Beginning in 1988, Robredo served six terms as Mayor of Naga in Camarines Sur.[4] In recognition of his achievements as Naga mayor, Robredo was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Government Service in 2000, the first Filipino mayor so honored. He was appointed to the Cabinet of President Aquino in July 2010.[3]
Jesse Manalastas Robredo was born on May 27, 1958, in Naga to José Chan Robredo Sr. and Marcelina Manalastas-Robredo. Jesse is of Chinese descent through his paternal grandfather, Lim Pay Co, who immigrated to the Philippines from Fujian province at the beginning of the 20th century and adopted the surname of the priest who baptized him, thus becoming Juan Lim Robredo.[12] Jesse's Hokkien Chinese name is Lim Pieng Ti.[13] He has one brother and three sisters.
In 1986, Robredo returned to Naga, where he became program director of the Bicol River Basin Development Program (BRBDP), an agency tasked to undertake integrated area development planning in the three provinces of the Bicol region. While working at the BRBDP, he met fellow Nagueño Leni Gerona, whom he would marry the following year.[16][17]
In 1988, Robredo was elected mayor of Naga at age 29.[18] In 1995, Robredo was elected president of the League of Cities of the Philippines and chaired the Metro Naga Development Council."[14] His three terms as mayor ended on June 30, 1998, and was succeeded by Robredo's endorsed candidate Sulpicio S. Roco, Jr.[19][20] In 1999, Asiaweek Magazine credited Robredo with transforming Naga into one of the "Most Improved" cities in Asia.[21]
He re-elected as city mayor in 2001 and again served for three consecutive terms until June 30, 2010.[19] He served for a total of 19 years as mayor of Naga before being appointed as secretary of the Department of the Interior and Local Government on July 9, 2010.[3]
Robredo's appointment was met with political opposition. Two politicians from Bicol, Luis Agregado Ortega and Luis Villafuerte, expressed opposition to Robredo's confirmation by the Commission on Appointments of which Villafuerte himself was a member.[22] In March 2012, the Commission on Appointments bypassed Robredo's nomination.[23] His nomination was bypassed again in June 2012.[24] Another confirmation hearing had reportedly been set on August 29, 2012, eleven days after Robredo's sudden death.[25]
During his time as the secretary of DILG, Robredo focused on relocating thousands of residents in Manila's slums into housing projects to clear Metro Manila's waterways and make way for flood mitigation projects and other development.[26] As head of an inter-agency body for relocation, Robredo pushed for the building of in-city tenement housing units for thousands of informal settler families living in identified "danger zones" such as estuaries, riverbanks, waterways, railroad tracks, garbage dumps and similar areas.[27][28] These contrasted with earlier government housing efforts, which relocated informal settlers to areas away from the city which deprived residents from their usual livelihoods.[29]
Robredo's opposition to forced evictions were met with resistance from some local government officials, notably Makati mayor Junjun Binay, who argued that such arrangements broke long-standing agreements with private land owners and undermined the city government's authority.[30][29][31]
Robredo on a 2013 stamp of the PhilippinesMuseo ni Jesse Robredo, a museum dedicated to Robredo
Robredo died on August 18, 2012, when the Piper PA-34 Seneca light aircraft he was traveling in crashed off the coast of Masbate Island. He was flying to Naga to assist in his daughter's swimming competition. The plane suffered an engine failure en route from Cebu City, and was attempting an emergency landing at Masbate Airport.[5] Robredo's aide, Police Chief Inspector June Paolo Abrazado, was also on board but survived. Robredo's body was found on August 21, 800 meters (2,600 feet) from the shore and 54 meters (177 feet) below sea level.[32]
His funeral was held at the Archbishop's Palace in Naga before it was transferred to Malacañang Palace for an official wake on August 24, 2012. His remains were later brought back to his hometown of Naga and cremated at Naga Imperial Crematory and Columbary. Robredo's ashes are entombed at the Eternal Gardens Memorial Park in Naga.[33][34]
Following Robredo's death, August 18 was declared "Jesse Robredo Day".[35] President Benigno Aquino III conferred the Philippine Legion of Honor with the rank of Chief Commander upon Robredo on August 28, 2012, just before the state funeral.[36][37] In addition, two roads were named in his honor, Sec. Jesse Robredo Avenue in Naga and Jesse M. Robredo Boulevard in Masbate City. The Naga City Coliseum was renamed into the Jesse Robredo Coliseum, and the Naga City Governance Institute to the Jesse M. Robredo Good Governance Center.[38][39] In 2016, a major diversion road in Koronadal City was named as J.M. Robredo Avenue that was witnessed by his daughter, Tricia.[40] In 2017, the Museo ni Jesse Robredo opened in commemoration of his fifth death anniversary.[41]
His alma mater, De La Salle University, renamed the La Salle Institute of Governance into the Jesse M. Robredo Institute of Governance.[42]
^Burgonio, Marlon Ramos; Tarra Quismundo, TJ (August 15, 2012). "'100,000 slum folk must go'". INQUIRER.net. Archived from the original on February 7, 2022. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
^ abMurphy, Denis (August 26, 2012). "Imitating Jesse Robredo". INQUIRER.net. Archived from the original on February 7, 2022. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
^"Our Institute - DLSU-JRIG". De La Salle University Jesse M. Robredo Institute of Governance. Archived from the original on April 19, 2020. Retrieved August 30, 2020.
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