Noy says he blames self for Jesse's death

MANILA, Philippines - A few weeks before Jesse Robredo's  first death anniversary, President Benigno Aquino III  said he blames himself for the demise of the esteemed official.

In his State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday, Aquino lauded the former interior secretary as one of the "excellent" public servants who "do not just transform a society" but who also "inspire."

"Apart from grieving, I could not avoid blaming myself for what happened to Jesse. Maybe if I had not asked him to join my Cabinet, he would still be alive today. Maybe if he had remained in Naga, he would still be with us. Maybe there would still be a Jesse Robredo in public service today," Aquino said.

Robredo passed away after the Piper Seneca plane he boarded crashed in waters of Masbate on August 18, 2012.

The bodies of Robredo and pilot Captain Jessup Bahinting and Nepalese co-pilot Kshitiz Chandz were recovered after days of search.

Robredo served six terms as Naga City mayor and was awarded the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award for Government Service for his accomplishments as a local government executive.

In 2010, he was appointed by Aquino as head of the Department of Interior and Local Government. The President said in his SONA that he picked Robredo for his "skill, compassion, and humility."

Ranking officials, government employees, and ordinary Filipinos mourned Robredo's death last year, saying  the Cabinet official was a huge loss to the nation.

In his SONA, the President said the nation is now "experiencing change" that was brought by those in government such as Robredo, and by millions of Filipinos who have contributed in transforming the country.

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"But I also know that Jesse would not allow the transformation and righting of society to end with him. Jesse and I were only given opportunities to serve the country because of all of you," the President said.

"We cannot have just one face for transformation and change. We should not have to wait another hundred years before the next good citizen is born, before the next good Filipino rises to the occasion," he added.