Kris Aquino: Noynoy to inherit home on Times Street

Up to her final moments, Cory Aquino made sure that her children would look after those who had served them. "Mom taught us to take care not just of each other but of people who were good to us," youngest daughter Kris Aquino-Yap told GMA Network's Jessica Soho in an interview on Sunday at the La Salle Greenhills wake. Hours before she died, the former president singled out to her daughter some people she wanted taken care of – her driver, who has been with the family for 34 years; her two security men from the Presidential Security Group who had been with her since her days at the Palace; and two househelpers, whom she wanted her son, Sen. Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III, to keep on employing.

And last but not least the senator himself, whom she told her daughter, should inherit the house on Times Street, because he was the only one who had no place of his own among the siblings. As to her own share, Kris said she told her mother that all she wanted were two paintings, one by Fernando Amorsolo and another by Ang Kiu Kok. She was willing to give up whatever share she had in her inheritance. But eldest sibling Bally Aquino-Cruz told her: "Hindi ganyan, Kris. Mom would want it equal. Kung ano man ang nandyan it should be equal." Forgiveness Kris told Soho that in her final days Mrs. Aquino would at times open her eyes and look at her and they would talk. At one such time, Kris asked for forgiveness for getting into scrapes that made her mother unhappy. "For all those times na nagkulang ako, I'm sorry," she recalled telling Mrs. Aquino. "For all those times I made you cry I'm sorry." "There's no need to say sorry, Kris," her mother said. "Of all my kids, you've brought me the most joy." And at one point Mrs. Aquino said: "Ikaw na ikaw ang daddy mo (You're just like your father)." Kris started to object: "Mom..." "Let's be realistic, Kris," Mrs. Aquino cut her short. "It's because they see you on TV every day that they remember na ako yung mom mo." 'I can see Ninoy' It was Kris who first had an inkling that the end was near. As some nurses were attending to her, Mrs. Aquino stopped them and said: "I can already see Ninoy." They immediately notified Kris, who came to her mother's side and said: "Mom, can you see Dad?" "Yes." "He's calling you?" "Yes." "Mom, he's leading you to heaven. He wants to hold your hand. Hold his hand, Mom." She relayed that incident to her siblings. At 3:18 a.m. last Saturday, Mrs. Aquino died of cardiorespiratory arrest. - A.T. Magno, GMANews.TV