By Manuel L. Morato
Since we took to court those who wrongly meddled in the estate case of my mother more than 3 years ago, after an incident in April 1, 2018, Easter Sunday, when our connecting gates to our mother’s house were barricaded. It cut off our access to our mother’s house and garden that we used to get together on occasions such as Christmas Eve, New Year’s Eve, birthdays and other occasions such as when our nieces, nephews and other relatives and friends come from Spain for a visit. But since my late mother’s house was illegally demolished in April of 2018, since then we lost the central place for us to gather in our family compound. The property was taken over by landgrabbers, illegally, because, they say, they are in power.
My mother passed away in the 31st of May 2002, shortly after her birthday in May 25, a week before her death. She was bedridden at the time after having been hospitalized in St. Luke’s Hospital for 5 months.
On my part, I had preferred for her to stay in the hospital, close to her doctor with all the emergency equipment in case of need. I had all the time to take care of her for I had already stepped down for my PCSO Chairmanship when President Ramos stepped down from office in June 30th of 1998. But I actually stepped down ahead of President FVR for I had to file my candidacy for President on the last day of filing in the Comelec that February 9, 1998. It was public service I opted to do. I do not wish to open “old wounds” that are better left off forgotten.
Frankly, I never wanted to be president, but I had to enter the race to free me from lawsuits for what I wanted the people to know for having been a Jesuit product and schooled abroad, moral theology dictates that if somebody you know will be bad for the country and you keep it a secret, one is equally guilty and becomes an accomplice to the crime, for not letting the people know. That is dictated upon us by moral theology.
I could not announce that I only had a mission to fulfill. I had to show, however, that I was a serious candidate. It was evidently accepted as such. BUT, I never accepted any campaign donation. A Makati group was giving me 50M but I did not accept; and other donations here and there which I graciously rejected. Instead many of them just campaigned for me; and I thank them for that.
In short, I spent my own funds amounting to only over P4M pesos. But the actual support nationwide was unbelievably heart warming. Maybe most of them were probably former patients assisted by the PCSO during my term as PCSO Chairman from January 1994 to February 1998. Everywhere I went, I was received so warmly, but I only stayed for 2 hours on board of an open panel, a motorcade that slowly ran through the main streets and headed to the airport for a flight to another city. That’s all I did. I only touched base for about 2 hours in each city I went to on a private plane I rented for one day.
There were even calls from the so-called NPAs who gave their support to me. Tumatawag sa headquarters ko at ito ang sinasabi: “Ako po ay si ………., isang NPA po na pina-ospital ninyo nong ako po’y nagkasakit. Hindi po namin makakalimutan. NPA po ako, pero tinulungan po ninyo ako at inendorse po ninyo ako sa ospital sa Cebu, etc… Sinasagot ko po naman ang lahat ng requests for medical assistance. I told them, “hindi naman po ako nagtatanong kung sino kayo. Basta po ang humingi ng tulong, tinutulungan po namin.” That applied to everybody who sought medical assistance from the PCSO. And I made it clear, na ang pera po ng PCSO ay pantulong sa mga may sakit at nangangailangan ng tulong. Pera po yan ng bayan.
Sabi ko nga po, nong panahon ko, wala po akong pinapaboran, ni hindi ko tinatanong kung kayo ay pabor or kontra sa administrasyon. Hindi po ako namumulitika sa aking trabaho at puwesto sa gobiyerno. I even told then President Ramos: “Mr. President, tutulungan natin lahat, maski miyembro ng oposisyon na mga local officials who sought help from the PCSO. Tinanggap naman ni President Ramos yong sinabi ko sa kanya. By the way, I credited him for everything I did sa PCSO. For example, sinabi ko kay President, I’ll tell every recipient of ambulance I approved in favor of a town, barangay, hospital and cities nationwide… that you approved to give it to them. I was able to make them love President Ramos, nationwide.
The PCSO, I’d like to add, can make or break a sitting President. That’s why I made sure that credit must all be given to the President for, after all, PCSO is under the Office of the President; and most importantly, an ambulance is so needed in every town and city for obvious reason. An ambulance caters to life and death situations.
I would like to add that I reminisce on my mother very often, more so at this time in the month of May for May is the month of all our mothers; and my mother was born in May 25, 1910 which falls next Tuesday, her one hundred eleventh (111) birthday, kung buhay ang aking Ina.
Naaawa po ako sa kanya at hindi nasunod ang kanyang huling bilin sa amin dahil sa ilang mga tao na sinaktan ang kanyang damdamin. Ginagawa ko lahat ng magagawa ko mapasaya lang siya sa kabilang buhay.
Mama, prayers and more prayers for you and Papa in heaven. Please help us here on earth.
For comments and suggestions email at mlmorato@yahoo.com
