Former Marikina Mayor Bayani Fernando | PHOTO: Wikipedia
MANILA, Philippines — Former Marikina Mayor Bayani Fernando has died, friends and former colleagues confirmed on Friday.
He was 77.
Marikina 2nd District Rep. Stella Quimbo sent her condolences to Fernando’s bereaved family and the whole city of Marikina.
She said the former local chief executive was the father of Marikina’s modern age.
“Taos-pusong pakikiramay sa pamilya Fernardo at buong bayan ng Marikina. Mananatili ang iyong legasiya sa Marikina nating mahal. Salamat BF, ang ama ng Modernong Marikina, sa iyong paglilingkod,” Quimbo said.
Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), which Fernando also headed during the Arroyo administration, conveyed its sympathies to the Fernando family.
“The [MMDA] is deeply saddened and shocked about the sudden demise of former Chairman Bayani F. Fernando, who served the Authority from June 5, 2002 until November 25, 2009,” MMDA said.
“A mechanical engineer by profession, Chairman Fernando used scientific and practical approaches in his quest to solve the problems of Metro Manila,” it emphasized.
“A man of few words, Fernando is known to be a workaholic and a disciplinarian among MMDA employees,” it concluded.
Fernando first became mayor of Marikina in 1992, overlooking the transformation of the locality from a municipality to a modern city.
His excellent performance, shown in his drive for discipline and orderliness, landed him the chairmanship of the MMDA in 2002.
The former Marikina mayor also ran in the 2010 national elections as vice presidential candidate to former Senator Richard Gordon but lost to former Makati mayor and former vice president Jejomar Binay.
APL/abc
READ: Ex-MMDA chair Fernando: Why push bicycles on EDSA?
READ: Ex-MMDA chair: ‘Build, Build, Build’ not totally a failure, but ‘kind of slow’