Multiawarded journalist Anselmo Roque dies at 80

Anselmo Roque

SCIENCE CITY OF MUÑOZ, Philippines — Multiawarded journalist and educator Anselmo Roque succumbed to a lingering illness on Monday, nine days after he turned 80 on April 21.

One of the longest-serving provincial writers of the Inquirer, Roque joined the paper in 1986 as its correspondent in Nueva Ecija province. He also served as an editorial consultant for several community papers in Central Luzon.

He was a former professor at Central Luzon State University (CLSU) and served as associate dean of the College of Education and director of the public relations office.

A recipient of more than 30 awards and recognition for writing, Roque belonged to the Hall of Fame of the Philippine Agricultural Journalists (PAJ), having won eight times as Agricultural Journalist of the Year in Filipino and English.

Last month, he received the lifetime achievement award from PAJ.

He won three times in the Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature in Essay and twice in the playwriting contest sponsored by the Cultural Center of the Philippines and the Diwa ng KKK playwriting and production contest.

While he did not have formal training in journalism (he said he learned it through self-study), Roque was coauthor of a series of articles that won third place in the 1991 Jaime Ongpin Memorial Awards for investigative reporting.

He authored four books, including on the history of the 112-year-old CLSU, and a collection of published agricultural articles.

As president of the Correspondents Association of Nueva Ecija, he headed the Media Forum, which was aired in several radio stations in the province.

Roque is survived by his wife, Corazon, a retired public school teacher; children Apollo Jose, Hiyasmin and Oliver Lee; and six grandchildren.

His remains lie at CLSU social hall here. —With a report from Armand Galang