Jaime Nery Ferrer (October 14, 1916 – August 2, 1987) was a Filipino lawyer, guerrilla and politician who served as Secretary of Local Government from 1986 until his assassination in 1987. To date, he is the first and only member of the Cabinet of the Philippines to have been assassinated in office.[1]
Jaime N. Ferrer | |
|---|---|
| Secretary of Local Government | |
| In office December 8, 1986 – August 2, 1987 | |
| President | Corazon Aquino |
| Preceded by | Aquilino Pimentel Jr. |
| Succeeded by | Lito Monico Lorenzana (acting) |
| Member of the Regular Batasang Pambansa from Las Piñas–Parañaque | |
| In office July 23, 1984 – March 25, 1986 | |
| Chairman of the Commission on Elections | |
| In office June 10, 1969 – May 28, 1973 | |
| Appointed by | Ferdinand Marcos |
| Preceded by | Manuel Arranz |
| Succeeded by | Leonardo Perez |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 14, 1916 Parañaque, Rizal, Philippine Islands |
| Died | August 2, 1987 (aged 70) Parañaque, Philippines |
| Nationality | Filipino |
| Political party | PDP–Laban (1982–1987) |
| Other political affiliations | UNIDO (1984–1986) Laban (1978) Progressive (1957–1969) |
| Spouse | Eriberta Bernabe |
| Alma mater | Philippine Law School |
Early life
editJaime Ferrer was born on October 14, 1916, in San Dionisio, Parañaque. He finished law at the Philippine Law School. While studying, he began working in government in 1934 as a temporary clerk of the General Land Registration Office before moving to the Department of Justice.[2]
Wartime service
editAt the start of the Second World War, Ferrer married Eriberta Bernabe before joining his brother Juanito in the Hunters ROTC guerrilla unit. He led the unit's activities in Parañaque and later assumed jurisdiction over its activities in Cavite, Rizal, Laguna and parts of Tayabas. He also served as the group's Judge Advocate, trying errant guerrillas,[2] and attained the rank of colonel by the end of the war.[3]
Career
editAfter the war, Ferrer unsuccessfully ran for Congress before becoming member of the barrio council, a member of the Provincial Board of Rizal (of which Parañaque was then part of) and then Division Chief and subsequently Acting Chairman of the Philippine Veterans Board.[2]
In 1953, Ferrer organized the National Citizens' Movement for Free Elections (NAMFREL), which helped monitor the fair conduct of that year's presidential election which was won by Ramon Magsaysay, who later appointed him as Undersecretary of Agriculture and Natural Resources. Despite being a supporter of the Progressive Party in subsequent years, he was appointed Presidential Assistant for Political Affairs under Ferdinand Marcos,[2] who later appointed him to the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) as a commissioner and later chairman from 1969 to 1973.[4] Under his watch, the agency oversaw the conduct of the 1969 presidential election, the 1971 Senate election and the 1973 constitutional plebiscite. He later resigned from office due to his opposition to the way the latter exercise was conducted by show of hands rather than conventional voting following the declaration of martial law by Marcos.[2]
Ferrer became active in organizing opposition movements against the Marcos dictatorship, joining the Lakas ng Bayan party of Senator Benigno Aquino Jr., which later merged with the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino to form the PDP–Laban in 1982.[2] He was elected in the Regular Batasang Pambansa as an oppositionist Assemblyman representing the legislative district of Las Piñas–Parañaque,[5] serving until the dissolution of the body in 1986 following Marcos' fall in the EDSA Revolution. Ferrer joined the cabinet of President Corazon Aquino as Secretary of Local Government after his predecessor, PDP leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr. decided to run for the Senate in 1987. Aged 70, he was considered the oldest member of Aquino's cabinet.[3]
As a cabinet secretary, Ferrer was responsible for overseeing local government institutions across the country at a time when most of them were run by interim officials appointed by the Aquino government pending new elections. During his tenure, he removed 200 OICs for misconduct.[2] He also ordered local officials throughout the country to form unarmed vigilante groups called Nakasaka, whose full meaning translates from Filipino to People United for Peace. Unarmed Only in Theory,[6] and supported the activities of another vigilante group, the Alsa Masa,[7] in combating the Communist rebellion in the Philippines.
Assassination
edit
Ferrer was assassinated by a group of unidentified gunmen on August 3, 1987. He was shot four times in the head and four times in the neck and shoulders a few yards from his home in Parañaque while riding in his car with no bodyguards from mass at Saint Andrew Parish Church. His longtime driver, Zosimo Calderon, was also killed. The assassins exchanged fire with police and stole two vehicles in succession before escaping.[3][8][9] He received a state funeral[3] at Manila Memorial Park on August 8.[1]
While no one claimed responsibility for the assassination, speculation focused on the New People's Army, particularly after he was reportedly placed in one of their supposed hit lists a few months before his death.[8] Another subsequent claim was that the assassination was part of destabilization efforts by rightwing forces against the government of President Aquino.[10]
References
edit- ^ a b "Ferrer Buried; Soldier Killed". AP. August 8, 1987. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Ang 'Angry Bird' ng kaniyang panahon na si Jaime Ferrer". GMA News. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
- ^ a b c d "Philippine Cabinet official killed". UPI. August 3, 1987. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- ^ "History of the Commission on Elections". comeleclaw.tripod.com/. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
- ^ "ROSTER of Philippine Legislators (from 1907 to 2019)" (PDF). House of Representatives of the Philippines. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 June 2023. Retrieved 23 September 2022.
- ^ "RIGHT-WING VIGILANTES SPREADING IN PHILIPPINES". The New York Times. April 4, 1987. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- ^ "AQUINO ORDERS MILITIA, PRIVATE ARMIES DISBANDED". The Washington Post. March 17, 1987. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- ^ a b "Aquino Eulogizes Ferrer as More Death Threats Disclosed". AP. August 7, 1987. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
- ^ "PHILIPPINES MINISTER SHOT DEAD". The Washington Post. August 3, 1987. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- ^ "Two big unsolved Philippine murders". The Philippine Star. August 21, 2007. Retrieved 18 May 2023.