Kris helps brother Noynoy woo Zamboanga City vote
ZAMBOANGA CITY—Thousands of supporters, some of them clad in yellow, went wild as showbiz celebrity Kris Aquino took the stage Wednesday night at the Joaquin F. Enriquez sports complex in this famed port city of the South.
But Kris, clad in a black top with a small yellow map of the Philippines printed on the side, was not there to promote a show or a movie: she was there to ask the supporters who showed up—numbering at least 50,000—to vote for her brother, presidential aspirant Senator Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III, on May 10.
"Ilang beses ko na pong napatunayan sa ‘min na hindi kami nag-iisa. Ang hinihingi ko po sa inyo, sa May 10, sana naman po hindi niyo makakalimutan: Noynoy Aquino (I have seen it proven many times that we are not alone. Now I ask you, on May 10, please do not forget Noynoy Aquino" said Kris, before leading the crowd into chanting Noynoy’s name.
Kris, a top celebrity endorser, earlier said in an ambush interview that she joined Noynoy’s campaign sortie—the first time she did so—in Zamboanga City because the place is special for the Aquinos, and it is where Noynoy went on a retreat in September to decide on how to respond to the clamor for him to run for president.
Onstage, she thanked the people of Zamboanga for backing her family.
"Nung panahon pa po ng tatay ko, ni Ninoy, at panahon ni Cory, ang Zamboanga, mahal na mahal ang pamilya Aquino (Even back during the time of my father Ninoy and my mother Cory, Zamboanga loved the Aquino family)," she said, her statement met by wild cheers from the crowd.
Kris took the opportunity to take potshots at those who criticize her role in her brother’s life. In an apparent take-off from what Ruffa Gutierrez’s mother Annabelle Rama said a few days ago, Kris said it was "unfair" to call on the public not to vote for her brother because she was "mayabang (arrogant)."
"Hindi po ako pinalaki ng nanay namin na maging mayabang dahil alam ko pong kung ano’ng meron kami, utang na loob po namin lahat sa inyo (Our mother did not bring me up to be arrogant because I know that we owe to the people whatever we have right now)," she said.
To her critics who say Malacañang might turn into something like her showbiz talk show SNN if Noynoy becomes president, Kris said: "Ang masasabi ko po dun, e di maganda, dahil ibig sabihin nun lahat ng nagaganap sa gobyerno malalaman ninyo (What I can say is, that’s good, because that means you will know everything that goes on in government)."
Almost all of Kris’s statements were punctuated by loud cheers from the crowd, which broke into even louder screams when her husband, basketball star James Yap, joined her onstage.
In an interview with reporters after the event, Noynoy said he was overwhelmed by the massive show of support from Zamboanga City, which, as of 2007, is the sixth-largest city in the country with a population of over 774,000.
"Talagang napaka-overwhelming, sobra, ang love ng taga-Zamboanga (The love shown by the people from Zamboanga is truly overwhelming, it’s just too much)," Noynoy said.
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