as mayor of Cagayan de Oro City in 1980, the Marcos regime ousted him from office by installing a KBL candidate as mayor and accusing him of “political turncoatism.” The charges stemmed from Pimentel’s transfer from the Laban party to the National Union for Democracy and Freedom and later, to the Mindanao Alliance party.

Pimentel’s supporters rallied across the city to protest his removal. More than 100,000 Pimentel supporters showed “people power” in Cagayan de Oro six years before the 1986 EDSA people power revolt that toppled Marcos from power. Marcos was forced to reinstate Pimentel to diffuse the tension in Cagayan de Oro and while Pimentel filed a petition in the Supreme Court against his ouster.

Following Pimentel’s death, Cagayan de Oro City Mayor Oscar Moreno conveyed his respects to his friend and supporter.

“We are all saddened by the news of Nene’s passing. Fervently praying that God will grant his soul eternal rest and peace. The people of Cagayan de Oro and Misamis Oriental would be especially honored to pay our last respects and to give tribute to (him) here in (Cagayan de Oro), as I am sure that our neighbors here in Mindanao would also join us,” Moreno said.

Interior and local government secretary

After Marcos’ ouster and the rise to power of Aquino’s widow Corazon Aquino following the 1986 revolt, Pimentel was appointed interior and local government secretary.

During his short stint, he helped the administration garner support in the countryside by recommending to Aquino the appointment to local government positions of several local leaders who were seen as receptive to the administration’s reform agenda. It also aimed to ensure that the countryside would be well represented in the highest corners of government. Among the local leaders was a young city prosecutor, Rodrigo Duterte, who was appointed mayor of Davao City.

Duterte’s appointment as mayor put him on the path to the presidency. With Pimentel’s death, Malacanang conveyed its gratitude to the former Mindanao statesman.

“Our people thank former senator Pimentel for his long, fearless and principled track record of public service. He would forever be etched in our history as a giant among his peers who championed democracy and electoral reform and a visionary who espoused devolution of powers and strong local governance,” Chief Presidential Legal Counsel and presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo said.

“We mourn the passing of a champion of democracy and human rights, but we should also be comforted with the thought that Manong Nene’s accomplishments as a public servant will continue to guide and inspire us and the many generations to come,” Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said.

Principled legislator

Pimentel began his Senate career in 1987 after running and winning as part of the Laban senatorial slate in the 1987 elections.

During his first term as senator, he authored several key pieces of legislation, among them the Local Government Code of 1991, the Cooperative Code, the Philippine Sports Commission Act, the law creating the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, and the People’s Small-Scale Mining Act.

He also authored and co-sponsored the Generic Drugs Act and the law that established the Philippine National Police under a reorganized Department of the Interior and Local Government.

When Corazon Aquino’s government asked the Senate to ratify the Philippines-US Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Peace, which aimed to extend America’s lease of military and naval bases in the country, Pimentel was among the so-called Magnificent 12 that voted against its ratification. It led to the departure of American forces from the country after almost a century.

In 1992, Pimentel made a failed bid for the vice presidency, as the running mate of Liberal-PDP Laban coalition candidate Jovito Salonga. Pimentel returned to the Senate in 1998 under the Laban ng Makabayang Masang Pilipino coalition that supported Joseph Estrada for president.

Despite his support for Estrada, Pimentel, as Senate president in 2000, presided over Estrada’s impeachment trial and voted in favor of opening the second envelope that allegedly contained information on Estrada’s secret bank accounts.

When the impeachment court rejected the opening of the envelope, several senators walked out, triggering the second people power revolt in January 2001 that ousted Estrada. The Supreme Court later affirmed his ouster under the principle of “constructive resignation.”

During his second term as senator, Pimentel also chaired the powerful Blue Ribbon committee and investigated a number of political scandals, including the “jueteng-gate” controversy that led to Estrada’s impeachment trial.

When news of his death broke, several of his colleagues in the Senate paid their respects to Pimentel.

“My six years with him from 1998 to 2004 were very educational for me not only in politics but also in family matters. My family and I loved him!” Senate President Vicente Sotto III said.

“Today, our country has lost a true patriot, a freedom fighter, and a champion of democracy, human rights and local governance,” Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon declared in a statement.

“I lost not just a colleague with whom I shared nine colorful years in the Senate, but a true friend whom I respect and admire for his service to the nation and our countrymen. I consider it an honor and a distinct privilege to have been succeeded by Ka Nene as Senate president in 2000,” Drilon said.

“Ka Nene fought for our country with honor and pride. His name will forever be remembered in the halls of Congress and by our grateful nation,” he added. “I offer my profound sympathy and condolences to the Pimentel family. Ka Nene is indeed a great loss to our nation. Rest now, Ka Nene.”

Fellow Mindanao Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri, for his part, said, “I am very sad for the loss of a great Filipino statesman who fought and risked his life for the many advocacies that he believed in. I’m honored to have had the opportunity to work with him in the 14th Congress and even if we had some differences then, he still treated me professionally and mentored me on the issues of human rights and above all the rule of law.”

In August 2011, Zubiri had stepped down as senator, a week before the Senate Electoral Tribunal proclaimed Pimentel’s son Aquilino III as the duly elected 12th winner in the 2007 Senate race. The SET decision would have unseated Zubiri.