End of days

The moment I got the news I never wanted to hear, there was nothing else to do but cry. I have written two columns expressing my support for former President Corazon Cojuangco Aquino after she started her battle with colon cancer. I had been praying fervently for a miraculous recovery for her, joining the rest of the nation in doing so. When things started to get worse, I prayed, admittedly, for a peaceful transition into the next and better life, for a death without pain.

So I somewhat expected and dreaded that call or text message telling me that she has passed. But when the call did come I couldn’t say I was prepared for it, despite everything. It’s just one of those moments that you’d remember for the rest of your life, because you realize that life, as you know it, ceases to be.

A life without President Cory is a lot less. I am just somewhat grateful that my beloved President died the way she always wanted to, surrounded by the love of her family, and the love of a nation she herself loved dearly.

People like to tell stories to help them with their grief. I’d like to share some treasured memories about my President Cory. I got a bit close to her when she drafted me to run on her senatorial ticket during the national elections of 1988.

Of course, before that I would run into her every now and then as I was very active campaigning for her and Doy Laurel in the 1986 snap election. And before the campaign she probably knew me from my work as a member of the Agrava Board tasked by Marcos to investigate the killing of Ninoy Aquino.

(To those too young to remember, a little addendum: then- President Marcos named me as a member of the Agrava Board (Justice Corazon Juliano Agrava headed it)—together with businessman Dante Santos, Amado Dizon and Luciano Salazar. I was a young labor leader from the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines which was generally seen as moderate and even “friendly” to the Marcos administration. Marcos probably didn’t expect me to lead the members into presenting a majority dissenting opinion in 1984 pointing to a military conspiracy behind the death of Ninoy.)

Anyway, I was never really close to Cory in the way Rene Saguisag, Joker Arroyo or Teddy Boy Locsin were. These men were with her at what Rene jokingly called the “moment of creation.” So when she called me at the Malacañang Guest House where she stayed, I was intimidated to say the least. Who wouldn’t be? The woman, besides being President, is the icon of Philippine democracy. She just toppled a dictator.

But the moment she welcomed me at the door she put me at ease. She served me merienda. She pushed the tray cart of food into the room herself. She started asking me about my family and my work. I can easily understand why people have taken to calling her Tita Cory. When Cory talks to you, when you are in her presence, there’s something about her voice and her reassuring manner that makes you feel you are an immediate relative, and that she is genuinely concerned about your well-being.

She simply said, “Boy, I’d like you to run on my ticket. I’d like you to run for senator, so the workers can have a voice in the Senate. Please don’t say no.” (I have refused several government positions she offered beforehand. I didn’t deem I was worthy.)

I was flabbergasted to say anything actually. It was an honor to have been personally chosen by her and I just couldn’t turn her down, not when she asked me face to face. At the back of my mind, I was thinking: how could I win? Who knew me other than those in the Labor sector? Of course, I didn’t anticipate the Cory Magic.

Cory was the first President we had at the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines. People were taken aback when, during lunch, she and her daughter Kris started serving the guests who were mostly factory workers. They handed out plates and offered dishes to the workers. In that one kind gesture they immediately shattered the class divide that workers thought separated them from their ‘elitist’ President. She was their Tita Cory too.

 Cory, of course, thought nothing of it. Such a gesture, I would find out as I got to know her more later, comes naturally to her. Nothing about her is staged or phony. She was honest and genuine to the core.

People, whether those close to her or those most critical of her, would probably acknowledge that Cory’s most amazing gift, her so-called Magic, was that she could always bring out the best in people even during the worst of times. She exuded leadership without self-importance. Indeed, even as President, she was the quintessential housewife who looked after the needs of her family (her nation) first before herself. There is no one like her anymore, certainly none among the present crop of politicians who proclaim themselves to be leaders.

She was the best President this country ever had. It has been a pleasure serving the country with her. I love her and will miss her dearly. –Ernesto F. Herrera, Manila Times

ernestboyherrera@yahoo.com