Erap mom to be buried Saturday

Mary Ejercito, the mother of former President Joseph Estrada who died at the age of 103 last Tuesday, will be buried at the family mausoleum on Saturday.

The Ejercito family also urged friends and supporters to donate for the Erap Para sa Mahirap Foundation, instead of sending flowers or cash to the funeral.

Her remains now lie in state at the St. John the Baptist Church, known also as the Pinaglabanan Church, in San Juan City.

Estrada’s spokesperson Margaux Salcedo said the interment would be held after the morning Mass on Saturday.

Estrada, for his part, emerged from his self-imposed hiatus and had a chat with reporters.

He said it is not easy to lose a mother like Mary.

Estrada, 71, said he couldn’t sleep right after realizing that he lost his mother.

“I could not sleep last night (Tuesday evening). It is really difficult to accept that a mother, like my mother, dies. But maybe it is time for her to rest. She took care of all of us, her ten children. She showed her love to us,” Estrada said.

“It’s hard because it is not easy to lose a mother. She was the only one who made me strong… She is a disciplinarian and she always pinches my ear (for being late for the Angelus). But she treated us equally,” he said.

Supporters and relatives were among those who went to the wake early.

Among those who attended the wake were movie actors Gary Estrada, Pagsanjan, Laguna Mayor ER Ejercito and San Juan Mayor JV Ejercito.

JV’s mother, Guia Gomez, also attended the wake. “I lost a very loving person, a loving mother, but most of all a loving friend,” she said.

Former President Corazon Aquino, Sen. Loren Legarda, former senator Ernesto Maceda and President Arroyo’s sister Cielo Macapagal-Salgado also paid their respects.

Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno led government officials in extending condolence to the Ejercito family.

Puno represented Mrs. Arroyo in attending the wake of the Estrada matriarch last night.

“The President specifically called me up to attend the wake of the mother of President Erap on her behalf and to express her condolences to him,” Puno said.

“I’m close to (former President) Estrada, I feel for him and his family, I’ve been close to them all of these years,” said Puno, who also served as interior chief under Estrada.

Lawmakers led by Sen. Manuel Villar Jr. also extended their sympathies to Estrada.

“I wish to extend my family’s heartfelt condolences to President Estrada and his family on the death of Mary Ejercito. We are deeply saddened and are praying for her eternal rest in heaven,” Villar said.

Villar said Estrada’s mother earned the affection and respect of the Filipino people because of her unwavering faith in God and selfless devotion to family.

“She has been her family’s source of strength and her departure will leave a vacuum that only a beloved mother can fill.

“In these painful circumstances, we are praying for God to strengthen and console them,” Villar added.

Mary succumbed to multiple organ failure while confined at the San Juan Medical Center last Tuesday afternoon. – With Cecille Suerte Felipe, Christina Mendez