I would have remained quiet about the TIME award to President Noy Aquino as one of the 100 most influential leaders in the world.
But it was a bit much when the magazine gave the reasons why he was chosen. “The sputtering economy stabilized and became hot under him, he pushed for a reproductive-rights law that many said was impossible in the fervently Catholic nation, and he bravely confronted Beijing over its claim on the South China Sea,” says TIME.
He may have been cited in the TIME list but all three reasons demean the Philippines as a country in the service of the American agenda. Had TIME Magazine been subtler when giving the reasons for naming him, it would have given space for intelligent and patriotic Filipinos to appreciate the award.
But then the TIME list for influential leaders has a reputation for the choices it makes to favor political reasons. It is no different from choices made for winners of the Nobel Peace Prize or for that matter which country wins in the lamentable beauty contests of Miss Universe or Miss International.
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His inclusion in the list could not have come at a worse time with the release of a Wikileaks report on a US diplomatic cable that said “even the late President Corazon Aquino admitted that her son, President Benigno Aquino III, is not a “natural politician.” The cable was sent before the 2010 elections by former US Ambassador to Manila Kristie Kenney.
The cable was sent to inform Washington of Aquino’s expected bid for the presidency, after Sen. Mar Roxas said he was passing on to Aquino the Liberal Party standard.
In Kenney’s cable she said “Most political observers, including his late mother, agree that he is not a natural politician, lacking the charisma and aggressive political agenda that usually propels political candidates.”
The US diplomat said it was Cory herself who told her “it had taken a massive effort by the entire Aquino clan... to get Noynoy elected to the Senate.” Mrs. Aquino reportedly said they had to rely on the popularity of her youngest daughter, actress Kris, her husband basketball star James Yap, as well as her own political pull.”
Aquino, served out three terms as Tarlac second district representative, ranked sixth in the 2007 senatorial race with more than 14.3 million votes.
Kenney also described the President’s record as a legislator “lackluster.” “He has not played a leading role in the House or Senate, and his views on many controversial issues remain unknown.”
Interestingly she noted in the same cable that the US Embassy is “not aware of any corruption allegations against Aquino” and that his “uncontroversial nature” is seen to boost his image as “clean”.
She compared “Aquino’s foray into presidential politics to that of his mother’s, who had been catapulted into the presidency by the assassination of her husband, Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr.” That answers many questions on how he took over from Mar Roxas who was earlier favored by the US because of his background in finance.
“Just as the 1983 assassination of Senator Ninoy Aquino propelled his wife, Cory, into presidential politics, so too her death has unexpectedly transformed the political landscape, launching her son on a quest for the presidency,” Kenney said.
Her conclusion: there was public clamor for Aquino to seek the top government position, because “Filipinos hoped to see change after the controversies which hounded the Arroyo administration.”
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