Albert del Rosario —INQUIRER FILE PHOTO/LYN RILLON
MANILA, Philippines — The remains of former Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario arrived in the country from the United States on Saturday, according to his family who also disclosed the cause of his death.
“Following an investigation by the coroner’s office in San Mateo, California, it was determined that the causes of death of Ambassador Del Rosario were cardiac insufficiency, congestive heart failure, and cardiomyopathy. He had suffered a massive heart attack. He died in the arms of his wife of more than 60 years, Gretchen,” a statement issued by his daughter, Dr. Inge del Rosario, said.
The wake will be open to the public on Sunday and Monday at Santuario de San Antonio in Forbes Park, Makati City, it added.
The veteran diplomat died on April 18 at the age of 83.
“He was a devotee of the rosary and sought to pray for better health as he believed he continued to have a mission to fulfill for his country. He had suffered over the past 20 years from various ailments and had had numerous back and knee surgeries…Till the final week before his death, he continued to go to his office in Makati seven days a week, including Sundays and holidays,” Inge said of her father.
China critic
She recalled that the elder Del Rosario, also a former ambassador to the United States, planned to go to California on short notice as part of his private devotion to Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal.
Del Rosario served as foreign affairs secretary during the Aquino administration before stepping down on March 2016 due to health reasons.
Peers in the government and private sector mourning his passing remember his role in pursuing two legal cases against China’s expansionism in the South China Sea that encroached on Philippine territorial waters, including the 2013 case at an international arbitration court that invalidated Beijing’s “nine-dash” claim.