John Henry Renner Osmeña (January 17, 1935 – February 2, 2021), also known as Sonny Osmeña or simply John Osmeña, was the grandson of PhilippinePresidentSergio Osmeña. 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.
In Cebu City, 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 from 2013 to 2019.
Early life and education
Osmeña was born on January 17, 1935, in the then-municipality of Cebu to Dr. Emilio Veloso Osmeña and María Luisa Renner.[3] 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 Sergio Osmeña, the fourth President of the Philippines.[4]
When President Ferdinand Marcos declared martial law on September 23, 1972, Osmeña went on exile in the United States.[3] After the assassination 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.[3]
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. During this time, Osmeña gained the moniker, "The Lone Ranger".[3] In 2001, during the impeachment trial of Joseph Estrada, he voted to prevent the presentation of an envelope believed to contain evidence that proves Estrada received bribe money.[7]
Osmeña ran and lost for senatorial re-election in 2004 and 2007. In 2004, Osmeña sued Governor Gwen Garcia for plunder.[8] Osmeña ran for mayor of Cebu City in the 2010 Cebu City local elections but lost. He was elected as mayor of Toledo, Cebu, and served from 2013 to 2019. After that, he sought to represent Cebu's 3rd congressional district, but was defeated in 2019.[4]
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 (RA 7354). He also authored landmark bills like The Electric Power Crisis Act (RA 7648) and The Build-to-Operate Act (RA 7718).[3]
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,[9] for which the Department of Justice cleared him because "there is no probable cause to indict respondent with the offense charged."[10]
Illness and death
In July 2020, it was announced that Osmeña had recovered from COVID-19 during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines after 20 days of fighting the disease.[11] 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.[12] 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.[13][14] A hybrid necrological service for him was held at the Senate's session hall in Pasay on March 4, 2021.[15]
‡ — Under the transitory provisions of the Philippine constitution, 24 senators were elected in this election. The first 12 senators who garnered the highest votes would have a 6 six year term while the next 12 senators would have a 3 year term.