Liloan vice mayor dies of colon cancer

GOVERNMENT officials and party mates mourned  the death of Vice Mayor Merelito Surita of Liloan town, northeastern Cebu,  last Monday.

Surita, who succumbed to colon cancer at the age of 57, was a “big loss” to Liloan town and the Barug Alang sa Kauswagan ug Demokrasya (Bakud) party, said Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale.

The vice governor, a member of Bakud,  yesterday went to Liloan to visit Surita’s wake.

She said  Surita was a  hardworking and  committed public servant of  “unquestionable integrity.”

“He never lost an election since the time  he ran for barangay captain until he was elected vice mayor,” she said.

Under the law, Surita will be succeeded by Liloan’s first councilor, Lucelito Pilapil.

Surita served as barangay captain of Catarman for several years and was  president of the Association of Barangay Councils of Liloan. He sat as ex-officio member of the Municipal Council.

He was vice mayor from 2004 to 2007 during the incumbency of mayor Maria Sevilla, grandaunt of Mayor Vincent Franco “Duke” Frasco.

Mayor Frasco said he worked well with Surita though they belonged to different parties.

“Although we were in different local parties in the 2010 elections, we became one in serving our municipality and our constituents,” he said.

“Before we even started our term, we had already agreed that we would work together as a team.”

Frasco told CDN that he often visited Surita—a good friend of his father—while he was confined in the hospital.

“Even in his deathbed when I visited him last, he promised me he would do what he could do to help me in my administration and in serving the people of Liloan,” Frasco said.

“He was hoping that he would recover and get better from his illness. Little did he know that these last few days were his last.

“Just to show the spirit he had in wanting to live, he even mentioned to me that we would go together in the 2013 elections, so I don’t think he wanted to go yet,” Frasco said.