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BY MERIANNE GRACE EREÑETA
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ILOILO City – To some people, former senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago may have given the impression of being cross, even arrogant. But for those who knew her better, the fiery lawmaker had a soft side, too.
“She wasn’t not rude, she was just brutally frank,” the 86-year-old Liberty Palma Ledesma, Santiago’s aunt, told Panay News.
Santiago, a lawyer, was known for her acerbic tongue and mercurial temper.
“All she wanted was for you to get straight to the point. Indi niya gusto kutso-kutso,” said Ledesma, sister of Santiago’s mother, Dimpna Palma Defensor of Barangay Nabitasan, La Paz district.
Every time Santiago and husband Narciso visited the Defensor ancestral house in Barangay Nabitasan, Ledesma said her niece never missed checking her out.
The Defesor house was just across Ledesma’s.
“Miriam would peep through the fence and say, ‘Kamusta, Auntie?’” recalled Ledesma.
The senator would also ask her for some talaba (oyster) for Narciso, she revealed.
Ledesma said she learned of her niece’s death from lung cancer yesterday morning on television.
But she wasn’t sad, said Ledesma. She felt more relieved that her niece finally got to rest.
“All I could say was, ‘Take a rest. It was time for you to rest. You’ve done your part for this country,’” said Ledesma.
BRILLIANT MIND
Santiago, born on June 15, 1945, graduated valedictorian at La Paz Elementary School in 1957 and Iloilo Provincial High School (now Iloilo National High School) in 1969.
She graduated magna cum laude at the University of the Philippines where she took her bachelor’s degree in political science and law degree.
During her 20s, Santiago was the quiet type, said Ledesma.
“She also did not have a favorite food. All she wanted was sit on their staircase and read books,” she said. “She did not like to be bothered when reading her books.”
Santiago earned her Master of Laws (DeWitt Fellow) from the University of Michigan with “A” average in 1975 and the following year, her Doctor of Juridicial Science (Barbour Scholar and DeWitt Fellow) at the same university.
In 1996, she finished her Master of Arts in Religious Studies (without thesis) at Maryhill School of Theology in Quezon City.
Santiago also had a string of honorary degrees – Doctor of Humane Letter from the University of San Agustin in 1989; Doctor of Laws from Xavier University in Ateneo Cagayan de Oro in 1989; and Doctor of Laws from Centro Escolar University in 1989.
Santiago also attended a lot of international conferences and wrote books.
GOD’S WILL
According to Ledesma, the family never expected Santiago to become senator (1995 to 2001; 2004 to 2010; and 2010 to 2016).
“What we said was, if it’s God’s will, we’ll accept it,” she said.
In the recent presidential elections, Ledesma acknowledged that her niece’s health was a big challenge.
“But she was very positive and we really believed she would overcome her Stage 4 lung cancer. Every time we had a talk, I would jokingly tell her, ‘Kaya mo na. Dumugon mo lang na ang kanser,’” said Ledesma.
This year was the third time Santiago ran for president. She also ran in 1992 and 1998.
Ledesma had been taking care of the Defensor ancestral house in Barangay Nabitasan. Her sister Dimpna moved to Manila some two years ago.
Ledesma said their family has yet to talk if there’s any possibility for the senator’s remains to be brought here./PN
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