(With the author’s permission, we are running his post on his FB, which he links to the story he wrote for spot.ph on June 26, 2021, right after the death of former President Benigno Aquino III on June 24, 2021. Quezon’s FB post marked the commemoration of Aquino’s—PNoy’s—birthday February 8, 2026. It would have been his 66th birth anniversary.—Editor)
If they were still alive, both Ninoy and Cory Aquino would be 93 years old today; their son Noynoy would have been 66 years old today. Under different circumstances all three could well be still with us, considering their social background, which made excellent medical care probable. It also reminds us that their eras, now passed, weren’t so long ago.
Today’s birth anniversary for former President Benigno S. Aquino III has me putting forward the obituary I wrote shortly after his passing. It’s painful to revisit it every year –and it’s only been five years– but I have to say I remain satisfied with what I decided to say and how I approached trying to sum up his character and presidency.
