I would like to offer one more way to appreciate what President Macapagal meant to our nation. Consider for a moment today's generation of politicians and pick out in your minds the one who comes closest to matching the integrity, principles and decency of the late President. (Let's not include Sen. Gloria Macapagal as the comparisons would be too obvious in her case.)

It is hard, isn't it?, to think of anyone today who can match, much less surpass, the late President's record of statesmanship, concern for the poor, and personal integrity. That is because today's politics of machismo drives away the decent and upright among Filipinos. Today's politics in the Philippines is peopled by comedians who want to be politicians and politicians who..., well, some of them are comedians. And then there are the rich politicians who want to protect their wealth and the feudal political lords who want to perpetuate their personal empires.

But there was a time in the Philippines -- many of us were either very young or not even born yet -- when our politicians took their profession seriously. There was a time when politics was an honorable calling and politicians were respectable. That was the time of Manuel Quezon, Manuel Roxas, Claro Recto, Lorenzo Tanada, Ramon Magsaysay, a few others, and Diosdado Macapagal. They were political giants who served their people well and gave politics a good name. With a few surviving exceptions, their breed is gone.

We Filipinos like our politics spiced with a heavy dose of bombast and bravado. We go for style more than substance. In 1965, when President Macapagal was running for reelection, bluster and braggadocio won over a low-profile but dignified style of governance. The President's challenger promised us the world and we believed him. We paid a high price for our gullibility.

For 20 years the Philippines became the laughingstock of the world. But for us Filipinos it was too painful to laugh. It was a hard lesson to learn. In self-examination, we asked, what could have happened if we had reelected President Macapagal in 1965? Surely, we would not have suffered as we did in the ensuing 20 years.

President Macapagal stood and stands today as a symbol of what government can be: one that is not aloof nor afraid to be with the people. He showed us that politics doesn't have to be dirty and politicians don't have to be greedy. (President Macapagal was one of a few politicians who can claim with sincerity that he didn't enrich himself in office. Yes, he lived in Forbes Park but, by God, he was a former president and deserved to live in a special place. If he didn't live in Forbes, we, as a grateful people and nation, would have put him there.) President Macapagal proved that there is a place in politics for dignity, humility, integrity and honesty. How many politicans can say the same today?


Remarks at Memorial Service for the late Pres. Diosdado Macapagal Philippine Embassy, Washington, D.C., May 16, 1997 (L.V. Coronel)