Philippines holds state funeral for Jesse Robredo

The Philippines has held a state funeral for Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo, who died in a plane crash, after six days of national mourning.

President Benigno Aquino led the funeral services at Mr Robredo's home city of Naga in central Philippines.

Mr Robredo was widely admired for his perceived lack of corruption.

Not since the death of Mr Aquino's mother, Corazon, in 2009 has the country seen such public grief, says a BBC correspondent.

Mr Robredo was seen as one of the few Philippine politicians who was not corrupt and who genuinely wanted to make the country better, says the BBC's Kate McGeown in Naga City.

The president conferred a posthumous Philippine Legion of Honour award upon Mr Robredo during the state funeral, which was accepted by his wife.

In his eulogy, Mr Aquino thanked Mr Robredo for his public service. He said that Mr Robredo sought to follow the right path and proved that one could succeed in politics without being a traditional politician.

Mr Robredo's body was recovered on 21 August from the sea after a plane he was travelling in crashed.

The two pilots who flew the plane also died in the crash. One other passenger, Mr Robredo's aide, survived with minor injuries.

The small plane was travelling from Cebu City in central Philippines to Naga City in Camarines Sur province when it encountered engine problems.

Mr Robredo, 54, was in charge of the national police force and provincial governments. He was a long-time mayor of Naga City before his appointment to Mr Aquino's cabinet.

A graduate of Harvard University's John F Kennedy School of Government, Mr Robredo received numerous awards for good governance.

One of these was the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay award, known as Asia's version of the Nobel prize, in 2000. He had been described as an "exceptional" and "inspirational" public servant.