Aquiles Z. Zonio
Aquiles Z. Zonio, the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s correspondent in General Santos City, succumbed to the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on Monday night. He was 55.
In a social media post, his close friend, Senior Citizens Commissioner Edwin Espejo, said Zonio “breathed his last shortly before midnight Monday … after a long bout with lymphoma cancer.”
His United States-based sister Amie posted at 2 a.m. on Tuesday about Zonio’s passing: “You fought hard to stay alive, our dear brother. You beat cancer but the damn virus got you.”
In an earlier post, Amie said a doctor had “told us to prepare.”
“His body is not taking any medication anymore, that’s why his situation is getting worse. He has lymphoma and so his immune system is down to fight this virus,” Amie added.
“No more pain, no more worry, dear Aquil. We love you sooo much and we will miss you. It hurts so bad to think that we will not hear your jokes, your plan for your kids, your stories about your passion and your stories of your travel around the world with the great Manny Pacquiao,” Amie wrote.
Media career
General Santos City-based activist and writer Ben Sumog-oy remembers Zonio for his reportage on the plight of workers and labor issues related to the tuna fishing industry, a major income earner for the city.
Sumog-oy said Zonio’s reports “created a stir in the fishing industry of General Santos City, shaking the foundation of the feudal character of labor relations in this same fishing industry.”
Zonio began his career in journalism through radio while working for a degree in political science at the Mindanao State University in General Santos City. He then moved to print, writing for local papers, such as Sun.
Star, Gensan Today and later The Mindanao Bulletin. He also wrote for philboxing.com, The Brunei Times, The Edge Davao and Agence France-Presse.
He began to write for the Inquirer, under its Mindanao Bureau, in 1996.
Following his gut feel, Zonio, along with a handful others, narrowly missed the tragic fate that befell 32 colleagues who were killed in the Maguindanao massacre on Nov. 23, 2009.
Health buff
Colleagues could not miss the health buff in Zonio. The stocky, muscular man who preferred to drink milk than soda did not tire to lecture colleagues about the importance of a healthy lifestyle given the extremely stressful life of a journalist.
“Your body is your temple, nourish it well, live healthy,” was his usual reminder in gatherings, shooing away colleagues who smoke. At meal time, he made sure his food would fit into his desired calorie intake.
In 2015, Zonio joined the communications team of Pacquiao, and went on to serve in his Senate office.
Early this year, he went home to General Santos City and returned to writing for the Inquirer while undergoing chemotherapy sessions.