Aquino offers hope for change in Philippines

Senator Benigno Aquino III, the frontrunner in the Philippines’ presidential race, did not hesitate to line up behind dozens of other voters to wait for his turn to cast a ballot last week.
The 50-year-old son of Philippine democracy heroes Corazon and Begnigno Aquino Jr would have gone unnoticed had it not been for the horde of journalists that surged towards him as he walked to his precinct.
‘I join the Filipinos in their aspiration to ensure that the true will of the people will prevail,’ he told reporters. ‘I join them in their hope for change.’
Even before the first ballots were cast, Aquino was expected to win the presidency by a big margin. The last pre-election survey showed him with a 22-percentage-point lead over his nearest rivals, former president Joseph Estrada and Senator Manuel Villar.
While critics have assailed him for his unimpressive legislative record, the balding bachelor has endeared himself with the public with his unassuming ways and unsullied reputation.
‘I think what the people like about me is my sincerity,’ he said. ‘They know that I will not deceive them. They trust that when there are bad news, I will tell it to them straight. They know that I will also share with them the solution to problems.’
During the 90-day campaign, Aquino electrified and offered hope for Filipinos disenchanted with more than nine years of rule by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, rife with numerous scandals.
Jessie Rivera, 40, an unemployed father of three, said he believed that Aquino would be a great leader for the Philippines.
‘I have high hopes that he will be able to solve the problems in our country,’ he said. ‘I wish he can provide jobs for everyone so I can also find work to be able to feed my family.’
A graduate of economics at the Jesuit-run Ateneo de Manila University, Aquino once worked for a company selling Nike shoes and ran the family businesses while serving as an aide to his mother, former president Corazon Aquino.
In 1987, just 18 months into his mother’s presidency, he was badly injured in an ambush by rebellious soldiers during an attempted coup d’etat, suffering five gunshot wounds.
Aquino entered politics after his mother’s term ended in 1992, scoring his first victory as a congressman in his home province of Tarlac in 1998. He served three terms before being elected senator in 2007.
‘We will immediately work on fulfilling what we promised during the campaign,’ he said. ‘We will choose people who can help us in the government and conduct an inventory of what was left of the state resources.’
Aquino also vowed to review last-minute appointments and deals made by Arroyo, to ensure a clean start for his administration.
Aquino brushed of criticism of his lack of experience, asking the public to give him a chance to prove himself.
‘There will always be people who will support me and people who will criticize me,’ he said. ‘All I ask is for people to judge me fairly and I think they will see nothing wrong with my service record.’
- DPA