Tribute to Alecks Pabico: Journalism’s gentle warrior

The Philippine journalism world grew a little dimmer last night as word spread that our colleague Alecks Pabico had passed away. The news came as a shock to family and friends who were on hand to see Alecks personally just last Thursday, during a tribute concert for his recovery.

Yesterday morning, Alecks was still in good spirits while exchanging stories with the PCIJ staff who visited him, talking about his favorite videoke songs and anecdotes from when he became part of the team in 1994.

“Alecks and I worked together for nearly 15 years. We spent many long nights at the office, some of them with Nonoy Marcelo. Alecks not only worked in PCIJ, he believed in it,” said Sheila Coronel, the PCIJ’s founding Executive Director. PCIJ board member Howie Severino related his first encounter with Alecks: “It was an odd hour, and I was the only one in the office. The skinny guy with unruly hair told me he wanted to work with us but had not yet graduated from UP and had studied architecture (so I thought, fat chance this guy would work with us); he didn’t tell me he had been editor-in-chief of the Collegian. Modest, typically Alecks. We ended up sharing a lot of good times, reggae music, and late nights in the office. I’ll miss him.”

Alecks had spent the last fifteen years working with the Center, for the past decade as its Multimedia Director. Gentle and unassuming, Alecks was every bit the fierce, noble warrior when he stepped into battle, wielding his pen (and later, his keyboard and mouse) mightily in the quest for truth.

As the first part of our little tribute to Alecks, we are linking to some of his stories from the past few years:

Feature stories
I am woe, man – September 2007
Building the breathing spaces – October 2007
Men as mothers – April 2005
Green dining – January 2005

Stories on healthcare
Draft law affirms patient rights of drug firms – May 2008
Price control board debate may delay cheap drugs law – January 2008
Will public health trump patents in Congress? – January 2008
Waste not, want not
New Rx needed for generics movement – September 2006

Stories on politics and governance
Gloria’s inglorious record: Biggest debtor, least popular – August 2008
Romulo L. Neri: Can golf, realpolitik work at SSS? – July 2008
Naga City’s class act – May 2008
Short-circuited reforms in the power sector – November 2007
Has NEDA gone nada? – October 2007
Ghosts of past polls haunt Comelec – May 2007
Power shift looms in Cebu politics – May 2007
People Power thrives in Naga City – April 2007

Stories on the North Rail relocation- October 2005
Nightmare at Northrail: Cost of resettling 40,000 families deliberately hidden
Thousands of evicted families go hungry in resettlement sites