By Luis Buenaflor Jr
Monday, June 11, 2018
TOMORROW June 12 is the 120th anniversary of the Philippines’ declaration of independence from foreign rule and it is but fitting that after more than three decades of the Aquinos in power, our country is finally free from the yellow ribbon and all that shit.
The “cult of the yellow ribbon” ironically was born after the death of the Aquino family’s self-proclaimed hero whose purported heroism was rammed down our throats for more than three decades.
The late Benigno Aquino Jr. a.k.a. Ninoy Aquino is not a hero; at best he’s just another opportunistic politician who entered politics to fulfill his personal ambitions at all cost. He is the classic demagogue who spent his time as an elected public official making himself look good while his political rivals look bad, using the classic “I’m the good guy and he’s the bad guy” card.
His so-called heroism was forcibly imposed upon us by this act:
“Ninoy Aquino Day, a national non-working holiday in the Philippines observed annually on August 21, commemorating the assassination of former senator Benigno ‘Ninoy’ Aquino, Jr.
The holiday was created by Republic Act 9256, which was signed into law by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on Feb. 25, 2004, 21 years after his death and 18 years after the People Power Revolution, and was sponsored by Senate President Franklin Drilon and House Speaker Jose de Venecia.”
As you can see, the ultimate motive is patronage politics, paying a debt to the “cult of yellow ribbon devotees” and not to honor a “hero” who has done something great for the natives of this archipelago. Take a look at the proponents of this law; they are the ultimate politicians and patronage politics experts.
And what about the man they imposed upon us to honor? What has he done for the country and the natives?
Ninoy Aquino was a congressman and a senator and during his time as a member of both legislative bodies, not a single bill or law was passed coming from him.
If that sounds familiar, he had a son and namesake more popularly known as Noynoy Aquino who also was a congressman and a senator, spent 12 years there and also not a single bill or law passed to his name.
The late Ninoy Aquino spent his time in the Senate doing privilege speeches one after the other denouncing then President Marcos, grandstanding to make himself look good and Marcos look bad. But really, those speeches only benefited himself as they were all in aid of election (his personal ambition was to become president) and not of legislation.
Ninoy Aquino vehemently opposed then President Marcos for two things: he wanted to become President of the Republic and Marcos was his main stumbling block and the lease from the government of Hacienda Luisita was about to expire and President Marcos already served noticed that it won’tbe extended and the government wanted it back.
For the uninitiated, a short background on Hacienda Luisita:
“Ninoy helped broker the purchase of Hacienda Luisita, a 6,453-hectare sugar plantation and the biggest hacienda in the country, for his wife’s family in 1957. He later on became the hacienda’s administrator. In return for the family agreeing to distribute Hacienda Luisita’s land to small farmers by 1967, the purchase received preferential treatment from the Philippine government, which included a loan package from the Philippine Central Bank and the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS). However, the family successfully resisted the distribution of land to small farmers, including during the period of Marcos government (1965-1986). According to London School of Economics Professor Dr. James Putzel, who did extensive research on agrarian reform in the Philippines, the controversies that would hound the hacienda for decades can be traced to the family’s efforts to retain control of the land long after the deadline for land distribution passed in 1967.”
You see why it was imperative upon Ninoy Aquino to bring then President Marcos down just like why his nincompoop son who later on became President also had the late Chief Justice Renato Corona impeached? Yeah baby, it was all about Hacienda Luisita.
When Ninoy Aquino was in the United States, the interest of the natives on the opposition against President Marcos faded. The country was peaceful, and the natives became complacent.
Really, with the Manila International Film Festival or MIFF, “bomba” and “pene” movies entertaining the natives and Club Coco Banana for the trendy social climber, who wanted to demonstrate against Marcos? Ninoy Aquino and his motley crew were largely forgotten.
Ninoy Aquino needed to spark the native’s interest in his cause and what better way to do it than by coming back to the Philippines.
There were “careless whispers” that say the “assassination” was self-inflicted that went awry; he was not supposed to die, only wounded and from his hospital bed he would rally the natives for a final push to bring Marcos down.
Somehow Ninoy Aquino stumbled as he was going down the stairs from the plane, the amateur “assassin” fired simultaneously as he stumbled hitting his head instead of the shoulders as was the plan.
Now, what gives credence to this “careless whisper” is the fact that his wife became President of the republic, likewise his son. Both of them have occupied the most powerful post in the country yet they never did anything to find and go after Ninoy Aquino’s killer or killers.
You know we should pity Ninoy Aquino; his wife used his bloody corpse to become president yet never lifted a finger to find out who had or killed him. Never mind his son, he’s just a nincompoop.
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