ILOILO CITY – The city government officials and employees of Iloilo City offered a minute of silence for former city councilor and Judge Ma. Rita Bascos Sarabia as she succumbed to complications brought about by an infection on her exposed wounds past 9 p.m. Wednesday,(December 26).
Mayor Jose Espinosa III broke the news before city hall employees in his message after the regular flag-raising ceremony upon receipt of the information from Sarabia’s son, Rex.
He said that Sarabia was supposed to undergo an emergency operation, but she did not make it.
“We will make arrangements with the family because she is also our former councilor,” Espinosa said.
Sarabia served as city councilor for two terms from 1998 to 2001 and from 2001 until 2004.
She was then appointed as a judge in a Regional Trial Court (RTC) in Negros Occidental. She also served as a judge in Quezon City RTC and Makati City RTC.
One high profile case she handled was the dismissal of the coup charges against Senator Antonio Trillanes in 2011 after he was granted amnesty.
Meanwhile, the younger Sarabia in his Facebook account narrated that six days ago his mother suffered second-degree burns after the tank of their Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) exploded.
He said that her mother could be remembered as “a fiery champion of the poor who fought for their rights and welfare”.
“She fought to deliver justice in our society as a lawyer and a judge. This brave girl from Jaro, however, fought her last fight. For six agonizing days, she was a warrior to the last second,” he said in is FB account.
Her wake will be at the Gegato -Abecia Funeral Services in Balabago Jaro. The viewing will start December 29 and she will be brought to her final resting place on January 5, 2019.
The judge Sarabia is married to lawyer Rene Sarabia.
source: (Perla Lena/PNA)
