MALACAÑANG on Thursday welcomed the planned conferment of Quezon Service Cross on late senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago for her exemplary contribution to the country as a public servant.
"The Office of the President welcomes moves to confer the late senator Miriam Defensor Santiago the Quezon Service Cross," Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella said.
Santiago, the "Iron Lady of Asia," died on September 29, 2016, two years after she was diagnosed of lung cancer. She was 71.
"The late senator's contribution to the country is beyond question. The President highly respects the lady. We look forward to receiving the resolution of the Senate," Abella said.
Santiago ran in the May 2016 presidential elections but she lost to then Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte who won by a wide margin over her and three other contenders.
During the presidential campaign, Santiago earned Duterte's respect and admiration for her sterling contribution to the Philippine politics.
On Wednesday, the Senate adopted Senate Resolution 508 introduced by Senator Grace Poe, calling on Duterte to nominate Santiago for the Quezon Service Cross.
Quezon Service Cross was created through Joint Resolution 4 issued in 1946, which was granted to a person "for exemplary service to the nation in memory of the late President Manuel L. Quezon."
The award has so far been awarded to former president Carlos Romulo (April 1951), former president Emilio Aguinaldo (June 1956), former president Ramon Magsaysay (July 1957), former senator Benigno Aquino Jr. (August 2004), and former Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo (November 2012).
Poe, in her resolution, said Santiago deserved the conferment of the award as she dedicated her life to public service for 46 years through her work in all three branches of government – executive, judicial, and legislative.
"Santiago's crusade against the culture of corruption, steadfastness on the rule of law, and determination to hold public officials to a higher standard, reverberate across generations," she said.
"Bestowing upon Santiago the Quezon Service Cross will ensure that her legacy of dedicated, outstanding, and selfless public service will endure for Filipinos to emulate," she added.
Santiago spent her 46-year career in government service as a presiding judge of the Quezon City Regional Trial Court, Immigration Commissioner, Agrarian Reform Secretary, and senator for three terms.
She also brought pride and honor to the country in 2013 when she became the first Filipino and first Asian from a developing country to be elected as Judge of the Hague-based International Criminal Court. (VoxPop Philippines)
