The Senate on Wednesday, November 19 held a necrological service for Juan Ponce Enrile at the Upper Chamber’s plenary hall in honor of the former Senate president and to commemorate his legacy in Philippine politics.

Former Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile (MANILA BULLETIN)

Present at the necrological service is former President and incumbent Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Also present were Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III, Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” Lacson, Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri, and Senators Erwin Tulfo, Robin Padilla, Jinggoy Estrada, and Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito.

Senators Paolo “Bam” Aquino IV, Sherwin Gatchalian, Lito Lapid, and Mark Villar; former senator Richard Gordon and incumbent Makati City Mayor Nancy Binay also attended the service.

Enrile, who is also the chief presidential legal counsel, died at the age of 101 last November 13 after battling pneumonia.

The chamber earlier adopted Senate Resolution No. 176, taking into consideration Senate Resolution No. 177, honoring Enrile as “a dedicated public servant, a distinguished legislator, a lawyer with incomparable intelligence, a leader with a compassionate heart and a loving friend.”

In her eulogy, Arroyo said Enrile will go down in history as one of the awe-inspiring political figures of the time – truly a legend in his own lifetime. According to her, the sheer force of his intelligence, political skill and powerful presence made him one of the most enduring public servant of era.

“(He) was sometimes intimidating but always respected by friends and foes alike for his unsurpassed brilliance,” Arroyo said.

Sotto, for his part, said Enrile “was a force to reckon with, wherever it was that he inhabited, in the silence of his room, the logic of his choices, and later the public clamor.”

“I had the good fortune of being a senator myself when he was, and being the neophyte that I was in 1992, I easily gravitated around the wise and fatherly figure whom I fondly call Manong Johnny,” Sotto recalled.

“This day, we not only mourn but celebrate the life and accomplishments of Manong Johnny. He leaves behind a legacy that not only reverberates and echoes through the Senate walls but throughout our nation,” the Senate leader stressed.

Zubiri, for his part, said Enrile “remained so vital, so present, so relevant to the nation up to his last days.”

“And it was no stretch of the imagination to believe that he would outlive us all and be around forever. As a matter of fact, he probably was the oldest secretary ever to hold office. I think the Guinness Book of World Records should give him that distinction,” the Senate majority leader said.

Lacson, on the other hand, recalled how Enrile cared for his legislative staff and even the Senate employees.

In fact, when they both ran for the Senate in the May 2001 midterm elections, Enrile mentored him but he ended up winning the elections while his mentor lost.

“After the election, you asked me, sabi mo sa akin, ‘Ping, kunin mo ang aking legislative staff. Magagaling yan.’ (Absorb my legislative staff. They are very efficient). Of course I did. So in my first term as senator, my office was not built from scratch. It was built on trust. Twenty five (25) years later, they are still with me,” Lacson said.

“Manong Johnny did not simply pass through history. He walked alongside it, making sure that he stood at its center, witnessing every halt and turn, leaving a mark in every stride. But even in his many stories, no one can trivialize or exaggerate who JPE was - no historian, no colleague, no friend,” he also said.

Lacson said Enrile “was the sum of all our stories as a nation.”

“He was more than his career, which spanned seven or eight presidents. He was more than his many depictions as a hero or heel, friend or foe. He was more than his place in the annals of history: from being at the heights of power to the lowest caste. He was more than the river boy from Cagayan, the political powerhouse, a looming figure in our society,” he stressed.

‘Gusto ko, happy ka!’

Estrada, for his part, said he can only remember Enrile’s iconic campaign slogan: “Gusto ko, happy ka!”

For Estrada, Enrile is a simple man who enjoyed humble meals of fish and vegetables, which he jokingly described as the secret to his remarkable longevity.

“To most people, former Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile will be remembered as a central political figure who served under eight presidents across more than six decades—the steady presence in some of the nation’s most critical moments and political upheavals. But to me, Manong Johnny is and will always be nothing less than family. Words are not enough to describe the warmth and fatherly affection he showed me,” Estrada said.

Ejercito, meanwhile, said the former Senate leader is a natural mentor who generously shared wisdom to young people and new legislators.

“Enrile was a natural mentor, generously sharing his wisdom with young people, including new legislators like me,” Ejercito said.