August 21

Netnet Camomot

THERE’S a major reason why Aug. 21 was a holiday. Thirty-two years ago, Ninoy Aquino was assassinated upon his arrival from the US at what is now called as the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia). There’s also a reason why that airport has been named after him, but I don’t think I have to spell that out now that you remember the details of Aug. 21.

Remembering, though, can be tricky. I was in my, ahem, teens in 1983 when that assassination shook at least Manila. I’m saying “at least” because at that time, there was no internet, no cell phones, no Facebook, no Twitter, no Instagram, landlines were still in the Jurassic age–hello, party line? And worst of all, there was censorship, no thanks to the Marcos dictatorship.

Anyone younger than, say, 16 then had probably no idea what was happening and who Ninoy was. Those 16-year-olds are now–gasp!–48 years old, with only a vague idea of the assassination if their parents, elder siblings, and teachers were the kind who talked about assassinations while choked by the tentacles of a dictatorship.

Pinoys whose social consciousness is always at its highest level are of course aware of the country’s history and the hows and whys of who, what and where we are, and they don’t have to be asked if they’re familiar with August 21 even if they were born after 1983.

And then, Butz Aquino died last week on the 17th in a month filled with death anniversaries: his elder brother’s 32nd on August 21, Cory Aquino’s sixth last August 1, and Jesse Robredo’s third on August 18. August happens to be the Ghost Month for the Chinese.

Butz Aquino was an actor who became a street parliamentarian after his brother died, and eventually served the country as a congressman and was later elected to higher office as a senator.

Videos of Ninoy’s interview in the plane that brought him to Manila, and when he was fetched by military personnel who led him out of the plane, were posted on Facebook. You could hear gunshots as they exited the plane but no video has ever surfaced of that crucial moment before Ninoy could be seen on the ground lying in a pool of his own blood.

From Aug. 21, 1983 up to the time when the Marcoses were kicked out of Malacanang on Feb. 25, 1986, releasing the interview video to the public would have been unthinkable. Or even worse–the dictator’s men would have hunted you down if ever you were suspected as among those possessing a copy of that video. But Ninoy’s death woke up Pinoys, morphing them into street parliamentarians who were no longer afraid to question the system after having lived with what was then considered as the norm since the declaration of Martial Law on Sept. 21, 1972.

Well, some of those street parliamentarians allegedly morphed into the dictators, plunderers, and the grafters and corruptors they once abhorred, with at least one now running for the presidency. A People Power hero also has had his own evolution by ending up detained in a hospital for the plunder and graft charges against him, but is now out again after being allowed by the Supreme Court to post a P1.45-million bail.

The reason behind his provisional freedom: humanitarian reasons.

I wonder if a grafting and corrupting politician ever thinks of humanitarian reasons whenever he’s dipping his hands into the national treasury. Most probably, it’s for personal reasons–matindi ang pangangailangan.

But there’s always another reason aside from the humanitarian factor for such a temporary freedom. Some people need his wisdom tooth, er, thoughts especially now that the road to the 2016 election is paved with all sorts of intentions. His long-term political experience–he’s now 91 years old–makes him one of the most sought-after advisers in Philippine politics. Yup, he has been there, done that, from pro-Marcos to anti-Marcos and pro-Cory to anti-Cory. “Which way did he go, George? Which way did he go?”

And why am I now having this thought bubble: “It’s a hard-knock life for us! It’s a hard-knock life for us!” For we, the madlang pehpohl, don’t know the real story behind the headlines and have to rely on the public relations machinery that these movers and shakers are willing to share with us. The most real and true of stories remain behind closed doors, with strict instructions to never release them to the wild. Unless they’re allowed to post bail.

Do you even have any idea who ordered the assassination of Ninoy? Here was his warning while still in the plane: “You have to be ready with your hand camera because this action can become very fast. In a matter of three or four minutes it could be all over, and I may not be able to talk to you again after this.”

In this age of the smartphone that can be much smarter than its owner, and CCTVs in every corner of your favorite convenience store, makes you wonder if these advances in technology would have helped the investigation of the assassination had it happened today. But it happened on August 21, 1983 when some people panicked, probably afraid of the effect of Ninoy’s presence on their perks and privileges.

Panic can make some people’s wisdom go awry. The best way is always to calm down and gather one’s tooth, er, thoughts. Inhale. Exhale. And then, Tita Cory and PNoy would not have been elected as the country’s presidents. And Kris would have kept her mouth shut and settled down with an equally quiet man.

As the proverb says, “Everything happens for a reason.” And one of them is the humanitarian reason? Which we’re hoping won’t bail out two more allegedly plundering senators out of detention.