Bagong Pilipinas (New Philippines)

June 30, 2010

Watching the inauguration of President Benigno Aquino III on TV today, I had mixed feelings about the event itself and the next six years ahead of him. I guess I could speak for most of my fellow countrymen that there is a general feeling of relief and renewed hope for this country. The spirit of People Power, which ignited the fire in the hearts of the Filipino people when the plug on Marcos regime was pulled in 1986, was apparent in the faces of the hundreds of thousands of people who trooped to the Quirino Grandstand this morning, who tolerated the humid air and the occasional drops of rain. You could see in their faces that they are proud to be a part of this historic event.

My eyes were glued to the television from the moment President Aquino arrived at Malacañan Palace to accompany now former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to the Quirino Grandstand, until he got back to Malacañan for lunch after the inauguration. We Filipinos are notorious for our “Filipino time” which means that we are always late. And I was impressed because the program started earlier than planned, as everybody arrived early and President Noynoy was sworn in a few minutes before 12 noon, contrary to tradition that newly elected presidents in this country should be sworn in at exactly 12 noon. It was pleasing to the eyes to see the President, his family, government officials, other guests, and performers clad in our national costumes, and it was pleasing to the ears as well to hear old and new original Filipino songs composed and performed by some of our country’s finest artists. A few of the songs even moved me almost to tears.

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