OMG! Exclusive – Kris talks life with a dad like Ninoy

Editor’s note: This story which was originally published on August 21, 2011, talks about Kris Aquino’s fond memories of her father, the late Senator Benigno Simeon “Ninoy” Aquino Jr.

Twenty eight years after her dad was assassinated, Kris Aquino wants the issue about her father, Ninoy Aquino’s death over and done with.

“We (referring to her siblings, President Noynoy Aquino and sisters Pinky, Ballsy and Viel) already had a closure when my mom (former president Cory Aquino) died,” reveals Kris in an exclusive interview with Yahoo! Philippines OMG!

On who killed her dad

The very vocal presidential sister is suddenly circumspect with her words when asked pointblank who killed her dad that fateful day of Aug. 21, 1983.

“We already know who ordered my dad’s assassination,” she relates. “Yung may question mark pa ay nagbubulagbulagan lang. But it’s not an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.”

If Kris talks this way, which is a far cry from her no-holds-barred style, it’s because she is thinking of her brother’s present position as the highest officer in the land.

“It’s very hard for us to make any comment because of where Noy is right now. My mom was also in that position.  We have to be very sensitive about giving an impression of persecuting certain individuals.”

Still, Kris agrees her family suffered persecution way back when. And because of that, her family – and the nation – were never the same again.

“If my dad wasn’t assassinated, I don’t think we will be living in a democracy now,” she points out. “I think it’s his sacrifice that gave us the freedom we have right now.  And I don’t think my mom and my brother will ever be president.”

Strange coincidence

Kris admits she doesn’t know whether or not her dad’s death at 50 and her brother’s election as president, also at 50, are connected to each other.  Neither does she want to draw any conclusion that, by some strange coincidence, her only brother happens to be her dad’s namesake (P-Noy’s real name Benigno Aquino III).

Still, events seem to have a way of precluding each other.

“The last film we saw as a family was about (Mahatma) Gandhi (who was himself shot point-blank on Jan. 30, 1948),” recalls Kris.

Back then, Ninoy and Cory’s youngest child had no inkling their dad would fall victim to an assassin’s bullet as well.  And that he wouldn’t mind what sacrifice he had to make.

“My mom always said our dad died in the way he would have wanted to,” Kris relates. “It was not an ordinary death. It was a history-changing death.”

She also recalls going to the JFK (John F. Kennedy) Presidential Library and Museum in Boston ‘at least 20 times’ simply because “my dad idolized JFK a lot.”

Strangely again, Ninoy’s idol suffered the same fate as he (Ninoy) did: assassination at an early age (46).

“All our Filipino guests went to the JFK Library.  And so I myself was exposed to JFK’s life at a young age,” Kris goes on.

But not even the popular American president can’t match her father’s impact on Kris.

Ninoy as her dad

True, Kris was only one year and seven months old when Ninoy was imprisoned and therefore had no first-hand knowledge “about what it was like to have a dad at home until I was nine.”

True, her dad had to win over her love because of this. But Ninoy more than made up for  it when Kris was nine to 12 years old and the family was exiled in Boston.

“It was only with me that he was able to do normal Daddy duties, like getting my report card, watching school plays and joining field trips,” Kris says with pride.

Ninoy managed to squeeze in quality time with her in-between many speaking engagements in Harvard and his other activities.

It was a far-from-ideal set-up. But father and daughter had to make the most of the situation. Besides, Kris  didn’t have to be with her dad 24/7 to  get a lion’s share of his gifts:  his knack for talking up a storm and  holding the audience in the palm of his hands.

Like her dad

“You talk of nature vs. nurture,” notes Kris.  “For me, it’s nature. My dad’s influence on me is in my career. I can’t make a success of myself primarily by talking if it wasn’t for my dad.”

All her siblings, Kris goes on, are like her mom – quiet and self-effacing.  She, on the other hand, is the opposite.  Kris is a bundle of energy that goes on overdrive once the klieg lights are on.

“That’s why they say 4/5ths of the family is my mom; 1/5  is my dad,” Kris admits.

Small as it seems, that 1/5 is enough for Kris.  At 40, the Ninoy side of her has given Kris TV shows, endorsements, even offers to run for public office.

But this is where Kris differs from Ninoy.

“I’m a woman. I have sons to consider (Joshua and James Jr. or Bimby). My mom always said, ‘Sige, Kris. Mag-politics ka if you can find a male Cory,’” Kris reveals.

Public service and politics

But since she’s loveless at the moment, Kris feels she’s not yet ready for politics.

“My dad had my mom’s loving support. Noy has it easy because he only has to look out for. My priority is to make sure my kids have a good future.  I really pray that  if the door to public service opens, it’s because I’m ready for public service and not because everybody says I should go into it.”

For now, it’s enough that Kris is doing her best to live up to her dad – and her mom’s – sterling reputation.

Protecting the family’s legacy

She speaks for her siblings when Kris says, “We just don’t want to sully or lessen the legacy and the good name our parents left behind.  Whatever decisions we make will be guided by the question, ‘Makakaganda ba ito sa pangalan natin or ikasisira ba natin ito?’”

And because of this, Kris knows that her dad is applauding her – and her siblings – lustily, from heaven.

As a mom herself, she knows “every parent will support what his or her child does.”

That’s why the responsibility is much greater for her, as it is for the rest of the Aquino children.

Say what you may about Kris Aquino – her boo-boos, her errors of judgment.

In the end, she will always be her parents’ daughter and strive to make them proud.  And like her dad, Kris will make the whole nation sit up and notice, not once, but many times over.