Daniel Razon, Part 1

Photo c / o untvweb.com

A couple of weeks ago Mr. Public Service, Kuya Daniel Razon, together with his wife Arlene, came to Aotearoa New Zealand for a short visit. It would have been awesome if we had a catch-up but I was literally moving house, from Hamilton to Auckland, on the days he was here. We just contented ourselves by communicating thru Viber, as we normally do.  I later found out that he had full-on days that weekend, and the couple really enjoyed their visit.  There is always a next time.

Before he became known as Mr. Public Service, Kuya Daniel and now Dr. Daniel Razon, I first knew him as Dan Hotman, the morning drive DJ of 91.5 KY-FM Manila.  I was then starting as a broadcaster for the sister AM station DZXQ 1350.  From early on, he already showed his love for radio because after his morning slot, he would then switch to the AM station for a couple of hours, playing songs and dishing out love notes, thoughts and inspiration.  And that's where we eventually bonded and found some common ground.

DZXQ back then would sign-off at 12 noon and then go back on air at 6 pm.  I was so determined to become a broadcaster, that I boldly proposed to Mr. Quirino de Guzman Sr., the co-founder and owner of Mabuhay Broadcasting System Inc. for us (Joseph Olfindo, Tato Malay and myself) to broadcast from 12-6. And that was the birth of Kulay Pinoy, 12-6pm, from Monday to Saturday.  My boardwork was from 4-6pm.  I was on-board, on the 15th floor of Strata 100 Building, Ortigas Center, when Mount Pinatubo erupted on June 15, 1991. But that is another story.  One other broadcaster who was doing an awesome public service was medical doctor Arle Imperio.

Through the years, Dan and I would engage in media projects from time to time.  I remember the early years when we would go to his small apartment and studio in the Roosevelt area in Quezon City, to either dub, voice-over or edit these projects. We would pile into his tried and tested Wrangler Jeep and off we'd go.  I once got the privilege of being invited into the main sanctuary of the Ang Dating Daan Convention Center in Apalit, Pampanga.  That's when I first met his uncle, Bro. Eli Soriano.

Then we went into television with Dan, Joseph O and Bro. Eli as hosts and myself as the director of SRO on Target, weekdays afternoon, on IBC-13.  We even dabbled in making an indie film that never saw the light of day though, and when Dan was already a newscaster of PTV-4's Balitang Tanghali, we often met in the cafes along Quezon Avenue, to plan and plot what would have been a strong voice of truth and reason. We named it Voices On Air (VOA).

It was an election year in 1992, when Dan played the part of Ramon Mitra in Tato Malay's production of the Presidentiable Singing Contest, a funny social commentary disguised as a play, staged at the Celebrity Sports Plaza in Quezon City with Lou Veloso (FVR), Ruth Abao (Miriam), Louella de Cordova (Imelda), Tiya Pusit (Cory), and Ahwel Paz, who was a student leader and graduating in college (as the Aeta).  Ahwel is now well-known as DZMM's Papa Ahwel.  Dan wasn't just an actor, he was and is a singer too.  He has recently recorded his latest collection of timeless music.

From PTV-4, he then went to ABS-CBN 2 and GMA-7, where he also made a good impact.  No matter where he found himself, he was always a leader, an innovator, a trailblazer.  A year before I left the Philippines for Aotearoa New Zealand, I was one of the many guests who joined Kuya Daniel on stage at the World Trade Center, in celebration of UNTV's 3rd anniversary.

It was an awesome night of hope and inspiration, with big plans and bold dreams unfolded.  And while I was on-stage, as I saw the multitude of thousands applauding and appreciating what Kuya Daniel was sharing, that I recalled what he once told me: alam mo pare, ako'y isang brodkaster, pero para sa akin pag ang nasa harap ko ay isang biktima ng sakuna, trahedya o ano pa man, ang umiiral sa akin ay ganito, tulong muna bago balita.