John Henry Renner Osmeña (January 17, 1935 – February 2, 2021), also known as Sonny Osmeña or simply John Osmeña, was the grandson of

Philippine The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Sergio Osmeña Sergio Osmeña Sr. (, ; zh, c=吳文釗, poj=Gô͘ Bûn-chiau; September 9, 1878 – October 19, 1961) was a Filipino people, Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the List of presidents of the Philippines, fourth president of the Ph ...

. He served as a senator of the Philippines from 1971 to 1972, 1987 to 1995, and 1998 to 2004. He was the last surviving senator of the 7th Congress, the last Congress before

martial law Martial law is the replacement of civilian government by military rule and the suspension of civilian legal processes for military powers. Martial law can continue for a specified amount of time, or indefinitely, and standard civil liberties ...

. In

Cebu City Cebu City, officially the City of Cebu, is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Central Visayas region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 964,169 people, making ...

, he started out as a city councilor in 1963, became the vice-mayor in 1967 and was elected to the House of Representatives representing the 2nd district the year after. He was the mayor of

Toledo, Cebu Toledo ( ), officially the City of Toledo (; ), is a component city in the province of Cebu, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 207,314 people. On June 18, 1960, Toledo became a chartered city under Republic A ...

from 2013 to 2019.

Early life and education

Osmeña was born on January 17, 1935, in the then-municipality of

Cebu Cebu ( ; ), officially the Province of Cebu (; ), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 167 surrounding islands and islets. The coastal zone of Cebu is identified as a ...

to Dr. Emilio Veloso Osmeña and María Luisa Renner. He was the older brother of former Cebu governor Emilio Mario "Lito" Osmeña Jr. and Annabelle "Annie" Osmeña-Aboitiz, a real estate developer. His paternal grandfather was

, the fourth

President of the Philippines The president of the Philippines (, sometimes referred to as ) is the head of state, head of government and chief executive of the Philippines. The president leads the executive branch of the Philippine government and is the commander-in-ch ...

. Osmeña graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering from the

University of San Carlos The University of San Carlos (USC or colloquially San Carlos) is a private, Catholic, research, coeducational basic and higher education institution administered by the Philippine Southern Province of the Society of the Divine Word missionarie ...

in Cebu City. He also went to the

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; ) is a Higher education in the Philippines#State universities and colleges, state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by List of Philippine laws, Re ...

and the International Social Development Institution in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

for further studies.

Political career

Osmeña's career in politics began in 1963 when he was elected as a councilor of

. Five years later, in 1968, he was elected as the city's vice mayor and in 1969, was elected to the

House of Representatives of the Philippines The House of Representatives (; '','' thus commonly referred to as ''Kamara'') is the lower house of Congress of the Philippines, Congress, the bicameral legislature of the Philippines, with the Senate of the Philippines as the upper house. The ...

representing Cebu's 2nd district. In 1970, he was named as one of the Ten Outstanding Young Men of the Philippines.

Senator (1971–1972) and Martial Law years

Running for the Senate in 1971, Osmeña was at the August 21, 1971 ''miting de avance'' of the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

Plaza Miranda Plaza Miranda is a public square bounded by Quezon Boulevard, Hidalgo Street and Evangelista Street in Quiapo, Manila. It is the plaza which fronts the Minor Basilica and National Shrine of Jesus Nazareno (Quiapo Church), one of the main churc ...

Quiapo Quiapo may refer to: * Quiapo, Chile, a location in Arauco Province *Quiapo, Manila, a district in the Philippines ** Quiapo Church The Minor Basilica and National Shrine of Jesus Nazareno (), commonly known as Quiapo Church and canonically ...

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

where two grenades exploded killing 11 and leaving several people wounded. Both of Osmeña's legs were badly injured. He won a Senate seat in the 1971 election. When President

Ferdinand Marcos Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. (September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino lawyer, politician, dictator, and Kleptocracy, kleptocrat who served as the tenth president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled the c ...

declared martial law on September 23, 1972, Osmeña went on exile in the United States. After the

assassination Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...

of former Senator Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino on August 21, 1983, he was among the first political exiles to return to the country to help in the fight against the Marcos dictatorship.

Second Term as Senator

He was appointed officer-in-charge of

after the 1986

People Power Revolution The People Power Revolution, also known as the EDSA Revolution or the February Revolution, were a series of popular Demonstration (people), demonstrations in the Philippines, mostly in Metro Manila, from February 22 to 25, 1986. There was a ...

. He was again elected a senator in

1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...

under the Lakas ng Bayan Coalition of President

Corazon Aquino María Corazón "Cory" Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino (; January 25, 1933 – August 1, 2009) was a Filipino politician who served as the 11th president of the Philippines and the first woman president in the country, from Presidency of Corazon ...

1992 vice presidential election and Third Term as Senator

In 1992, he ran for vice president under the

Nationalist People's Coalition The Nationalist People's Coalition (NPC) is a conservatism, conservative political party in the Philippines which was founded in 1992 by presidential candidate Danding Cojuangco. History Formation In 1990, amid political and economic unce ...

with businessman Eduardo Cojuangco Jr. as his running mate. He soon withdrew his candidacy and was replaced by Senator

Joseph Estrada Joseph Ejercito Estrada (; born Jose Marcelo Ejercito; April 19, 1937), also known by the nickname Erap, is a Filipino politician and former actor, who served as the 13th president of the Philippines from 1998 until his resignation in 2001. ...

. He instead sought re-election as senator, and was elected for a three-year term.

Member of the House of Representatives and Fourth Term as Senator

He became the representative of the 3rd district of Cebu in 1995 before being elected as senator again in

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

. During this time, Osmeña gained the moniker, "The Lone Ranger". In 2001, during the impeachment trial of

, he voted to prevent the presentation of an envelope believed to contain evidence that proves Estrada received bribe money. Osmeña ran and lost for senatorial re-election in 2004 and 2007. In 2004, Osmeña sued Governor Gwen Garcia for plunder. Osmeña ran for mayor of

in the 2010 Cebu City local elections but lost. He was elected as mayor of

, and served from 2013 to 2019. After that, he sought to represent Cebu's 3rd congressional district, but was defeated in 2019.

Laws authored

Osmeña sponsored bills like ''The Municipal Telephone Act'' (Republic Act 6849) whereby each municipality will receive a telephone system; ''The Mini-Hydroelectric Program'' (RA 7156), which will provide non-conventional electricity in the countryside; ''The Public Telecommunications Act of 1995'' (RA 7925), and the creation of the

Philippine Postal Corporation The Philippine Postal Corporation (PHLPost; ), also known as the Philippine Post Office, is a government-owned and controlled corporation under the Office of the President of the Philippines, Office of the President, responsible for providing m ...

(RA 7354). He also authored landmark bills like ''The Electric Power Crisis Act'' (RA 7648) and ''The Build-to-Operate Act'' (RA 7718). Osmeña authored the law that created the

Department of Energy A ministry of energy or department of energy is a government department in some countries that typically oversees the production of fuel and electricity; in the United States, however, it manages nuclear weapons development and conducts energy-rela ...

. Four bills were incorporated in Republic Act 9136 or otherwise known as ''The Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2000'': * Senate Bill 1712 – Creation of National Transmission Company * Senate Bill 1621 – Amending Section 5 of RA 7638 or the Department of Energy Law * Senate Bill 1943 – Amending Certain Provisions of EO 172 or the Energy Regulatory Board as Amended by RA 8479 * Senate Bill 2000 – An Act to Modernize and Reform the Power Industry.

Personal life

Osmeña was married to (and later separated from) Lucy Miller (née Urgello) in 1969. They only had one son, John Gregory "John-John" Osmeña, a former Cebu vice governor and provincial board member. Among Osmeña's grandsons is named John Henry Gregory Osmeña, son of John Gregory. In 2004, Osmeña was charged with sexual abuse of a young boy, for which the

Department of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

cleared him because "there is no probable cause to indict respondent with the offense charged."

Illness and death

In July 2020, it was announced that Osmeña had recovered from

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

during the

COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines The COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines was a part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). As of , there have been reported cases, and reported deaths, the fift ...

after 20 days of fighting the disease. He was once again hospitalized from January 9 to 16, 2021. Osmeña died on February 2, 2021, sixteen days after his 86th birthday, at his unit at Maryville Condominiums in Cebu City from post-COVID-19 complications. His remains were cremated and later inurned on the next day at Skyline Garden Columbary in Cebu City after his funeral that lasted less than an hour. A hybrid necrological service for him was held at the Senate's session hall in

Pasay Pasay, officially the City of Pasay (; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 Philippine census, 2020 census, it has a ...

on March 4, 2021.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Osmena, John Henry 1935 births 2021 deaths Presidents pro tempore of the Senate of the Philippines Senators of the 12th Congress of the Philippines Senators of the 11th Congress of the Philippines Senators of the 9th Congress of the Philippines Senators of the 8th Congress of the Philippines Senators of the 7th Congress of the Philippines People from Cebu City Cebuano people Filipino Roman Catholics Nationalist People's Coalition politicians United Opposition (Philippines) politicians Liberal Party (Philippines) politicians University of San Carlos alumni Members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines from Cebu Filipino city and municipal councilors

John Henry John Henry most commonly refers to: *John Henry (folklore) John Henry may also refer to: People Artists and entertainers * John Henry (actor) (1738–1794), Irish and early American actor *Seán Ó hEinirí (1915–1998), known in English as John ...

Partido Demokratiko Pilipino politicians Independent politicians in the Philippines Mayors of places in Cebu Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines Filipino people of German descent