IN REMEMBRANCE of the late senator Benigno “Ninoy” S. Aquino, Jr., his son and namesake, former President Benigno S.C. Aquino III, urged Filipinos to stand as a “Ninoy” in serving the country.
“Nung nawala po ang tatay natin marami pong tumayo at parang pinuno yung mga papel na ginagampanan nya (When we lost our father, many stood and took his part),” Mr. Aquino said on Tuesday during his speech after the commemoration mass for his father’s 35th death anniversary at the Manila Memorial Park.
It was 35 years ago when the former political leader was shot and killed as he stepped out of the plane that brought him home after three years in exile.
“So, kung nawalan tayo ng isang Ninoy ay dumami naman po ang papel ng mga tumatayong Ninoy (So, even if we lost a Ninoy, in his place there were many others who served his role), Mr. Aquino said, stressing that the country’s development lies in the people’s hands.
President Rodrigo R. Duterte attested to this, saying that in pushing for real change, the country needs “more citizens like him (Ninoy).”
“May his dedication to his cause serve as a guidepost for our current leaders in government as they advance the welfare of our people, especially the oppressed and marginalized,” Mr. Duterte said in a statement on Tuesday.
For her part, Vice-President Maria Leonor G. Robredo highlighted the role of the late senator in what would be the historic People Power Revolution that freed the country from the dictatorship of former President Ferdinand E. Marcos.
“Our remembrance of Ninoy tends to focus largely on this martyrdom, when, through his courage in the face of death, he inspired a people to find their own,” Ms. Robredo said.
She also recalled that it was the people’s undying will to fight during the reign of Mr. Marcos that made Mr. Aquino say that the “Filipino is worth dying for.”
“Today, as we remember Ninoy Aquino, I pray that we find in ourselves the courage to claim for ourselves the freedoms Ninoy died for, and in that way, live up to the unshakable faith he had in us as a people.,” Ms. Robredo said. — Charmaine A. Tadalan

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