Former Senator Heherson Alvarez dies of COVID-19 at 80

Former Senator Heherson Alvarez, a staunch environmentalist, died yesterday after three weeks of battling COVID-19. He was 80 years old.

Alvarez, along with his wife Cecile Guidote-Alvarez, contracted the coronavirus and underwent an experimental plasma therapy treatment, CNN Philippines reports. Guidote-Alvarez has been discharged from the hospital but has yet to fully recover.

Former Senator Joey Lina told ABS-CBN News that his ex-colleague died “despite the gallant efforts of his doctor and the blood plasma convalescent therapy, and the encouraging signs after that.”

“Sister Cecile is truly extremely sad, to say the least. Goodbye, Sonny. Your loved ones, including us your brods, would not even be able to see you go to your final resting place at this time,” Lina, who was also Alvarez’s fraternity brother, said.

Alvarez’s son Hexilon Alvarez told Rappler that his father’s death has been difficult on their family.  He added that they were unable to say their final goodbye to the senator. Hospital protocol discourages families from visiting COVID-19 patients even prior to their deaths due to the highly transmissible nature of the coronavirus.

“The scourge of COVID-19 is a treacherous plague that cannot be taken lightly. It has cruelly robbed countless families of their loved ones, without a chance to be with them and properly say goodbye to those we hold dear,” Hexilon said.

Alvarez was a delegate in the 1971 Constitutional Convention, where he protested against the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos’ order to pass laws that would have extended the latter’s term. Marcos declared martial law a year later, and Alvarez fled for the United States. It was in 1986 when he returned to the Philippines after Marcos was booted out of the presidency, and he worked in the Senate from 1987 to 1998.

A staunch environmentalist, Alvarez was responsible for the passage of The Clean Air Act and the National Integrated Protected Areas System Act during his stint in Congress from 1998 to 2001. He also worked as President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s environment secretary from 2001 to 2002.

Aside from Guidote-Alvarez and Hexilon, Alvarez is survived by a daughter, Xilca Alvarez-Protacio.