noynoy aquino oath taking – new politics, new governance

the inauguration of the new president, noynoy aquino , his first day in office defines further what the aquino administration is all about. aquino will dispense with the traditional parade and for something new, 100 T volunteers who helped aquino get elected will deliver an “oath to change”.

these are not the only new components of the aquino’s oath taking – a major new component is he will not take his oath from the supreme court chief justice renato corona but instead take his out from upreme Court Associate Justice Conchita Carpio-Morales. corona is the poster boy of gloria macapagal arroyo’s midnight appointment binge while morales is the lone sc justice who gave a dissenting opinion on the SC ruling allowing corona to get arroyo’s midnight appointment.

these othe two changes announced today is a refreshing change and a very welcome one. these changes signal a diferent kind of presidency that the country needs – one that i practical and very much in touch with the reality of the philippines, a country that is facing great challenges economically. we are a country that needs to save as much money as we can given the  economic growth challenges we face, the high deficit he will inherit from arroyo and the high debt.

aside from the money saving aspect, it also sends a signal that this presidency is much less about itself but of the people. the parade’s purpose is to pay tribute to aquino, to celebrate the beginning of his presidency but canceling the parade says it is not that at all, it is about the people selecting a new leader.

the other component  of aquino volunteers administering an “oath to change”  completes that picture.  aquino started on his quest for the presidency from a public clamor to run, launched his campaign on a pro-people, people-supported campaign and won the election on the same basis. the oath by the volunteers tells us the people promising to continually support aquino, saying aquino’s power come from the people and that the change that aquino will bring to the country will be complimented  by change from the people themselves.

all of the above is a stark and refreshing change from the previous arroyo administration where it seemed to have been obsessed on doing thins its way regardless of what the people say, want and don’t want. the arroyo administration has been faulted for being blind, deaf and mute on the needs of the people. it was governing the country in its own terms and for its own benefit, not the people.

it is those reasons that most of  the people cannot wait for arroyo to leave office. their disappointment on the arroyo administration has been expressed time and again on surveys after surveys and in the recent election where  aquino’;s candidate, gilbert teodoro never had a chance at winning  the election, remaining fourth in the surveys till election time.

a change in the presidency.. a change in the people. the change the country needs.

No parade for Aquino on June 30 inaugural
By TJ Burgonio
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 01:16:00 06/20/2010

TO SAVE ON COSTS, PRESIDENT-ELECT BENIGNO “Noynoy” Aquino III will break tradition and do away with the parade at his June 30 inaugural.

“Since the first regular inauguration in 1935, this is probably the only one without the inaugural parade,” historian Manuel Quezon III told the Inquirer Saturday on the phone. “He (Aquino) wants to save money, and because from his point of view, it’s really unnecessary.”

Aquino will take his oath as the Philippines’ 15th President and deliver his speech at high noon on June 30 at the Quirino Grandstand in Manila, in keeping with pre-martial law tradition.

So far, three Asian leaders—East Timor President Jose Ramos-Horta, Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak—have confirmed attendance at the inaugural, a foreign affairs official said.

“But we expect a number of foreign ministers and special envoys to attend,” said the official, who asked not to be named for lack of authority to speak for the inaugural committee.

Their attendance “indicates solidarity and friendship” with us, the official said.

Secretary Ricardo Saludo, deputy spokesperson of President Macapagal-Arroyo, agreed, saying: “That’s a vote of confidence.”

Ramos-Horta is a friend of Aquino’s family. He was the only head of state who flew to the country in August 2009 to attend the wake and funeral of Aquino’s mother, former President Corazon Aquino.

Thailand and Malaysia have been “longtime” partners of the Philippines in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, aside from Malaysia’s role as a facilitator in the government’s negotiations with secessionist Moro rebels, officials said.

Innovation: Oath of change

In the past, an inaugural parade preceded the singing of the national anthem, the invocation, the oath-taking and the address of the incoming President.

While Aquino is dropping the parade, his inaugural team has introduced a novelty: The volunteer groups that helped in his campaign would deliver an “oath to change” at the Quirino Grandstand in response to his address.

“That’s an innovation,” said Quezon, the spokesperson for the inaugural, and also Inquirer columnist and host of ANC’s “The Explainer.”

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20100620-276542/No-parade-for-Aquino-on-June-30-inaugural