Pinoy Daily Talk

A two hour concelebrated mass was held at the Manila Cathedral to honor the life and work of former President Corazon C. Aquino. Bishop Socrates Villegas presided over the mass while Jesuit priest Fr Catalino Arevalo delivers the homily.

After the mass, her coffin draped with the Philippine flag, was placed in a flat bed truck. Tens of thousands of Filipinos lined up the rain-soaked streets to bid farewell to the “Mother of Philippine Democracy”.

The place was filled with yellow colors which symbolizes Pres. Aquino’s “People’s Power”. The people raised their hands with the letter “L” sign meaning “Laban” while chanting “Cory, Cory, Cory”.

Goodbye President Corazon C. Aquino…
You may now rest in peace!!!

Here’s her prayer which appeared on Phil Daily Inquirer:

Prayer for a Happy Death
By Corazon Aquino

Almighty God, most merciful Father
You alone know the time
You alone know the hour
You alone know the moment
When I shall breathe my last.

So, remind me each day,
most loving Father
To be the best that I can be.
To be humble, to be kind,
To be patient, to be true.
To embrace what is good,
To reject what is evil,
To adore only You.

When the final moment does come
Let not my loved ones grieve for long.
Let them comfort each other
And let them know
how much happiness
They brought into my life.
Let them pray for me,
As I will continue to pray for them,
Hoping that they will always pray
for each other.

Let them know that they made possible
Whatever good I offered to our world.
And let them realize that our separation
Is just for a short while
As we prepare for our reunion in eternity.

Our Father in heaven,
You alone are my hope.
You alone are my salvation.
Thank you for your unconditional love, Amen.

“God knows, we have made mistakes.”
“I hope that history will judge me . . . favorably . . .
because, as God is my witness, I honestly did the best I could.”

President Corazon C. Aquino, the true icon of “People’s Power” who have managed to topple  a dictator and restored democracy in the Philippines died after battling with colon cancer for more than a year at the age of 76.

She is the Philippine’s 11th president. During her term, she brings back the confidence to the Filipino people. She created an independent judiciary, encouraged press freedom and restored back other democratic organizations.

However, her government were always bothered by those selfish people who is still at-large in local politics. She managed to survive 8 coup attempts. In all these coup attempts, she proved herself to be a strong and courageous woman.

After her term, her life was still full of battles. She was always on the street, fighting for the Filipino people. She often led public protests opposing policies that were meant to take advantage or defraud the Filipino people.

For now, the yellow ribbons are everywhere. What we can only do is just to recall that somehow we were privileged to have a “Ninoy” and a “Cory” who courageuosly brought us back to what “Jose Rizal” struggled hard — INDEPENDENCE!

But wait, after Tita Cory’s burial, who will lead us now as majority of the present political figures are only after the so-called, FAME and FORTUNE?

Who can we trust to lead us, ease poverty, eliminate corruption, and widen democracy?

THE wife of ABS-CBN news anchor Teodoro “Ted” Failon was rushed to New Era General Hospital last April 15 afternoon and was “fighting for her life,” due to a gunshot wound in the head, as reported by its network and GMA 7.

In a statement sent earlier by his home network ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp., Failon did not complete his program over dzMM radio Wednesday morning after speaking with his wife on the phone.

According to Failon, “I immediately went home and saw that the bathroom door was locked. I had the door opened and I found my wife bloodied, so I rushed her to the hospital,” he said.

ABS-CBN reported that Trinidad left a note of apology in the master’s bedroom.

“Papa, Im so so sorry gustong gusto ko pong magsabi sa yo ng totoo, pero hindi ko po alam kung papaano ko uumpisahan.

Sobrang takot na takot po ako. Umalis po muna ako. Kasi hindi ko po kayang at nahihiya po ako sayo humarap.

Sana po mapatawad mo ako papa. Sorry, sorry Papa

Mama”

[I want to tell the truth but I don’t know how to start. I was afraid that is why I left]…

The Quezon City Police said they would not treat the victim’s alleged letter as a suicide note, noting inconsistencies in Failon’s statements.

The Witnesses

Based on Inquirer, initial investigation showed that Trinidad Etong was taken to the hospital by her sister Pamela, the family driver identified only as Glen, and another man believed to be Failon.

This was how a resident physician described the turn of events:

Upon arrival and after begging doctors and nurses to immediately attend to his wife, Failon asked everyone in the ER not to allow reporters or police personnel to enter the hospital premises: “No media, no police, please, nakikiusap ako.”

While attending to the patient, the ER staff asked what were considered standard questions, but Failon refused to answer even the most basic: What happened? How did the patient get the gunshot wound?

He remained silent, was in tears and visibly very worried. The only information he gave the hospital, verbally and in writing on the official hospital form for patients, was the patient’s name, Trinidad Etong, and her age, 45. He managed to tearfully tell the ER staff that the patient was his wife and a nurse: “Asawa daw niya, nurse daw, iyak nang iyak.”

A witness told the Inquirer that he saw Failon leaving the ER in a bloody polo shirt and wearing a surgical mask, apparently to avoid identification by policemen and reporters waiting outside, and boarding a blue Pajero at around 1 p.m.

Another witness, a gardener of Failon’s neighbor told the Inquirer that before noon, he saw the broadcaster in a bloody shirt about to board the Pajero in his garage with another woman who was weeping. But he did not see Failon’s wife. The gardener also said he did not hear gunshots coming from Failon’s house with glass windows.

Police investigators were only able to interview witnesses in the hospital and to get Failon’s address at around 4 p.m., or more than five hours later, because hospital personnel did not immediately allow interviews with the witnesses.

Hospital personnel also barred reporters from entering the premises and refused to issue a statement.

Sources said ABS-CBN had ordered a news blackout for several hours upon Failon’s request.

The Investigation

According to investigators, they were very dismayed when they found out the crime scene – the house and the car – were already cleaned.

This developed as the police contemplates to file charges of obstruction of justice against the driver of Failon and the three house help who cleaned the area where Trinidad was found.

Although Failon is tested negative for gunpowder burns, investigators said this does not mean he is already absolved from the case as they are not still considering the findings as conclusive.

“He is not off the hook. Paraffin test is not conclusive. We have to continue the investigation and would file charges against Failon if evidence warrants,” Chief Supt. Roberto Rosales said.

The Passing of the Victim

Trinidad Arteche Etong, the wife of news anchor Ted Failon, passed away, about 20 minutes after doctors tried to revive her, radio dzMM’s vice president for Manila division Peter Musngi reported Thursday night.

Etong was brought to the New Era General Hospital in Quezon City at about 11 a.m., Wednesday. She stayed at the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit and died there minutes before 9 p.m., Thursday.

Report said that the doctors and nurses were trying to revive Trinidad whose blood pressure had continued dropping minutes before she died. New Era’s Dr. Adonis Gascon, a neurosurgeon, said Etong was pronounced dead at 8:50 p.m.

“The immediate cause of death is penetrating cranial missile injury and then disseminated intravascular coagulation, and subsequent multi-organ failure,” Gascon told radio dzBB.

The Question

What do you think, is it a suicide or a homicide?