Legarda files 2nd resolution to honor LJM

A second Senate resolution has been filed to honor the late Inquirer editor in chief Letty Jimenez-Magsanoc, who was described as the “unfailing compass” in the newspaper she served for 24 years.

Following the lead of Senate President Franklin Drilon, Sen. Loren Legarda filed a resolution dedicated to Magsanoc, who died on Christmas Eve.

“(Magsanoc’s) legacy shall live on through the countless individuals she has inspired in all her years of service to the nation through her unquestioned dedication to journalistic excellence and commitment to truth,” the senator said in her two-page resolution.

Lifelong service

Legarda’s Senate Resolution No. 1702 lauded Magsanoc “for her lifelong service to the nation through her fidelity to journalistic excellence and integrity.”

The senator quoted former President Fidel V. Ramos, who described Magsanoc as the “icon of the Edsa People Power Revolution” owing to her contribution to the restoration and preservation of democracy.

Chronicling Magsanoc’s journalism career, Legarda noted how the veteran journalist stood up against the Marcos dictatorship, from the time she wrote an article in Panorama magazine critical of the Marcos regime until she became editor of the weekly magazine Mr. & Ms. Special Edition after the assassination of Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr.

Fight for democracy

The magazine, she said, “dealt on the fight for democracy and reported on demonstrations against the abuses of the period.”

The senator listed Magsanoc’s various awards and distinctions, among them: the Honor of Medal for Distinguished Service in Journalism at the University of Missouri in 1993; a citation by the international magazine Businessweek as one of the 50 Asians at the forefront of change dubbed the “The Stars of Asia”; the Marcelo H. del Pilar Journalism Award for Print given by the Rotary Club of Manila in July 2000; the inclusion as one of Asia’s heroes of the past six decades by Time Magazine together with the Inquirer’s founding chair Eggie Duran-Apostol; and as Rotary Club of Manila’s Journalist of the Year in June 2015.

 ‘Unfailing compass’

Legarda also noted Magsanoc’s role of taking over the helm of the Inquirer, “that would credibly practice its motto of ‘balanced news, fearless views.’”

“Serving as its editor in chief from June 1991 until her passing on Dec. 24, 2015, she was considered the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s ‘unfailing compass’ in an institution she served for more than 24 years, making her the first woman and the longest-serving editor in chief of one of the country’s leading newspapers,” Legarda said.