Cua’s remains arrive in Quirino; Vaquilar takes oath as governor

CABARROGUIS, Quirino- Gloom enveloped the Quirino People’s Gymnasium on Thursday night as residents gathered there to take a final glimpse of the late Gov. Dakila Carlo “Dax” Cua, who died Tuesday in Manila.

Cua’s casket arrived in a convoy of vehicles at Cabarroguis from the Cauayan Domestic Airport in Isabela and was met by a throng of people lining up the sidewalks. 

Earlier on Thursday, Vice Gov. Julius Caesar Vaquilar formally took his oath of office as Cua’s successor, although he had automatically assumed the post on Wednesday. First-ranked board member Lilybeth Yogyog also took her oath as vice governor on Thursday.

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READ: Quirino Gov. Dax Cua passes away at 48

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Vaquilar’s first executive order as governor is for all flags to be set at half-mast in all agencies and offices in Quirino province for three days.

In a separate tribute to Cua, Vaquilar said he had been with the governor for 25 years.  “It is difficult to put into words what twenty-five years of walking and working side by side really means.”

“We were young when this journey in public service began. Through the years, we sat through countless meetings, travelled the roads of our province, faced problems that sometimes seemed impossible, celebrated victories big and small, disagreed at times, laughed many times, and carried together the responsibility of serving the people we both call our own,” he said. 

Addressing Cua, Vaquilar said: “I have seen you through many seasons—not only as the leader people saw behind the podium or in the Governor’s Office, but as the man behind the position. I saw how much of yourself you gave to this province. I knew the long days, the difficult decisions, the pressures that came with leadership, and the dreams you carried for our people.”

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READ: House mourns passing of former lawmaker, Quirino Gov. Dax Cua

The governor’s years of service matter are “written in the communities we visited, in the people whose hands we shook, in the families we tried to help, and in a province we both loved and chose to serve,” the new governor said./coa