Ex-HK Congen Raly Tejada passes away at 53

 

Filipinos in Hong Kong are mourning the sudden passing of former Consul General Raly Tejada in Manila this afternoon.

His colleagues at the Department of Foreign Affairs relayed the information of his demise through a text message which said that he was “found unconscious in his flat and was rushed to San Juan de Dios but doctors were unable to revive him. “

“Please pray for the eternal repose of his soul.”

One of the first things he did on arrival in HK was to meet OFW protesters outside the PCG

His death came as a shock to many as he was known to be a fitness buff, often playing basketball with staff at the Consulate while posted here.

A friend and colleague who met with him last week for lunch said he looked healthy and happy. “Tawa nang tawa (he kept laughing),” was how his fellow diplomat described him.

Tejada, who was serving as assistant secretary in charge of the legal division at the DFA at the time of his death, was 53.

He is survived by his Hong Kong-born wife, Vivian, whom he met when he was first posted here as a vice-consul in the early 2000s.

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It was perhaps fitting that he ended his last six-year overseas tour of duty also in Hong Kong, in December 2023, after serving here for just over four years. For the first two years of that overseas posting, 2017 to 2019, he served as the Philippine consul general in Malaysia.

The then CG Raly personally oversaw the highly successful overseas voting in 2022

As consul general in Hong Kong, Tejada distinguished himself for leading the community through two of the most difficult times in the city – the anti-government protests in late 2019, and the Covid-19 pandemic for the next three years thereafter.

He had taken particular pride in keeping the Consulate open even through the worst periods of uncertainty during that time, during which he personally provided the community with relevant and timely updates on the protests and the pandemic.

But he did more than this, joining a number of people who immediately raised concerns with the Hong Kong government when foreign domestic workers were subjected to mandatory testing for Covid-19. He also pushed for measures to help migrant workers who were thrown out of their employers’ houses when the pandemic took a turn for the worst.

Tejada also distinguished himself by delivering a massive turnout rate of 64.18% in the overseas voting for the Philippine national elections in 2022, despite the severe restrictions being enforced due to the 5^th and worst Covid outbreak in Hong Kong.

One of his last public appearances was the Christmas and annual general assembly of the University of the Philippines Alumni Association Hong Kong chapter, a group he often obliged with his presence, even at the height of the pandemic.

He said then that he always looked up to UP for inspiration and guidance.

Sharing holiday cheer with his fellow UP alumni at the end of his HK term

Tejada went to UP for his undergraduate course and also part of his law studies, before eventually moving to San Sebastian College where he obtained his Juris Doctor degree in 1998. He obtained a degree in master of public management at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology just before his recall to the head office.

For more stories on ASec Raly’s time in Hong Kong as consul general from 2019-2023, please click the link and scroll down: 

https://www.sunwebhk.com/search?q=CG+UPAA&m=1

(The Consulate will open a condolence book for ASec Raly this Wednesday and Thursday. Please inquire at the lobby for the venue. Staff will also say the rosary for him on the same days).

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