Bocaue Mayor Eleanor “Joni” Villanueva-Tugna known as the “toss-coin mayor” was laid to rest on Tuesday morning.
Thousands of Bulakenyos mostly Bocauenos attended the late mayor’s funeral through vehicle convoy, avoiding a walking procession to observe quarantine protocol and avoid build up of traffic.
Immediate family members, friends and sympathizers paid their final respects to Mayor Tugna in a mass before her remains were brought to Krus Sa Wawa Memorial Homes in Barangay Wakas, Bocaue where she was interred in the family mausoleum.
Among mourners who came were close friends and colleagues from the local government unit of Bocaue.
Tugna passed away on May 28 due to sepsis secondary to bacterial pneumonia at the age of 42. She survived her husband former Cibac Partylist Representative Congressman Shewin Tugna, children Eleana Doreen, Joaquin Eduardo, Elia Grace and Lexi Joy, her brothers former Mayor JonJon and Senator Joel and sister Pastor Jovy.
It was learned that despite of her medical condition, the mayor still managed to served her fellow Bocaueños while Bulacan province was on lockdown due to COVID-19. She supervised the packing of food packs and even joined the relief distribution in every barangay.
Her last public service appearance was in JIL College Foundation during relief distribution to 19 barangays of Bocaue held on the second week of April.
According to the family, Mayor Tugna was confined at the ICU of St Lukes BGC for three weeks prio to her death.
The late mayor, who served in the local municipality of Bocaue for four years, pushed various significant programs in health, education, livelihood and senior citizens, among others.
Villanueva hails from a family of politicians, which includes her brother Senator Joel, his father Brother Eddie, founder of JIL church and a member of the House of Representatives, representing the CIBAC party-list, her husband, Sherwin Tugna was also former party-list representative and his brother JonJon was also a former mayor of Bocaue.
Mayor Joni’s first run for mayoralty post in 2016 when she was proclaimed mayor through a best-of-five coin-toss scheme after electoral results tied with her closest rival Jim Valerio.
Mayor Tugna marks a remarkable performance in the town of Bocaue because of her hard work and dedication in serving her constituents.
Last March 10, 2020 her mother Adoracion Jose-Villanueva, also known as “Sister Dory,” a teacher and president of the JIL Colleges Foundation Inc. died of fatal arrhythmia secondary to septic shock at the age of 73.