How's the Campaign Going?

Whenever I am invariably asked how the campaign is going, I first remind everyone I’m not simply part of a campaign but part of a mission to take our country back. I didn’t leave my medical practice in the US, my five young children including an infant whom I got to hold for just one day, my daily round of golf with my wife and cronies Dr. Paul and Dr. Todd for a traditional Philippine electoral campaign. I resolutely put my life on hold for a noble cause much, much bigger than all of us.

Yesterday, 5 of 12 Senate candidates choppered to Victoria, Oriental Mindoro where we spoke to an audience of 250 people. You need 15 million votes to win this kind of an election but we needed to make a point to everyone assembled that we were out to change a system, to reform heavily damaged institutions and perhaps to serve as an example to a couple of children in the audience, and let them remember 40, 50 years hence that one morning, 5 national candidates descended upon their village to tell them about hope.

Winning a Senate seat has never been my principal objective. Going around the Philippines with little sleep and rest, spreading a message of transformative, peaceful revolutionary change is a dream come true. This is my generation’s last chance. In 1978, Senator Noynoy Aquino’s father participated in an election he had no chance of winning. I would have placed my life on hold for that as well but I was only 15 years old. Nobody remembers the winners in that farcical exercise, but let it be known, a few continue to honor the gallant sacrifice of those 21 men and women: Ninoy Aquino, Jerry Barican, Alex Boncayao, Felicisimo Cabigao, Juan David, Jaime Ferrer, Neptali Gonzalez, Teofisto Guingona, Trinidad Herrera, Priming de Leon, Chito Lucero, Ernesto Maceda, Antonio Martinez, Ramon Mitra, Aquilino Pimentel, Charito Planas, Napoleon Rama, Alejandro Roces, Francisco “Soc” Rodrigo, Ernesto Rondon, Emmanuel Santos.

It will always be my honor to fight alongside Noynoy Aquino and Mar Roxas, Sonia Roco, Danny Lim, Neric Acosta, Alex Lacson, TG Guingona, Yasmin Lao, Ruffy Biazon, Risa Hontiveros, Ralph Recto, Frank Drilon.

Wherever this journey takes me, I know began in a noble manner.