Legarda on Letty Magsanoc: Esteemed Journalist, Exemplary Editor, Sincere Friend

Senator Loren Legarda expressed her condolences to the family of Letty Jimenez-Magsanoc, who passed away on December 24, saying that her passing “leaves a void and tugs at the heart.”

“Letty’s work ethic is remarkable and her nose for news is a gift. She had the gravitas not many people have. Sometimes she is also childlike,” said Legarda of the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s longest-serving editor-in-chief.

She added that Magsanoc was known for her commitment to democracy, which was her greatest weapon in leading the Inquirer for 24 years.

Magsanoc has received various recognitions for her work as a journalist and editor. She was one of “The Stars of Asia”, awarded by BusinessWeek international magazine in 2000 to 50 Asians for leading change in the world’s largest continent. In 2006, she was named among Asia’s heroes of the last 60 years by Time magazine.

The Rotary Club of Manila named her as its Marcelo H. Del Pilar Journalism Awardee for Print in 2000 and Journalist of the Year last June 2015.

Legarda said that Magsanoc was not just an exemplary editor and esteemed journalist but also “a sincere, caring friend. I sincerely believe that she loved me and cared for me. She had a soft spot for me and I felt it.”

She also thanked Magsanoc for supporting her advocacies on environmental protection, climate change adaptation, and heritage preservation, among others.

“Letty appreciated my work on climate change and always tried to have it covered and land on front page because she knew the importance of the issue. She even made me write and this was both an honor and pressure for me,” said Legarda, who wrote for the Inquirer several articles on climate and disaster resilience.

“We were not prepared for Letty’s passing. She leaves a void. My deepest condolences to the family of Letty Jimenez-Magsanoc. May her soul rest in peace.”