Noynoy will not dissociate himself from parents' legacy
Senator Benigno âNoynoy" Aquino III on Monday said he would never dissociate himself from his parents despite calls from Malacañang. âPaano ko ba idi-dissociate yung sarili ko sa mga magulang ko e di naman nila ako itinakwil (at) wala naman akong planong baguhin ang pangalan ko," he said. (Why will I dissociate myself from my parents when they did not disown me and I donât even have plans to change my name?) Sen. Aquino was reacting to the statement of deputy presidential spokesman Gary Olivar who on Sunday said the senator should âbe his own man" if he is serious in seeking a higher position in next yearâs elections. Olivar said Sen. Aquino, the only son of late former President Corazon Aquino and slain opposition leader Benigno âNinoy" Aquino Jr., has been "invoking the illustrious memory of his heroic parents" in his bid in the 2010 elections. Although he is yet to categorically state his political plans for next year, Sen. Aquino said he sees nothing wrong with continuing his parentsâ advocacy. He also took a swipe at Malacañang, saying Olivarâs statement could be borne out of the fact that nobody would want to follow President Gloria Macapagal Arroyoâs footsteps. âKung sa kanilang pananaw ay walang nangangako na ipagpapatuloy âyung gawain ni GMA (Arroyoâs initials), siguro naman ay hindi ko na sagutin âyun," he said. (If nobody wants to honor Mrs. Arroyoâs legacy, then that is beyond me.) He said he is trying to understand Olivar since defending the âindefensible" is a difficult task to handle. Before she died last August 1, Mrs. Aquino had been a vocal critic of the Arroyo administration. She even called for Mrs. Arroyoâs resignation in 2005 during the height of the "Hello, Garci" scandal, in which wiretapped audio recordings indicated that Mrs. Arroyo might have benefited from electoral fraud in 2004. Calls for Sen. Aquino to run for either president or vice president next year grew after Mrs. Aquinoâs death. Sen. Aquino said his parents brought him up to know the right from wrong and value the opinion of other people. âSa aming pamamahay importante 'yung concensus building. Hindi porkeât sila ang magulang sila ang masusunod (Concensus building was valued in our home)," he said. He added that he and his siblings agreed with the decision of their parents, even the hard ones like his motherâs decision to run against former President Ferdinand Marcos, because they knew it was the right thing to do. - GMANews.TV