The City of Bacolod is mourning the death of Councilor Elmer Sy, who had served as a member of the City Council for several terms until his demise due to an illness on Friday.
Top city officials, led Bacolodnons in paying tribute to Sy, 65, known for the tagline “less talk, more action”, being less vocal during the council sessions, in his about 15 years in public service.
In a statement on Friday night, Mayor Evelio Leonardia said the city “lost a dedicated public servant”.
“The city mourns his passing away, but his legacy of dedicated public service will always be remembered by this grateful city…Our people had elected him again and again because they saw his sincerity, dedication, and performance,” he added.
The mayor said he became friends with Sy way back in the ‘90s and was partly instrumental for the councilor’s political career.
“I was one of those who encouraged him to join politics because I saw as early as that his winnability and potentials. And, indeed, he has gone a very long way since then,” Leonardia said.
Sy was a businessman whose family owns one of the most popular supermarkets in the city.
Sy’s family has yet to announce the cause of death but he was known as a dialysis patient and had been confined at the Adventist Medical Center Bacolod when he died.
In his statement, Leonardia confirmed that Sy had contracted the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19), but did not say if Sy had already recovered or was still an active case.
“(W)e take note that Councilor Elmer was a Covid-19 victim and we should be reminded how dangerous our times are,” he said.
Lone District Rep. Greg Gasataya, a former colleague of Sy, said the late councilor will “always be remembered as a public servant who humbly advocated and fought for the welfare of Bacolodnons”.
“His legacy and good deeds will surely remain in the hearts of the people whom he served,” he added.
Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran said more than a colleague, Sy was “one of my closest buddies”.
“I knew how he passionately and selflessly served the City of Bacolod in his own ways. He was the epitome of less talk, more action,” he added.
Familiaran said Sy helped Bacolodnons through blood donation drives, college scholarships, water supply distribution to several barangays through the Sy Boon Pit Foundation.
Source: Philippines News Agency
