Getting to know 'The Little President' Jojo Ochoa

As a superhero needs a sidekick or a ship captain its First Mate, so does a President need a “Little President." For President Benigno Simeon “Noynoy" Aquino III, his consort comes in the person of Executive Secretary Paquito "Jojo" Ochoa Jr., the highest-ranking official of the Cabinet. Aquino and “The Little President," as all executive secretaries are known, go a long way back. Their fathers— martyred senator Benigno “Ninoy" Aquino Jr. and former Pulilan Mayor Paquito Ochoa Sr.— were stalwarts of the Liberal Party (LP).

Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa talks with journalists during a media dinner. Jam Sisante

Few people know, however, that Pacquito Sr. may have been the reason why Ninoy was spared from the “Plaza Miranda bombing" on August 21, 1971, which claimed the lives of nine people and injured 95 others. The bombing occurred during an LP political campaign rally at the Plaza Miranda in Quiapo, Manila. The Plaza Miranda incident happened exactly 12 years before Ninoy was assassinated on August 21, 1983 at the Manila International Airport, now named Ninoy Aquino International Airport in his honor. Both Ninoy and Pacquito Sr. were not present at the rally. Some have accused Ninoy of having been informed about the plan to carry out the bombing. However, Jojo tells a different story. "Si Ninoy kaya wala dun sa August 21 sa Plaza Miranda dahil birthday ng tatay ko, nandun sa Pulilan (Ninoy was not there in Plaza Miranda on August 21 because it was my father's birthday, so Ninoy was in Pulilan)," he says. Some say the rise of the low-key Noynoy Aquino to the presidency must have been destiny. Even after sustaining five gunshot wounds during a coup attempt against the administration of his mother, the late President Corazon "Cory" Aquino, Noynoy survived. Humorous side It must have also been destiny for Noynoy and Jojo to work together and become friends. Their fathers' friendship did not exactly make Noynoy and Jojo the best of friends. They were more like acquaintances, says Ochoa, until they met again in 1998 through common friends. Noynoy was a newbie congressman then from Tarlac and was looking for a legislative officer. Jojo, an Ateneo law graduate, then volunteered and has become Noynoy's legal counsel ever since. At first, it does not seem that Noynoy and Jojo have a lot in common. Noynoy is very media-savvy, often engaging reporters in candid conversations on and off the camera. Ochoa, on the other hand, avoided the press as much as he could, ducking from reporters' view and answering only with terse, sometimes mono-syllabic statements whenever he failed to escape the cameras. However, during his first dinner with the media, Jojo showed a different, humorous side, remarkably similar to what the media often sees in Noynoy. Jojo talked about his history with the President under the glare of cameras. 'Eeek, eto na' He spoke of how he did not want Noynoy to feel pressured to run for president amid the great public clamor after Mrs. Aquino died on August 1 last year. "Nagtext lang ako sa kanya, 'pare ko, andito lang ako if you need any rest. I think you need a break from it all. Baka gusto mong magbreak tayong dalawa, samahan kita, 'di kita kausapin, bahala ka sa buhay mo, but I guess you have to take a break (I texted him, 'my friend, I'm just here if you need any rest. I think you need a break from it all. Maybe you want to take a break, I''ll go with you, I won't talk to you, you can do whatever you want, but I guess you have to take a break)," Jojo said. "Sagot naman siya, 'ok lang ako.' (He said, 'I'm okay')," recalled Jojo, who did not hear from Noynoy until the would-be president called to tell him to go to Club Filipino. Jojo said that was where Noynoy delivered his now-famous speech about accepting the challenge to run for president. "Yun yung 'tinatanggap ko...' (That was the 'I accept...')," Ochoa said, his uncanny imitation of Noynoy's deep voice eliciting laughter from the audience. "Sabi ko, 'eeek, eto na' (I said, 'eeek, so this is it)," Jojo recounted. Even though he was surprised by Noynoy's announcement, Jojo, a Quezon City administrator for nine years, said he immediately offered to help his friend in the presidential campaign. Jojo not only served as Noynoy's legal counsel but also coordinated with other lawyers so that Noynoy would have a "personal lawyer" in every campaign sortie. Collectively they became known as the "PiNoy Lawyers." Scary ambush interviews Jojo's office is on the first floor of the Premier Guest House inside the Malacañang compound, while Noynoy's office is on the second floor. "My joke now is the president is directly above me," he quipped. Jojo said he's still adjusting to his new role. He is not yet used to getting around 500 text messages a day, aside from receiving numerous calls in between. Having been used to working in the background, Jojo said he still gets nervous when speaking to a large pack of reporters. "The word pa lang na 'ambush,' nakakatakot na di ba (The word 'ambush' is already scary)," he said in jest, referring to ambush interviews. Jojo said his first week in office has been "grueling" as the Aquino team had to start from scratch. They had to become familiar with Malacañang practices to know what to improve on. It's a big responsibility, he said, which is why he puts in more effort than he used to. "Walang room for mistake," (There's no room for mistakes) Jojo said later. "Walang room for 'I am sorry'." (There's no room for 'I am sorry.') – VVP, GMANews.TV