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Shocking deaths of 2022 

by Izel Abanilla

EVERY year, there is always a big piece of  news that shocks the public. In 2022, it was the death of a number of prominent people.

Let’s take a rundown of some of the most shocking deaths in the Philippines this year. 

  1. F. Sionil Jose (Dec. 3, 1924 – Jan. 6, 2022) 

F. Sionil Jose

One of the firsts was that of esteemed writer F. Sionil Jose. The National Artist for Literature died on January 6 in his sleep. He was 97. 

At around 9:30 pm, he died at the Makati Medical Center where he was scheduled for an angioplasty on January 7. 

Through a Facebook post, PEN Philippines announced his death. 

His stellar career that spanned over five decades has given birth to 35 books translated into 28 different languages. 

  1. Susan Roces (July 28, 1941 – May 20, 2022) 

Susan Roces

One of the most beautiful faces ever to grace Philippine TV and movie screens, Roces too was among the celebrity deaths that the public wished didn’t happen so soon. She was 80. 

Her daughter, Senator Grace Poe,  announced the death of the veteran actress. 

Jesusa Sonora Poe in real life, the beautiful mestiza was among the last living stars who made stellar careers during the so-called Golden Age of Philippine Movies.

She first captured the public’s hearts when she made her film debut in 1952 via the movie “Mga Bituin ng Kinabukasan.” 

Not long after, her acting soared in the 1950s making her earn the tag “Queen of Philippine Movies.” 

Among her most notable movies were “Ang Daigdig Ko’y Ikaw,” “Gumising Ka Maruja,” “Patayin Mo sa Sindak si Barbara,” and “Mano Po.” 

She played the role of the endearing Lola Flora in the Kapamilya series “Ang Probinsyano.”

Her former love team partner Eddie Gutierrez broke down in tears as he recalled their early days in movies during the wake.

  1. Cherie Gil 

Cherie Gil via GMA Drama Facebook

Even after her death, her hair-raising lines in the movies still resonated. 

Veteran character actress Cherie Gil broke hearts when news of her death last August 5 came out. She was 59. 

Her nephew, actor Sid Lucero, announced her passing.

Based on some of her social media posts prior to her death, the beautiful and talented actress had been receiving treatments at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York where she died peacefully in her sleep at about 4:48 am. 

Her son, Rapherl Roggoff, revealed that she had been diagnosed with a rare form of Endometrial cancer but requested it to be kept private. 

Gil was known for her performance, among others, in the 1985 classic “Bituing Walang Ningning” where she played the selfish, fame-hungry villain Lavinia Arguelles. But one of the people who grieved her death was no less her best friend Sharon Cuneta who played the leading role of Dorina Pineda in the movie. 

Cuneta had dedicated several posts detailing how the death of her “true screen partner” had crushed her to bits. 

She was also among the few people lucky enough to see the actress one last time.

Even well into her 50’s she was still very much active in showbiz. During the pandemic, she became an acting mentor giving online masterclasses both to budding and experienced actors.

In February 2022, she flew to New York to be with her children.

  1. Fidel V. Ramos (March 18, 1928-July 31, 2022) 

Fidel V. Ramos

Fidel V. Ramos, the 12th President of the Philippines from 1992-1998, died of complications due to Covid-19 at the Makati Medical Center. He was 94. 

Ramos had been in and out of the hospital due to a heart condition.

Before his career in politics, he was among the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos’s trusted men 

At the height of martial law, he was the head of the Philippine Constabulary, the armed agency responsible for arresting and detaining activists and other Marcos critics.

In February 1986,  Ramos turned against the old man and stood by his greatest rival, Cory Aquino who would eventually assume the presidency as a result of the four-day People Power Revolution. His withdrawal of support from Marcos triggered the revolution.

Ramos  is best remembered as the president who pushed for economic reforms. The Department of National Defense too praised its former commander as a”staunch advocate for the modernization and professionalization” of the armed forces.

  1. Danny Javier (August 7, 1947 – October 31, 2022) 

Danny Javier

Music legend Danny Javier, one of  the OPM triumvirate APO Hiking Society, succumbed to “complications  due to his prolonged illnesses” on October 31. He was 75. 

Back in 2020, Javier himself had been sharing on social media about his problems with his heart, lungs and kidneys. 

After his death many paid tribute to the icon including singer-actress Zsa Zsa Padilla and premier vocal group, The Company among others. 

The other APO members Jim Paredes and Boboy Garovillo staged a concert last December 18 at a music hall to pay tribute to Javier.

  1. Sylvia La Torre (June 4, 1933 – December 1, 2022) 

Sylvia La Torre

Silver screen legend Sylvia La Torre also passed away this year although the cause of her death was never fully disclosed. She was 89. 

Dubbed as “First Lady of Philippine Television” and “Queen of Kundiman, she too was among the oldest living Philippine television Golden Age era stars.

Her granddaughter,  Anna Maria Perez de Tagle, announced her death.

Born in 1933, La Torre started singing at five years old after winning a singing competition in Manila. In 1941, she appeared in her first film called “Ang Maestra” and made her stage debut two years later. 

A scholar at the University of Santo Tomas Conservatory of Music, she became a regular performer at the Manila Grand Opera House. 

In the ‘50s, her recording career flourished with over 300 songs released including “Sa Kabukiran,” “Mutya ng Pasig” and “Waray Waray.” 

She also appeared in a number of movies where she would be belting out powerful notes as part of her roles. 

  1. Flora Gasser (November 28, 1932 – November 19, 2022) 

Flora Gasser

Veteran actress Flora Gasser too passed away this year. 

The actress’ granddaughter penned a heartwarming farewell message about her in a Facebook post as she informed the public about her cremation. 

Gasser is known for her support roles in movies, usually as grandmother or the family’s house helper. 

She started her acting career in the 1970’s. Among her movies were “Kumander Bawang” (1988) “Love boat: Mahal Trip Kita” (1988) “Bilangin ang Bituin sa Langit,” (1990) “Papa’s Girl,” (1990) “Dyesebel” (1990) and many others. 

  1. Jovit Baldivino (October 6, 1993 – December 5, 2022) 

Jovit Baldivino

Perhaps among the most unbelievable deaths this 2022 was that of singer Jovit Baldivino. 

His tragic death brought forth public awareness yet again about brain aneurysm. 

Jerry Telan, the singer’s fiance, said the singer had been comatosed for over five days until his death following a song number performance at a local event which led to his difficulty in breathing. He was rushed to the hospital immediately after. 

He had been strictly advised by the doctor to refrain from singing. 

His CT scan then showed a blood clot in the brain, a sign of aneurysm. 

The first-ever winner of ABS-CBN’s “Pilipinas Got Talent,” Baldivino released a number of albums, and some of his hit songs include “Pusong Bato,” and “Ikay’ Mahal Pa Rin.”

  1. Joma Sison (February 8, 1939 – December 16, 2022) 

Joma Sison

Jose Maria Sison, founder of the Communist Party of the Philippines, passed away due to lingering illness following his two-week confinement at the hospital in the Netherlands where he and his family are in self-exile. He passed away last December 16 around 8:40 pm, Philippine time. 

He was cremated in the Netherlands last December 27. 

Sison was among the most influential political figures in the Philippines. 

The communist insurgency founded by Sison spanning over five decades makes it the longest running armed rebellion in the world. 

In exile since 1988, Sison still continued to hold influence over armed fronts in the spirit of fighting supposed injustices in the country. 

Sison was also a former professor at the University of the Philippines. 

10. Jorhomy “Jho” Rovero (July 11, 1986-Dcember 20, 2022)

Jorhomy “Jho” Rovero

The death of Jorhomy “Jho” Rovero, wife of actor Andrew Schimmer, is indeed a testament of true love to all.

After a year-long battle with severe asthma that led to hypoxemia and cardiac arrest complications, she finally died on December 20, 2022. Schimmer, in an emotional Facebook video, said that he knew of his wife’s passing when he was taping for GMA’s “Family Feud.”

The actor first opened up about his wife’s condition in November 2021 when she was rushed to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of St. Luke’s Medical Center in Taguig City after suffering from a severe asthma attack that led to hypoxemia and cardiac arrest and eventually coma.

Throughout her confinement, Schimmer and their two kids remained steadfast in their hope that she will soon recover.

Schimmer and Rovero’s youngest child, Xander turned 9 shortly after his mother’s death. In a video uploaded at The Schimmers official Facebook page, Xander is seen spending his birthday at his mother’s funeral.

The actor had earned the public’s sympathy when he showed that until the very end, he showcased true love for Rovero.

Because of this, their love story was even featured on Kapuso drama anthology “Magpakailanman.”

During her internment last Friday, December 30, Schimmer was seen talking to his wife while fixing her flowers and holding her face and kissing her one last time.

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