24 Oras confirmed the demise of one of their founding anchors Mike Enriquez on August 29, 2023.

The 72-year-old journalist led the top news show of GMA Network for 19 years together with Mel Tiangco and Vicky Morales.

Tiangco was the one who delivered the sad news to the public and couldn’t hide her tears while talking about the legacy of her colleague.

“Ang kanyang dedikasyon sa industriya ay magsisilbing inspirasyon sa lahat,” Tiango said.

All newscasters were wearing black during the said episode.

They also remembered Enriquez’ career as a journalist.

It can be recalled that Enriquez was already facing challenges due to health issues related to his heart and kidneys.

In 2022, he successfully underwent a Kidney transplant and returned to 24 Oras, but he was noticeably not appearing regularly because of his condition.

Enriquez described his situation in a past interview, saying that he was required to be careful with his health even if he already received a new kidney.

“‘Yung pinagdaanan ko mahirap. Aside from the procedure itself, may three months mandatory isolation period, and the purpose of that is to avoid the rejection and infection. ‘Yung kidney transplant patients, immuno-compromised sila eh. May comorbidities pa ko, senior citizen, diabetic.” Mike said.

“Imagine this, three times a week, sometimes four times a week, I am hooked up to a dialysis machine for four hours. Ask people who undergo dialysis, para kang binugbog ni Manny Pacquiao, physically,” he added.

Enriquez became popular with his lines ‘Hindi ko kayo tatantanan’.

He was also remembered for saying ‘Excuse Me Po!’ when his cough was interrupting his reporting.

The sad atmosphere was visible during the August 29 episode of 24 Oras, the second home of veteran journalist Mike Enriquez who became their anchor for 19 years.

During the start of the show, Mel Tiangco’s voice was visibly undertone and most of the anchors including Vicky Morales, and Emil Sumangil were wearing black.

People already expected that the sad news about Mike would be announced on 24 Oras since it was his most popular show.

Netizens were still waiting for the official announcement of 24 Oras.

It can be recalled that several GMA news anchors, including Arnold Clavio, Connie Reyes, and even the GMA Integrated News Head Oliver Victor Amoroso already posted several hints to the news about Enriquez.

It can be recalled that Enriquez was already facing several difficulties due to his health condition.

He already took several leaves to take care of his health after he underwent several procedures for his heart and kidneys.

Kapuso hosts and reporters couldn’t hide their sadness amid the news about the demise of veteran GMA Network journalist Mike Enriquez circulated on social media.

Amid the information about the demise of the 72-year-old journalist, Arnold Clavio, one of the closest colleagues of Enriquez posted a black photo, which symbolized grief.

Unang Hirit hosts Shaira Diaz, Connie Sison, Oscar Oida, Connie Sison, Nelson Canlas, and Julis Segovia also expressed their sadness via comment.

On August 29, the report about Enriquez’ quickly circulated on social media.

Enriquez disclosed his health condition in 2018 after he took a leave of absence to treat his condition in kidneys and heart.

Even GMA Integrated News Head Oliver Victor Amoroso changed his display photo to black.

In 2022, he returned on 24 Oras to continue his profession as a broadcaster.

In the same year, Clavio denied that Enriquez was already not fit to work, saying that he would return on television soon.

However, this time, the Unang Hirit host didn’t deny the circulating news and instead posted a black photo to express his grief.

As of writing, GMA and the Enriquez family have yet to release a statement on the news.

Mike Enriquez, one of the most popular broadcaster in the Philippines, had passed away at the age of 72.

The reporter quickly went viral on social media after the news about his demise circulated on social media.

It can be recalled that Mike started to take a break from his job as a reporter in 2018 when he underwent heart bypass surgery. He also disclosed that he was being treated for a kidney disease.

In 2022, Mike made a stint on his regular program 24 Oras after his successful kidney transplant but he then disappeared for again unknown reason.

Even Arnold Clavio posted a hint that the news about the reporter was true after he shared a black photo.

Mike described in an interview the challenges he was facing due to his illness.

“‘Yung pinagdaanan ko mahirap. Aside from the procedure itself, may three months mandatory isolation period, and the purpose of that is to avoid the rejection and infection. ‘Yung kidney transplant patients, immuno-compromised sila eh. May comorbidities pa ko, senior citizen, diabetic.” Mike said.

“Imagine this, three times a week, sometimes four times a week, I am hooked up to a dialysis machine for four hours. Ask people who undergo dialysis, para kang binugbog ni Manny Pacquiao, physically,” he added.

As of writing, the Enriquez family has yet to give any statement on the news.

Pura Luka Vega, Amadeus Fernando Pagente in real life was safe to visit Lapu Lapu City, Mayor Junard “Ahong” Chan assured.

In an interview, Chan said that he did not want to declare Vega as persona non grata in his city, but he did not recommend the drag queen to perform in their place.

However, he clarified that he was also disappointed with Pura’s performance and he would not allow the drag queen to wear a costume of Christ.

He also said that Lapu-Lapu City is the gateway of Cebu Province so he’s really hesitant to ban the drag queen.

It can be recalled that Pura was declared persona non grata in different provinces in the Philippines including Manila City, Laguna, Bukidnon, General Santos City, Floridablanca in Pampanga, Taboso, Cebu City, Mandaue City, Occidental Mindoro, and Dinagat Islands.

Meanwhile, Pura also challenged other provinces to declare him persona non grata.

“Ito lang masasabi ko… simplehan lang natin ha? Lahat tayo makasalanan. Tama? Hindi tayo perpekto. Tama? Gayunpaman, do unto others what you want others to do unto you. Okay? Do not do unto others what you do not want others to do unto you. Golden rule lang po ‘yun,” said Pura.

“Para sa mga ibang lugar na gustong mag-persona non grata diyan, dagdagan niyo pa! Pakialam ko. Mayroon tayong separation ng church at ng state. ‘Yun lang po. Thank you po!” he added.