I’m sure I’m not the only one who has observed that whenever our country is ruled by a corrupt, abusive, and tyrannical president, an Aquino dies and rouses individuals and democratic forces to fight for democracy. During the Marcos dictatorship, the Left consistently fought for the rights of the people, but it was only after the assassination of Sen. Ninoy Aquino that thousands of Filipinos, especially the middle classes, became active in the so-called parliament of the streets and in the 1986 presidential election.
In 2004, former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo cheated her way to the presidency (“Hello, Garci?”). Corruption became a way of life and repressive measures were implemented by her AFP chief of staff and the PNP to quell the various forces opposing her administration. The death of President Cory Aquino swept to victory her only son, “Noynoy” Aquino, who instituted various social, political, and economic reforms when he became president.
Today, we are led by a president under whose rule billions of shabu still manage to slip in, thousands of petty pushers have died, fake news abound, and servility to China is the norm. Is the death of Noynoy Aquino a foreshadowing of the return of a respectable president who will assert our rights against China, open up the democratic space, and provide medical and health solutions instead of police or military ones to the drug problem and the pandemic?
RAFFY REY HIPOLITO
raffy_hipolito2005@yahoo.com