Cagayan de Oro mourns death of ex-mayor Reuben Canoy

Photo from Facebook Page of Reuben R. Canoy

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY—The flag is flown at half-staff at the city hall here following the death of former mayor Reuben R. Canoy on Tuesday night.

The city has been in mourning after Canoy’s family announced his passing on Wednesday. He was 93.

Canoy, a lawyer, served as Cagayan de Oro City mayor from 1971 to 1976. From 1978 to 1984, he was among nine—-and the lone from the ranks of the opposition—-to represent Northern Mindanao in the interim Batasang Pambansa, the unicameral legislature during Martial Law.

He also had a stint as Undersecretary of the Department of Public Information and Deputy Information Minister under then President Ferdinand Marcos Sr.

“We lost a leader, an intellectual giant, and a true federalist who inspired many generations of leaders including myself. Atty. Reuben Canoy has served Cagayan de Oro with so much pride and compassion for all,” said Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez.

“We thank him sincerely for the new brand of leadership he had introduced, and for being one of our inspiring role models,” said former mayor Oscar Moreno.

Public intellectual

Canoy is most remembered by many as a public intellectual, especially as a staunch advocate for federalism.

Rodriguez paid tribute to Canoy’s unstinting advocacy of Mindanao progress that has taken him to campaign for a shift to a federal form of government in the country in order to disperse its resources and development opportunities, along with the late Aquilino Pimentel Jr.

In 2018, Canoy joined the 21-member consultative commission to review the 1987 Constitution headed by former Supreme Court Chief Justice Reynato Puno. The body, which was formed by President Duterte and included Pimentel, also came up with a draft charter for a federal Philippines.

Canoy wrote the book The Quest for Mindanao Independence which details the disconnect between the national direction and the aspirations of the region’s peoples.

This was thought to have helped inspire the 1990 Mindanao uprising by then Col. Alexander Noble, which led the military to tag Canoy as among its brains.

His other books are Counterfeit Revolution, an account of the years from martial law in 1972 up to the assassination of former Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr. in 1983, which also provides insights into why Marcos Sr. rose to become a dictator, and The History of Mindanao.

Enduring legacy

But Canoy’s most enduring legacy is as a radio commentator for over 30 years. His canned program Perspective, which is set in Bisaya and aired over Radio Mindanao Network’s stations in the Visayas and Mindanao, tackles a wide range of topics that he patiently explains and simplifies to radio listeners.

His last episode on June 30, which was posted on his social media page, dealt with the subject of federalism and the mechanism for setting this into motion in the country.

Radio fans could not forget his opening spiel: “Ang lungsod nga nasayod maoy makahatag kusog sa demokrasya; apan ang lungsod nga mapasagaron maoy makapukan sa atong kagawasan. (A well-informed citizenry strengthens democracy, but a reckless one destroys our freedom.)”

“His daily radio commentary has become a rich and steady source of information on a wide variety of issues, and the foundation of the people’s collective wisdom,” said Moreno.

“In his heydays as in his waning years, Atty. Reuben Canoy’s persona and influence remain ubiquitous and felt among his many listeners. He may have gone to the Great Beyond, but his life and works continue to be a beacon of inspiration,” said mayor Rolando Uy.

Literary man

Unknown to many, Canoy was also engaged in filmmaking. The British Film Institute’s website listed him as the one who did the screenplay of The Passionate Strangers (1966) and The Mad Doctor of Blood Island (1969).

The Movie Database also listed him as producer and screenplay writer of the film Babae sa Likod ng Salamin (1976) which starred Charito Solis, Dindo Fernando, Alona Alegre and Perla Bautista, and screenplay writer of Sa Dulo ng Kris (1977) which starred Joseph Estrada and Vic Vargas.

Canoy’s literary mind, which was honed in the post-World War II years in Silliman University, was still sharp even in old age. In 2013, he won at the Genre Film Scriptwriting Competition organized by the Film Development Council of the Philippines for his script “The Unbelievers.”

During his days in Silliman when he became a prolific writer of poem and short stories, he was among those credited to have helped develop Negros’ literary scene, and was also cited as among the poets who contributed to Philippine Literature in English in the immediate post-war years.

He was editor of the university’s literary folio Sands and Coral from 1951 to 1953.

/MUF