HAGONOY,
Bulacan—Former Bulacan Senior Board Member Raul Ople, the third son of the late
statesman Blas F. Ople passed away on Thursday afternoon. He is 59.
Susan
Ople, the youngest sibling of Raul said that her brother died of lymphoma, a
form of cancer, around 4:30 PM at the Lung Center of the Philippines.
She
said that the former Board Member is surrounded by his family at the time of
his death.
His
remains lies in state at the Chapel C of the Christ the King Church in Quezon
City. Internment will be announced
later.
He
left his wife Dolores San Juan-Ople along with children Marc, Carlo, Danielle,
and Faith; and grandchildren Scarlet and John Gabriel.
The
former Senior Board Member also left his siblings namely Luis, Blas Jr.,
Dalisay, Felix, Dionisio and Susan.
As
this third son of the late statesman and Senator Blas F. Ople of this town,
Raul was elected as Board Member of the first district of Bulacan in the 1995
election.
As
a senior Board Member, he also served as vice governor of the province of
Bulacan when former Governor Roberto Pagdanganan took a leave of absence when
he served as care taker of the first congressional district.
The
remainder of his tenure was served by then Vice Governor Josie Dela Cruz.
As
a provincial legislator, Raul pushed for further development of the province
through resolutions.
In
1998, he lost in the gubernatorial race against Dela Cruz who served as
governor until 2007.
In
the 2001 elections, Raul ran for the first congressional district of the
province pushing for the creation of a economic zone in the province but lost
to then Rep.Wilhelmino Alvarado who is now seeking his first reelection as
governor of Bulacan. Dino
Balabo
