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5 hours ago
- General
- GMA Network
Former GMA News Online photo editor Joe Galvez dies at 67
Jose "Joe" Ventosa Galvez Jr., former photo editor of GMA News Online, passed away on Monday, June 9, at the age of 67. He died in his residence in Bagac, Bataan surrounded by his wife Eugenia and loved ones, his son James Konstantin Galvez told GMA News Online. He is survived by his wife Eugenia, his children James Konstantin, John Hector, Eowyn, Anna Isabella, and Lorenzo, and six grandchildren. His wake is being held at the family residence in Bagac until Friday, June 13. Interment will be on Saturday, June 14, in Bagac. Born on May 10, 1958 in Manila, Jogal, as he was fondly called by friends, eventually settled in Bagac with Eugenia. For around 10 years, Jogal underwent dialysis for his kidney problem, Konstantin said. Despite his condition, he remained active in the Philippine photojournalist community, shooting, working, giving lectures, and keeping in touch with his peers. He would be one of the first, in fact, to announce on Facebook whenever one from among their ranks passed on to the Great Beyond. "He was passionate about his craft. He was loving as a husband, father, and grandfather," Jogal's daughter Anna Isabella told GMA News Online. Martial Law, EDSA, COVID A veteran photojournalist, Jogal was always right where the action was, shooting photos during the important moments in the nation's history. Name it, he was there. During Martial Law, he was a photographer of Manila Bulletin, People's Journal, and the Mr. and Ms. Special Edition. In an interview with GMA News Online in 2017, Jogal said the photos that got published during Martial Law were the ones that reflected the good side of the late President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. "Itong mga litrato na 'to, heto 'yung mga gusto ng mga Marcoses na litrato (These photos were the ones the Marcoses liked), the good side of Martial Law," Galvez said, displaying a photo of Marcos side by side with then-First Lady Imelda Marcos. "Kasi dina-divert nila 'yung mga tao sa (Because they were diverting the people's attention from) real issues, which is war, abuse of power," he added. Despite the danger and threats he and other journalists faced, Jogal and other fearless members of media continued doing their jobs. "Du'n tayo natuto. Magtanong. Magtanong. Magtanong. Ganu'n. Hanapin ang katotohanan (That's how we learned. Ask. Ask. Ask. That's how it is. Search for the truth)," said Galvez. Marcos' opponent, former senator Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino Jr. was gunned down at the tarmac of the Manila International Airport on August 21, 1983. Ten days later, his coffin aboard a flatbed truck strewn with yellow flowers snaked from Sto. Domingo Church in Quezon City through the streets of Metro Manila on the way to his final resting place at Manila Memorial Park in Paranaque City. Yup, Jogal was there. An estimated one million Filipinos joined the funeral march of assassinated former senator Benigno 'Ninoy' Aquino Jr. from Sto. Domingo Church to the Manila Memorial Park in Parañaque in August 1983. Joe Galvez Marcos thereafter called for snap presidential elections in 1986 and Ninoy's widow Cory ran against him. Jogal covered the campaign and the subsequent People Power Revolution that toppled Marcos. At a miting de avance at the Quirino Grandstand, President Ferdinand Marcos and his wife Imelda call on their supporters to save democracy by casting ballots in favor of Marcos and his running mate Arturo Tolentino. Joe Galvez "Wala nang ligo-ligo noon. Walang tulog, walang kain (No one took baths, slept or ate)," Jogal told former GMA News Online editor-in-chief Howie Severino in 2011. He and fellow photojournalists hopped from Camp Aguinaldo to Camp Crame, and the stretch of EDSA from P. Tuazon to Ortigas or Shaw Boulevard to take photos of People Power main characters, the crowd, the tanks, the military, and the clergy, among others. Mind you, this was the era of film photography, and Jogal and other photographers had to shoot, bring the film to the darkroom and process it, before going back to the field to shoot again. Rebel soldiers navigate their way through a sea of people as they move from Camp Aguinaldo to Camp Crame, February 1986. Joe Galvez Jogal said he felt driven to document unfolding events. "I had the responsibility to document history as it unfolded," he told Howie. Later on, he joined GMA News Online as photo editor and retired in 2018 when he turned 60. But the photojournalist in him was still there, and he documented the battle he next faced, that of COVID-19. For 18 days in August 2021, Jogal was confined at a government hospital in Balanga City, Bataan after contracting COVID-19. But he was no ordinary patient. He put on his photojournalist hat, and the result is a photo essay entitled "18 days life or death" published on GMA News Online in September 2021. Sharp eye, funny man His former colleagues at GMA News Online and fellow photojournalists will miss the Jogal they know. "During my five-year tenure as editor-in-chief of GMA News Online, I had the great fortune of working with Joe Galvez as my photo editor. One of my few colleagues with experience as a journalist in the turbulent 1980s, Joe brought the discipline and rigor of an analog native to the fast-paced world of digital news. He had a sharp eye for composition and an instinctive sense for the decisive moment — that stolen shot when a photograph tells the whole story," Howie said. GMA News Online managing editor Raffy Jimenez, who has spent more than 10 years working with him, shares: "Jogal was always a funny man to be with. Maraming kwento, lalo na kapag we're having lunch. We shared experiences from our days sa field, and I always learn a thing or two from those conversations. Even we he retired, we maintained our communications, kumustahan, especially during his birthday because he shared the same birthdate with my son. It is an honor that I got to work with him, and will surely miss those times we had in the office." "Joe Galvez, a veteran photojournalist and mentor, left an indelible mark on the Philippine media landscape. His lens captured the country's tumultuous martial-law years, shedding light on the struggles and resilience of the Filipino people. As a photo editor at GMA News Online, he nurtured the talents of young photographers, passing on his expertise and passion," the Photojournalists' Center of the Philippines said in a Facebook post on Monday. —KG, GMA Integrated News
Bloomberg
11-05-2025
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Political Dynasties Hold All the Power in the Philippines
In the Philippines, a handful of entrenched families shape public power, from the presidency down to the barangays, the most local level of government. Voters will once again be confronted with a host of recognizable names on the ballot in Monday's midterm elections. The result is a democracy built on inherited privilege, not merit. The race is being viewed as a dress rehearsal for the 2028 presidential contest — and a proxy war between two of the nation's most powerful clans: The Marcoses and the Dutertes. Along with the Aquinos and the Macapagal-Arroyos, these dynasties have ruled the country since 2001.
