Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III has just sharpened the anticorruption jabs of his presidential campaign.
Explaining a new political ad in which he proclaims, “Hindi ako magnanakaw ( I will not steal),” Aquino told reporters here Friday that this meant he would “lead by example” and pursue a two-prong strategy to “put a stop to corruption” in the Philippines.
The Liberal Party standard-bearer said his formula involved the strict enforcement of anticorruption laws on one hand, and on the other, the provision of “sufficient means” for government employees to be able to fend for their families.
Aquino and his running mate, Sen. Manuel Roxas, were in town to attend the wake of Marciliano “Bong” Dizon, a coordinator of the Noynoy Aquino for President Movement who was gunned down by two men on Wednesday.
“We have good laws [that punish and prevent graft and corruption]. All we need to do is enforce those laws,” Aquino said.
A case in point, he said, was the P728-million fertilizer scam where the money was allegedly used for election spending. “This took place in 2004 but was only investigated in 2008. So when would the investigation and trial be over? A witness in the Senate has already been killed. So how can we ensure justice? When there’s wrongdoing, it should have an equivalent punishment through good prosecution supported by a fair judicial system,” he said.
The carrot side of the strategy, he said, was to provide sufficient means for government employees to fend for their families and give an education to their children.
On reports that his closest rival, Sen. Manuel Villar, had eaten into his lead, Aquino begged to disagree.
“What is clear to me is that while my opponent has placed many ads and I did otherwise, I still maintained a solid foothold,” he said, adding that he expected his lead to widen as the campaign deepened.
Aquino said his hectic provincial visits had greatly reduced his sleeping hours.
In La Union on Thursday, he and Roxas had their hands full with several invitations that ended with dinner at 11 p.m.
The next day, he said, they were up at 4 a.m. to make it to Tarlac, Aquino’s home province, and then to Pampanga.
He said that as a senator, he is used to working late hours but for health reasons, he makes sure to get four to five hours of sleep.
So will he be a sleepless president? His reply: “When it’s needed. But people who don’t sleep may not make sound decisions.”
Security concerns may slow down his campaign.
Of 20 security personnel he requested from the Philippine National Police, he said he got 10. “Only six are available for now. The four are due for training or reporting,” he said.
Aquino said he would campaign in 80 provinces within 90 days, covering a minimum of one province a day. At that rate, six security personnel would not be enough, he said.
“I will adjust to the system because that is what is allowed us,” he said.
On the statement of another presidential candidate, Sen. Richard Gordon, that the presidency cannot be bought or inherited, Aquino said he agreed with his colleague.
“But let us also say that principles can be inherited. An outlook to serve the people can also be inherited. Getting a sense of what’s right and wrong and what distinguishes the two are learned and inherited from parents,” he said.
The parents of Aquino are martyred Sen. Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr., who was killed as he returned from exile to lead the opposition against then dictator Ferdinand Marcos, and the late President Corazon Aquino, who beat Marcos and caused his ouster following the Edsa I Revolution.
“On the presidency, my father had said, ‘I can open the door for you but it is up to you if it will remain open.’ I ran in four elections and my door has remained open. For sure I have accomplishments to make that door open,” he said.
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