MMDA chair Danilo Lim passes away

MANILA, Philippines — Metropolitan Manila Development Authority chairman Danilo Lim has passed away, Malacañang announced Wednesday.

Lim died “before 8 a.m. this morning,” presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said in a statement. He was 65.

“MMDA chair Lim served the Duterte administration with professionalism, competence and integrity. He would be dearly missed. May the perpetual light shine upon him, and may his soul, through the mercy of the Almighty, rest in eternal peace,” Roque said.

The reason behind Lim’s death was not disclosed.

Lim announced he had tested positive for COVID-19 on December 29. At the time, he said his symptoms were mild and would go on isolation.

In 2017, President Rodrigo Duterte appointed Lim, a retired military general, as chairman of the MMDA. 

Lim ran for senator in the 2010 elections but lost. He was later appointed by former President Benigno Aquino III as Bureau of Customs deputy commissionner but stepped down in 2013. 

He led the failed 1989 coup against the administration of former President Corazon Aquino, for which he was detained for two years. 

Lim was also involved in attempts to topple the administration of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, including the 2007 Manila Peninsula siege. — Gaea Katreena Cabico with report from The STAR/Christina Mendez