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Benigno Aquino Jr. was born in Concepcion, Tarlac. He was only 22 years old when he first entered the world of politics – the youngest mayor of the town of Concepcion. In about the same time, he married Corazon Cojuangco, scion of a wealthy sugar plantation owner from the same town.
His rise to political fame was quick. In 1961, at the age of 29, he became the governor of the province of Tarlac. “Ninoy,” as he is more commonly known, became the secretary-general of the Liberal Party in 1966 and was elected senator of the republic a year after.
He was a very spontaneous speaker. Wherever he was, he drew crowds by the thousands. Ninoy was considered as one of the young turks along with Visayan senator Rene Espina in the halls of senate. He stood toe to toe with great, but much older senators like Lorenzo Tañada, Arturo Tolentino and Gil Puyat.
Ninoy became the voice of the people during the Martial Law years. He was Marcos’ archrival. Marcos, the former president, knew that Ninoy would be a threat to his throne. At the height of political oppression in 1980, Ninoy was exiled to Boston after spending a couple of years in a prison cell in Laur, Nueva Ecija. He had a bypass operation in Boston in that year, but managed to continue his fiery speeches against the Marcos regime. He drew hundreds of Filipinos in different venues in Boston.
In the early part of 1983, he announced his interest to the Philippines “to suffer alongside the people and to appeal directly to Marcos to step down.” He wanted to empathize with the millions of Filipinos affected by the consequences brought by the Martial Law and Marcos dictatorship. His relatives, friends, and even Marcos himself, advised him not to return because his life would be in danger. But he was determined.
Before Aquino left for the Philippines, he told the reporters that he would go back to seek national reconciliation founded on justice. He further added that he was prepared for the worst.
In August 21, 1983, he was shot while going down the stairs of the airplane. Despite the presence of dozens of guards and reporters, no one could exactly recall what happened. Another lifeless body lay beside Ninoy. It was the body of Rolando Galman, the alleged assassin who was purportedly shot by the bodyguards of Ninoy after they saw him fire a gun.
During the wake and interment, Ninoy’s wounded face was intentionally not fixed to provoke public outburst. As a result, millions attended his burial in August 31, 1983.
His lifeless body in the tarmac of the Manila International Airport was often shown in commercials from 1983 up to the bloodless People Power in 1986.
Three years after his death, Ninoy’s wish for the Filipino people was granted. Ferdinand Marcos, the Philippines’ dictator for 20 years, stepped down from power. Ninoy’s wife, Corazon Aquino, became the president of the republic in 1986.
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