Noynoy: Let's reclaim our nation's greatness
By Aurea Calica (The Philippine Star) Updated June 14, 2010 12:00 AM
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MANILA, Philippines - President-elect Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III urged fellow Filipinos over the weekend to
do their part in helping regain the nation’s greatness.
Aquino said the fight for the country’s true freedom still had a long way to go.
“Let us remember that it is not enough to be willing to die for our country. We must also be willing to live for it.
We have been given an opportunity at reclaiming our nation’s greatness. Together, we must seize it. Long
live the Philippines,” Aquino said in a statement issued in connection with the country’s celebration of
Independence Day on June 12.
Aquino was referring to the May 10 elections wherein “many of our fellowmen” fought to be freed from the
country’s ills by voting for a government that promised to be clean and honest.
“But the fight does not end there. Our victory is not the end but the beginning of continuous struggle against
problems that saddle the nation,” Aquino said.
Aquino noted how difficult it was for the country to achieve independence 112 years ago.
“Philippine independence was proclaimed by the revolutionary government of Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo, who
fought valiantly against 300 years of Spanish rule. This was the first time the Philippine flag was raised, and
the anthem was performed. In 1946 we were granted independence, but only after years of war, first against
the Americans, then against Imperial Japan during World War II. Again, in 1986, we celebrated renewed
freedom after our successful mass uprising against the dictator, Ferdinand Marcos, and we restored our
democracy after fourteen years of martial rule,” Aquino said.
“We have a saying in Filipino: Ang hindi marunong lumingon sa pinanggalingan ay hindi makakarating sa
paroroonan. If we apply this adage to the celebration of our independence, we must realize that our freedom
comes at a steep price, where each of us can play an important role,” Aquino said.
Aquino said he was not certain if Filipinos living at present were lucky not to be compelled to offer their lives
for the nation now.
“Many of us no longer have to face death to fight for independence. But at this time, the enemy is no longer
foreign invaders or a dictator. The freedom we are fighting for now is freedom from poverty, corruption and
abuse of power,” Aquino said.
Aquino has appealed for time to solve the country’s woes and said he would need to first make an inventory
of all the country’s problems once he assumes office.
He said he would have to form his Cabinet first and give his marching orders once his officials were in place.
Flowers from GMA
Senator Aquino visited the grave of his parents yesterday with other members of his family and expressed
hope that Filipinos would no longer have to sacrifice the way they did for the country.
Upon arrival at the Manila Memorial Park in Parañaque City, Aquino and his family were surprised to see a
cluster of flowers sent by President Arroyo. The people at the memorial part said it was sent on Saturday, the
country’s Independence Day.
“I don’t know when it was sent and for what purpose,” Aquino said.
Aquino said visiting his late parents, former President Corazon Aquino and former Sen. Benigno “Ninoy”
Aquino Jr. was a source of comfort for him and his sisters and their families.
Aquino’s father was assassinated in 1983 after fighting for the country’s democracy during the time of the
late dictator, Ferdinand Marcos. His widow had to continue his fight and ran for president in 1986.
In a report by GMA News, Aquino said he would always ask guidance from both his parents and that visiting
them “serves as a reminder” of where they came from.
“Hopefully, it will get to the point that it’s no longer necessary for sacrifices that they both gave,” he said.
It was Aquino’s youngest sister, actress and television host Kris Aquino-Yap, who led the praying of the
rosary. The family then proceeded to a restaurant at the Fort in Taguig City for lunch.
Time with family
Aquino said he would like to spend much time with his family once he assumes the presidency because
they were the ones who could give him comfort.
He said he could depend on his family as his strongest supporters in the face of “harshest critics.”
Aquino stressed his family would also make sure that his feet would firmly be planted on the ground even as
president.
He said he would like to have a lot of interaction with his family so long as it would not interfere with his
official duties.
Aquino-Yap said her sisters had agreed to help her in distributing school supplies to school children in
various places nationwide and that it would only be one of the many things they intend to do to help their
brother. – With Jose Rodel Clapano
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'I will just fade away'
By Paolo Romero and Jaime Laude (The Philippine Star) Updated June 12, 2010 12:00 AM
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MANILA, Philippines - President Arroyo bade farewell yesterday to the Armed Forces, saying she would “fade
away as old soldiers and old commanders-in-chief do.”
The Armed Forces honored her yesterday with a testimonial parade that included units of the Presidential
Security Group. Highlighting the event was a demonstration of the Army’s skydiving team.
“And so, today, I thank you for your farewell. It has been a great honor to have been your commander-in-chief,
especially during this period of defense reform,” Mrs. Arroyo said in her message after reviewing the troops
in formation, escorted by Armed Forces chief Gen. Delfin Bangit.
“As I fade away as old soldiers and old commanders-in-chief do, soldiers of the Filipino people, I enjoin you
to carry on. Be the soldiers of the Constitution that you have been all these nine years. Thank you very, very
much to all of you,” she said.
She cited the role of the Armed Forces in keeping the nation stable and intact amid efforts by some groups
in the military to overthrow her.
“I thank the Armed Forces of the Philippines for this testimonial review. But more than that, for the last nine
years, when you gave me the best – the best of your efforts, the best of your skills, the best of your sacrifices,
the best of your passion to serve the flag and the constitutional authority,” she said.
The farewell came amid tension between Bangit and incoming commander-in-chief Benigno “Noynoy”
Aquino III, who has announced his decision to name a new AFP chief.
There was no clear signal yet from Bangit, who worked as Mrs. Arroyo’s aide since she was vice president, if
he would be resigning or retiring.
Mrs. Arroyo said the Armed Forces has become professional and modernized.
She said the military has also been instrumental in helping the country achieve 37 consecutive quarters of
economic growth.
“The Armed Forces has come a long way since January 2001 when I first became your commander-in-chief,
but so has the Philippines itself come a long way since 2001,” she said.
“Time has gratefully erased memories of that moment less than 10 years ago when the nation teetered on
political chaos and financial bankruptcy,” the President said.
“From the first chief of staff in my term to the present chief of staff, each has left his mark to make the
organization stronger and more professional,” she said.
“I’ve seen in each chief of staff with his own style in leadership a progressive advancement toward the
transformation of the Armed Forces, from a fractionalized organization whose members have varying
degrees of politicization to a truly professional course whose loyalty is defined solely by duty to the people
and the Constitution,” she said.
Mrs. Arroyo said it was also during her term that the modernization of the military, increase in the benefits for
soldiers, and defense reforms began.
She also said the military has played a significant role in making the country’s first automated elections
generally peaceful.
Better pay
She said an ordinary soldier now receives nearly double what he or she used to receive in 2009. Soldiers,
she said, now receive bigger hazard pay and subsistence allowance.
She added that because of the salary standardization law that she enacted last year, soldiers would get
another round of increase starting July 1 this year.
She said the annual pay increases for military personnel will continue until 2012.
She said she has also ensured that more and more soldiers’ families are able to own homes. Widows and
orphans are entitled to scholarships and trainings.
“At the very center of defense reforms is the great Filipino soldier. I see the human being and even the
fiercest of our soldiers. I have seen the soldier on the front line prepared to offer his or her life in war or
sacrificing to uplift people in times of need, even as he or she himself or herself also struggles to make
ends meet especially, for instance, a 40-year-old soldier who cares for his family of five and deserves more
dignity,” Mrs. Arroyo said.
“I know of the lonely days and fortitude of our soldiers in the field, in the battlefield, who send humble pay to
the families as source of love and hope. Within the nine years of my presidency therefore, we have
increased the basic pay of our soldiers five times,” she said.
Grateful Bangit
Bangit, in his speech, said Mrs. Arroyo may be the most maligned president the country has ever had, but
she is also the best.
“She gave the AFP the support that it needed - additional personnel, salary increase, modernization fund for
our Armed Forces, and even supported our stand that insurgency can be defeated not by arms alone, but by
winning the hearts and minds of our people,” Bangit said.
“She may have been the most criticized president. But opinion from people who do not know you, who do not
know how you work and what your visions are, is understandable. And so we give them the right to express
their opinions,” Bangit said.
He praised the President for inspiring the AFP to achieve more for peace and development.
“I have worked with the President even when she was still vice president. I had the opportunity of observing
her in good times and in bad, in the high pitch and in the low pitch of her voice. I have personally seen how
she decided in matters dealing with the Armed Forces. And I can personally attest to her concern for the
soldiers,” Bangit said.
“She was the commander-in-chief who insisted on visiting our soldiers amid too many concerns, forgetting
that she, too, is a human who gets tired and needed sleep,” he said.
Bangit said Mrs. Arroyo wanted to get things done as quickly as possible because she didn’t want the
soldiers to wait.
He also said the President acknowledges the soldiers’ sacrifices, treats them honorably, and respects her
troops’ opinions on how they intend to get things done.
“It is probably no secret that she is strict and would always demand the best in you. I have received her ire for
more times than I could count,” he said.
“But at the end of it all, a leader sees what we do not see in our shortsightedness. Later on, we realize the
wisdom of the decision. And we learn. I hope you also have the opportunity to learn the same from your
superiors,” he said.
He also said he learned from Mrs. Arroyo how to be friendly without stooping down or lowering his standards.
“In the midst of the scandals hounding her administration, while militants were burning her effigy on the
streets, she was working. That’s where you see the level of dedication,” he said.
“I must admit I understand her now more than ever,” Bangit said.
He also said he is not worried at all by the impending loss of his position as military chief. He also said he
doesn’t think Mrs. Arroyo is worried about the end of her term.
“To cease to enjoy the honor that used to be accorded to you, I have no such worry. We give our best
contribution wherever we are. Finished or unfinished, we go when we must,” Bangit said.
He also called on the next administration to continue what has already been started by the Arroyo
administration.
“Those who would inherit this administration would have their own time to continue what was started. As
professional soldiers, you will and you should obey them. But until they have exceeded the concern, the
respect, and the support that President Arroyo has accorded the AFP, they would not be able to erase her
contributions,” Bangit said.
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