Philippine Daily Inquirer publisher and board member of Asia News Network, an alliance of 21 newspapers in 18 Asian countries - Isagani Yambot Sr will be missed, far beyond his "happy Filipino" circles.
Yambot passed away March 2 of “cardio-respiratory arrest secondary to coronary artery disease” at St. Therese Hospital in Pasig City, where he was rushed by family members hours after his discharge from The Medical City. He was 77.
A lifetime member of the National Press Club, Yambot was chosen Outstanding News Editor by the College Editors Guild of the Philippines in 1975. He won the Catholic Mass Media Award for Best In-Depth Article in 1994 and received the Lakan Award for Outstanding Achievement in Journalism by the Tondo Rotary Club in 1995. During the celebration of the Araw ng Maynila in June 2000, he was honored as an Outstanding Manilan in the Field of Journalism by the city government.
Yambot was born on Nov. 16, 1934, in Tagbilaran City in Bohol. His mother was a Science teacher and his father a Mathematics-English teacher.
Yambot studied Liberal Arts in the University of the Philippines and was a fellow of the Washington Journalism Center.
Yambot began his career in journalism in 1953 as a desk person at the defunct Manila Times. He would later cover the Malacañang and Senate beats.
In 1973, he joined the news service United Press International as night editor. A year later he transferred to the Times Journal, becoming managing editor from 1983 to 1985. He joined Malaya in 1988 as managing editor then moved to Inquirer in April 1989.
Yambot came to work as executive editor of the Inquirer and was appointed associate publisher in June 1991. He became publisher in February 1994.
In 1999, as PDI spokesperson, Yambot spoke out in defense of freedom of the press, when the Inquirer’s survival was threatened by a boycott that lasted for five months of major advertisers who were supporters of President Joseph Estrada.
Known as “PDI’s grammar cop,” Yambot co-wrote the Inquirer Stylebook with University of the Philippines professor Cristina Pantoja-Hidalgo. Before that, he wrote portions of the first Stylebook of the Manila Times and the Stylebook of the Development Academy of the Philippines.
Yambot is survived by Mildred; Patricia; children Maria Victoria, Isagani Jr., Maria Julieta, Ernesto, Maria Paz and Maria Vilma; brothers Reuben and Efren and other relatives.
Tributes
In its statement, the PDI management said Yambot will be “surely missed but his spirit lives on in the work they (editorial staff) do to ensure editorial policies are closely followed”.
“We are very grateful for all of his contributions and we applaud his passion and commitment to his work. We request that you join us in prayer for the eternal repose of his soul.”
Malacañang deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said, “Isagani Yambot was… one of the links with the pre-martial law press who mentored a new generation of journalists to understand just how much a free press matters, and who stood shoulder to shoulder with his peers each and every time free speech came under attack after Edsa.”
She said Yambot was a calm, cheerful presence in the Inquirer’s newsroom and boardroom, and in every media gathering of note.
Gani’s example
Asia News Network (ANN), an alliance of 21 newspapers in 18 countries in the region, tweeted its condolences.
Yambot, a member of the ANN board, chaired the network in 2009, when it celebrated its 10th anniversary.
Pana Janviroj, ANN executive director and president of Thailand’s English daily, The Nation, described Yambot as “a towering figure and a lively and engaging person.”
“Isagani added a human face to ANN with his comments and inquisitive thinking, as an ANN board member, in our interactions with Asian leaders and people over the years. He will surely be missed by all of us,” Janviroj said.
Thomas Bernd Stehling, former director of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung Media Programme Asia who is now based in Spain, recalled:
“Gani was among the first I contacted when I moved to Manila in 1996 to set up the media project of the Konrad-Adenauer-Foundation. He was not immediately approachable. His role at the "Inquirer", where he had to fight together with the Prieto-Family and the editorial staff to keep the paper independent, reliable and financially solid, kept him busy, especially in the political environment after the end of the last term of President Fidel Ramos.”
“He was a "happy Filipino", slighly hesitant and sceptical whenever I presented him my "bigger picture" of a closer media-cooperation in Asia. I will never forget his face when I, over a long dinner, enthusiastically told him "we need a stronger Asian voice". His expression was easy to read as "what on earth do we need the Germans for that".
This changed, when the "Asian crisis" made him and others realise the lack of "cross-border exchange" and - indeed - of a better Asian participation in explaining to the rest of the world what was going on in Asia.
He relaxed, when he saw many more Asian editors joining our call, and "the Germans" being there for just organising, bridging and - if needed - mediating.
Gani began to enjoy the trips abroad, the ANN-Board meetings around Asia, our Editors-Forum in Manila, Jakarta, Phnom Penh, or going to Europe to meet the "big players" there. He loved his term as ANN-Chairman.
Gani was not - and didn't want to be - part of the "dynamic inner circle" of ANN, burning of ideas and new initiatives. But he guaranteed a solid follow-up and reliable implementation of the decisions of the board.
He was extremely helpful in appraising the idea of setting up a Journalism School that is mainly based on distance learning programmes and therefore open to working journalists. His advice helped the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung to set up the Asian Center for Journalism at the Ateneo de Manila University and to adjust the curriculum to the needs of the profession.
“When we opened our cooperation among the ANN-Members to the business part of media, Gani brought in his broad experience as a publisher, helpful especially for all those, who where in the past less exposed to competition and economic challenges.
Gani stood for the values we all share. He will be missed, far beyond his "happy Filipino" circles,” said Stehling.
Another Konrad-Adenauer veteran, Werner vom Busch, recalled "Isagani Yambot. I will always remember him as a journalist of high professional and ethical standards, as well as the supplier of new ideas to ANN and ACFJ. I join in with you to pass on my condolences to his family."
Editor-in-Chief of The Daily Star, Bangladesh, Mahfuz Anam, noted, "I express my deepest shock at the demise of Isagani Yambot who was a vital figure in the ANN network. His intelligent and insightful comments and witty remarks will be sourly missed. I pray for his Eternal Peace."
The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) called Yambot one of the pillars of the media community, “a tireless advocate of press freedom and was a constant source of inspiration to us.”
NUJP said the late publisher, despite his many responsibilities, always found time to get involved in campaigns for press freedom and to end media killings.