Former senator and action star Ramon Revilla, Sr., who pushed changes to the Family Code to benefit children out of wedlock, passed away on Friday due to heart failure, his son said. He was 93.

“My father is gone,” a tearful Senator Ramon B. Revilla, Jr. said in a short video streamed live on his Facebook page in Filipino.

The elder Mr. Revilla was rushed to the hospital on May 31 due to difficulty in breathing.

He later underwent an angiogram procedure on June 10 and was on his way to recovery. “Daddy is going through a rough time,” his son said in a post on Thursday.

Mr. Revilla was born Jose Acuña Bautista in Imus, Cavite on March 8, 1927. He was a multi-awarded actor known for his fantasy roles involving amulets.

In 1992, he won a seat in the Senate and held the post until 2004. He was known for the Revilla bill, which amended the Family Code for the benefit of illegitimate children.

The measure, signed in February 2004, allowed an illegitimate child to use the surname of his father, with his consent.

Mr. Revilla fathered at least 72 children with at least 16 different women, according to ABS-CBN News. — Charmaine A. Tadalan

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