MANILA, Philippines—Stories about Emilia Boncodin’s frugality drew much laughter.
Tears and laughter—but mostly laughter—marked the necrological rites for former Budget Secretary Boncodin held Thursday night by her friends and colleagues in government service.
On the fourth night of Boncodin’s wake, her colleagues at the Development Academy of the Philippines (DAP) and the Career Executive Service Board (CESB) took turns to share stories and anecdotes about her and to praise her dedication and integrity as a public servant. Her mother Cristeta and only sister Adel were present.
Patricia Santo Tomas, Development Bank of the Philippines chair and former labor secretary, said Boncodin’s idea of a treat for her staff was ordering food to-go from Jollibee.
“She also liked going to Kamameshi and Serye at Quezon Memorial Circle. Saksakan ng tipid. (She was miserly).” Fine dining was not part of Boncodin’s lifestyle.
Boncodin died March 15 of kidney failure at the age of 55. On Friday, her remains were transferred from Santa Maria della Strada Church in Quezon City to the Department of Budget and Management office in Manila, prior to her burial at the Heritage Memorial Park in Taguig City on Sunday.
Boncodin also served as DAP chair from 2001 to 2005. She left government in 2005, along with other senior government officials collectively known as “the Hyatt 10,” after the “Hello, Garci” scandal broke out.
In their tributes, her colleagues in the DAP and CESB talked about her humanity and how she gave a face to the good side of government bureaucracy through her quiet dedication, honesty and hard work.
Exemplar of modesty
Calyzar S. Divinagracia, DAP board chair, described Boncodin as an “exemplar of modesty and frugality.”
DAP president Antonio D. Kalaw Jr. spoke about her “utmost diligence and simplicity.”
Rarely did Cabinet members, who served on the DAP board, attend meetings, he said. They usually sent representatives. But Boncodin was always present.
Boncodin, however, was perennially late, Kalaw said, a habit that was confirmed by other colleagues who spoke at the tribute.
The reason, they said, was she always gave time to people who consulted her and there was never enough time for each one. And so she would be late for the next appointment and the next.
Boncodin, Divinagracia said, worked to make the DAP financially viable without asking funds from government. She played a key role in its seven-year subsidy program. She also taught at the DAP and at the University of the Philippines (UP) National College of Public Administration and Governance (NCPAG).
“She did not want DAP to have an isang kahig, isang tuka (hand-to-mouth) existence.” But, he added, “She was very matipid (frugal). She even refused to give honoraria to the DAP board of trustees. ”
Elevator
Santo Tomas and Boncodin’s friendship began some 25 years ago in Boston where they were both scholars at the Kennedy Institute of Governance in Harvard.
“As labor secretary I had been asking her to help us replace our vintage 1935 elevator,” Santo Tomas recalled. “We had an embarrassing incident when a visiting dignitary got stuck in the elevator. I invited Emy to visit us and see for herself.”
On the day Boncodin was supposed to come, Santo Tomas and her staff waited for her arrival but she was delayed. When she finally arrived, it was to tell them that she herself got stuck in the building’s elevator.
The labor department got its wish a year later with an increase in its capital expenditure.
Great teacher
Former DAP president Dr. Eduardo Gonzales, now a professor at the UP Asian Center, recalled that when Boncodin resigned as budget secretary in 2005, there was a debate within the DAP on whether or not they should openly support Boncodin’s move.
“Emy advised us to just wait and see.” Her advice proved to be a wise and practical one, he added.
Boncodin was not given to anger but she had her moments. Once, she threatened to walk out when she thought their group decision as judges in an award would be influenced by an outside party.
Ma. Anthonette V. Allones, executive director of the CESB, said Boncodin “could say ‘no’ and people would not feel bad. She was a great teacher, she had a great understanding of the budget process and the public finance system.”
Angel of the budget
Even in cyberspace, tributes were passed on through e-mail.
Former health undersecretary Mario Taguiwalo wrote: “Emy served her country… in a special way, by mastering the many annual versions of the more than 1,000 pages of books called the General Appropriations Act also known as ‘The Budget,’ also pronounced as ‘bad yet.’
“During Emy’s long watch, she was able to make the imperfect rules governing its preparation, authorization and execution yield as much benefit that any political instrument can reasonably generate. Above anything else, she showed how faithful stewardship in public life is practiced,” Taguiwalo wrote.
He also called Boncodin “the angel of the budget.”
Always do right
Former Welfare Secretary Corazon Alma de Leon recalled: “Emy helped me get the needed budget when I was chair of the CESB. That is why they now have a building they call their own. She exercised the art of the possible but always with honesty, integrity and hard work. She lived the core values of ‘Gawin ang Tama (Do what is right).’ She didn’t have to die at 55. But I guess she was ready. None of us are.”
“Emy liked singing,” Santo Tomas said. “She was more than just a public servant. She was a happy person and a really good person. They say that if you are with good persons, you also become a good person.”
Fiery words and flashy pronouncements were not Boncodin’s style. She just walked her talk. It could be done, it could be lived—was the message of her life. She lived simply, she died simply.
“But now she has lipstick on, and even eye shadow,” Santo Tomas quipped, drawing laughter from the audience.
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