Jauhn Etienne Villaruel

Article (news)

RG Cruz

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1787283145712viber_image_2026-08-20_03-08-08 (13).jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Members of the August Twenty-One Movement and the National Historical Commission of the Philippines hold a wreath-laying ceremony outside Terminal 1 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Parañaque City on Friday, August 21, 2026, to mark the 43rd death anniversary of former Senator Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr. The ceremony honors Aquino’s enduring legacy and commemorates his assassination at the airport on August 21, 1983, a pivotal moment that ignited the nation&#x27;s fight for democracy. <em>Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News</em></span></span></span></div><p>MANILA — Lawmakers on Friday commemorated former Sen. Benigno &quot;Ninoy&quot; Aquino Jr. on his 43rd death anniversary.</p><p>Aquino&#x27;s nephew, Sen. Bam Aquino, visited his bust at the Terminal 3 of the airport named after the democracy icon.</p><p>The late senator, a fierce critic of the martial rule of then President Ferdinand Marcos Sr., was assassinated upon his arrival in Manila after three years of exile, on August 21, 1983.</p><p>His death triggered massive protests that led to the 1986 People Power Revolution and the end of the authoritarian rule of Marcos Sr.</p><p>&quot;Sa paglipas ng panahon, mas nauunawaan ko rin ang bigat ng desisyong ginawa niya noong 1983. May pagkakataon siyang manatili sa Amerika. Kasama niya ang kanyang pamilya. Ligtas siya. Alam niyang sa pagbabalik sa Pilipinas, maaari siyang muling makulong. Alam niyang maaari siyang mapatay,&quot; Sen. Aquino said.</p><p>&quot;Walang kasiguraduhan kung tatanggapin pa siya ng taumbayan. Wala ring kasiguraduhan kung may mababago ang kanyang pag-uwi. Pero umuwi pa rin siya,&quot; he said.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/8/21/-acknowledge-past-in-order-to-safeguard-freedom-marcos-jr-on-ninoy-aquino-day-0833">‘Acknowledge past in order to safeguard freedom’—Marcos Jr. on Ninoy Aquino Day</a></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>&#x27;HUWAG MAWALAN NG PAG-ASA SA PILIPINO&#x27;</strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Sen. Aquino said over time, he grew to understand what his late uncle meant when he said, &quot;The Filipino is worth dying for.&quot;</p><p>&quot;Para sa akin, ang mga salitang ito ay tungkol sa napakalalim na paniniwala ni Tito Ninoy sa halaga ng bawat Pilipino. Na kahit sa panahong tila nawawala ang pag-asa, may dahilan pa ring maniwala sa ating kapwa, tumindig para sa tama, at gawin ang kaya natin para sa bayan,&quot; he said.</p><p>&quot;43 taon na ang lumipas, pero ito marahil ang pinakamahalagang pamana ni Tito Ninoy sa akin: huwag mawalan ng pag-asa sa Pilipino. Dahil sa kabila ng lahat, karapat-dapat pa rin tayong ipaglaban. Karapat-dapat pa ring pagsilbihan ang bayan. At karapat-dapat pa ring maniwala na kaya nating bumuo ng isang mas maayos na Pilipinas, sama-sama.&quot;</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>&#x27;BEACON OF COURAGE&#x27;</strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Sen. Aquino&#x27;s ally Sen. Francis Pangilinan said he believes the late senator felt that his country meant more than his own life.</p><p>&quot;Pero hindi lang para sa paglaya mula sa diktadura inalay ni Ninoy ang kanyang buhay. Inalay rin niya ito para sa pangarap na makita tayong tunay na malaya — malaya sa gutom, sa hirap, sa pang-aalipusta ng mga mas malalaking bansa, at sa pagiging biktima ng laganap na fake news,&quot; Pangilinan said.</p><p>&quot;Kaya naman ang paggunita sa kanya ay hindi dapat nalilimitahan sa pag-alala o sa pagbisita sa monumento. Kailangan nating isabuhay ang sakripisyo niya, hindi lang tuwing August 21, kundi araw-araw. Dahil ang labang hinarap ni Ninoy noon ay laganap pa rin ngayon: mga ganid sa kapangyarihan at pang-aabuso sa karapatang pantao.&quot;</p><p>Rep. Leila de Lima of the Mamamayang Liberal party-list meanwhile said Ninoy Aquino remains &quot;a beacon of courage, heroism, and an indomitable spirit in fighting for justice and democracy.&quot;</p><p>&quot;Sa panahon ng disinformation, historical revisionism, propaganda, katiwalian at iba’t ibang hamon sa pagtataguyod ng katotohanan at pananagutan, napakahalaga na balikan at lalo na, maipagpatuloy, ang paninindigan ni Ninoy – isang pinuno at lingkod-bayang hindi nanahimik, hindi nagwalang kibo, at hanggang sa huli, tumindig para sa tama at makatarungan,&quot; she said.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO</strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Bc5TpUt4RIE?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div>

<p>Lawmakers on Friday commemorated former Sen. Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino Jr. on his 43rd death anniversary.</p>

Lawmakers on Friday commemorated former Sen. Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino Jr. on his 43rd death anniversary.

'Beacon of courage': Lawmakers remember Ninoy Aquino on his 43rd death anniversary

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'Beacon of courage': Lawmakers remember Ninoy Aquino on his 43rd death anniversary

RG Cruz,

ABS-CBN News

Published August 21, 2026 11:37 AM PHT

Read More:

Ninoy Aquino

Bam Aquino

Kiko Pangilinan

Ninoy Aquino Day

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