Late Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago's political was like no other, serving in all three branches of government. But while she failed three times in her quest to be president, she won the hearts of many, her brother said.
Santiago's brother, former Armed Forces Chief of Staff Benjamin Defensor on Friday said he had heard in many several occasions people remarking that if this were elections, she would have won as president.
"Pero sabi ko nga, it doesn’t matter because in an election, you win the votes but when they make comments like that, you see the reaction of the people, you win the love that is going to last," he said.
In 1992, Santiago lost to Fidel V. Ramos by less than one million votes. She later accused the former military general of cheating but her electoral protest was dismissed.
Defensor said, though they all believe Santiago won the elections, having topped the polls in Metro Manila and across all military camps in 1992, Miriam was not bitter. Instead, she took the same attitude as she did when she didn’t win in oratorical contests before.
“She would come home and she would sit in the room, and then come out and tell our father who was coaching her, ‘Let’s go to the next one. This is not the end of the world. Let’s go and fight another battle’,” recalled Defensor.
Santiago ran again in 1998, but lost to Joseph "Erap" Estrada. Then in 2015, she announced her third and last presidential bid despite being diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. She lost to Rodrigo Duterte.
Defensor meanwhile took time to thank "everybody for the support that you have given her," particularly the Lopez family.
He recalled, the Lopezes solely had the political and economic clout in the 50s and "were considered the political godfathers in Western Visayas—not only in the Western Visayas, but in many parts of the country."
Because of that, he said, not many people were close to them, but "in the 50s, there was one little girl who was allowed in the bedroom of the late Nanding Lopez," referring to former Vice-president Fernando Lopez Sr., who also hailed from Iloilo.
"She was the only girl outside of the family to go there and play because she was a small person and she was already good at so many things—best speller, best in math, winning so many little things in academics and extracurricular activities that she became a legend even before she was in high school," he said.
Defensor thanked the Lopez family because, up to this day, he said, they continue to support her.
"Alam mo naman ang mga Ilonggo, palangga nila ‘yang si Miriam (and you know Ilonggos, Miriam is their friend) because she was the pride of Iloilo before she was the pride of the Philippines, before she became the national treasure of the Philippines," he said.
Santiago quietly passed away on Thursday. She was 71.
Her honest service to our country will be remembered until the next generations.