The man who was behind the 28 years of colorful existence of Bohol Sunday Post, an English weekly newspaper born after the first People Power, has returned to his Creator last Thursday, leaving a media legacy that would be forever remembered in history. Ciriaco “Boy” Guingguing, whose dazzling media career both in print and broadcast span nearly 50 years, died peacefully at Borja Hospital on Thursday, four days after the paper he passionately nurtured - and without missing a single publication since he started it in 1986 - turned 28 years old last Sunday. He was 64.

Outpourings of grief and loss from all over the world continue to flood the Post's email, phones and Facebook account, with his legions of fans explicitly expressing their deep lamentations over the demise of the man who had helped shape Bohol's history. BG, short for his already household name, was the founder-publisher of Bohol Sunday Post, the paper he established and sustained out of his pure sweat, blood and tears – all for the sake of public service, for the love of informing the Boholano community of the latest events that would affect their lives. A never-say-die man, BG had been on dialysis for the last nine years, but never was there a moment he was heard of complaining about his ailment or of his occasional financial difficulty (he had always said he was willing to sell everything he owns to pay up Sunday Post's printing cost). om Monday to Thursday, BG, the original frontrunner of DYRD's Inyong Alagad program which started in the 1970s, was always oozing with humor, wit, wisdom and unpretentious affirmation that life is good, and one must live it to the fullest regardless of the daily battles we all inevitably encounter. Last Wednesday (July 9, 2014) morning, BG still managed to report to DYRD to co-anchor Inyong Alagad but he had to leave at 9 a.m. for his thrice-a-week dialysis routine. Normally, he would feel better after his dialysis session at Bohol Medical Care Institute (BMCI) but he was rushed to the hospital for shortness of breath. BG was supposed to be brought to Cebu for an extensive medical check-up on the day he felt very weak but he missed the mid-day fastcraft schedule. Without a choice, he had to be admitted at a Tagbilaran-based hospital.

Doctors put him on the intensive care unit (ICU) since day one of hospital admission. Wednesday night he had regained his strength, and was already tuning in to the evening TV news. Early on, despite being on life-support mechanisms at Borja Hospital's ICU, he requested a copy of a national daily so he won't miss the day's news. But the doctor advised him to refrain from reading so he could get an ample rest. Deep into the night, still on Wednesday (July 9), he showed signs of recovery, and he was back to his usual jovial disposition in life in which he would drop a line of joke to his streaming hospital visitors, including City Mayor Baba Yap, who was so worried about BG's health condition. Last Sunday, friends and loved ones believed he was ready to make an exodus from the ICU room. But he felt weak again. Though he was transferred to a hotel-like hospital room accommodation last Sunday, BG's health was visibly deteriorating. Last Thursday, past 10 a.m., BG was found having difficulty of breathing. Efforts to reinvigorate him were not fruitful, however. Around 10:20 a.m., a legend in Bohol media lost his battle for life, to the great loss of the province of Bohol. The Post will run a series of tribute articles in the coming weeks, in honor of the man who gave so much of his life for media/journalism service. Love him or hate him, BG is a legend – an authentic genius, a man for all seasons with enormous talent and skill which he offered for the people of Bohol, whom he loved so much, until he breathed his last.