EVEN while battling her breast cancer, Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) Maria Susana “Toots” V. Ople continued to press on with her passion of improving the welfare of overseas Filipino workers (OFW).
This was revealed by daughter, Estelle Ople-Osorio, in Monday’s necrological service held for her at the Kalayaan Hall in Malacañang, led by no less than President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr., who called his Cabinet secretary “irreplaceable.”
Osorio noted her mom was still sick when she decided to accept the appointment to lead the DMW just last year.
“What she really wanted was to have more opportunities to serve, to make an impact and to follow in the footsteps of my grandfather, the late Blas F. Ople,” Osorio said.
“So it is with gratitude that I thank you. That you saw beyond her illness and you saw through her heart that she really wanted to help your administration be the best that it could be,” she told the president.
Despite undergoing surgery and treatment for her breast cancer, Ople’s health continued to deteriorate, which prompted her to start planning for her eventual departure from DMW.
“She told us that she wanted to serve you at least until December. She said if she is given the time by the Lord, she feels it will be enough to set the groundwork for the Department of Migrant Workers so that whoever will succeed her will not have a hard time and that it is an institution that my grandfather built as well,” Osorio said.
She noted her mother was planning to return to work this week to push through with her plans, which includes setting up a cancer fund for OFWs.
Sadly, Ople passed away at the age of 61 on August, 22, 2023 after she went on a “wellness leave” last month following the deaths – within five days — of her two elder brothers.
“We hope her last wishes for the department might be continued,” Osorio said.
Irreplaceable
In his speech during the necrological service, the teary-eyed president fondly remembered Ople both as a good friend and as a Cabinet member.
He said he got to meet the late DMW head, when she was running for senator in 2010. They became friends after that and coordinated on OFW-related matters.
The chief executive pointed out he admired Ople’s professionalism, pragmatism, and initiative in her work.
“I noticed that since she was appointed at the Department of Migrant Workers, if I looked for her like when they was a problem in Kuwait, [they will say], sir, she is already there. She already went ahead even before I could have instructed her,” Marcos said.
“I know that this all came from her heart, this all came from the compassion and the passion that she brought to her work. And this, as I said, is a rare quality, a rare combination,” he added.
Ople’s death, he said, has left a “big gap” in his Cabinet and that he is unlikely to find anyone to fully replace her. “We will try to find someone, who may be as good as her, but let us not expect we will replace Toots,” Marcos said.
He vowed to continue the lifetime advocacy of Ople of improving the lives of OFWs during his administration to honor her memory.
NGO work
Prior to leading the DMW, Ople was already known as a staunch advocate of OFW rights through her Blas F. Ople Policy Center (BOPC), which she founded.
“That is a very high standard that Toots set for the rest of us. So let us not let her down. I hope I never let her down when she was alive,” the chief executive told members of his Cabinet who attended the necrological service.
From the Kalayaan hall, the remains of Ople were transferred to the DMW head office at the Blas F. Ople Bldg. in Mandaluyong City for public viewing.
A requiem mass led by Fr. Jerry Orbos will be held at the DMW office on Tuesday morning, before the public gets the last chance to pay their respects from 10 am to 1 pm.
He remains will then be brought back to the Heritage Memorial Park in Taguig City for cremation and inurnment.
Cancer couldn’t separate Toots from work; PBBM says she’s irreplaceable
Source: News Paper Radio
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