BAM AQUINO: humbled by constant comparison to his "Tito Ninoy"

CEBU, Philippines - Whether it’s the trademark glasses, the build or the hair, Bam Aquino is really a spitting image of a young Ninoy Aquino. The media personality and social entrepreneur has gotten used to the constant comparison and is even humbled and flattered by it. But the irony of resembling his uncle the most among the Aquino clan is that he has never personally known the democracy icon.

His father, Paul Aquino (Ninoy’s younger brother) and mom, Melanie told Bam that they brought him along until he was three years old for visits at the Fort Bonifacio where Ninoy was then detained, but these events have naturally escaped his memory. So while his aunts and uncles regaled him with stories of his Tito Ninoy, he grew up learning just like any normal student would about the former senator. He read his writings, watched his videos, and devoured novels and essays written about him.

Sifting through all those stories and anecdotes, what struck Bam as the most outstanding event in Ninoy’s life was his transformation in jail.

“It’s been a pleasure for me getting to know him because people always say I look like him. People don’t know that he underwent so much in jail and transformed so much. Iba talaga yung Ninoy na pumasok sa kulungan at yung Ninoy na lumabas sa kulungan,” said Bam.

 “When people ask me about him, that’s what I focus on—na meron talagang conversion na nangyari. Because in many ways he was the best politician going into jail. But when he came out, he was more than just a politician. He was already a hero and an advocate. There were so many things in his life na nagbago. Feeling ko, kung hindi niya pinagdaanan yung mga pinagdaanan niya, he wouldn’t have made the decision to come home and eventually give his life for the country.”

Away from the Senate and alone in his jail cell, Bam said here was where Ninoy rediscovered God and himself—and became the better man for it.

Political Trail

In a recent visit to Cebu to promote Sunlife’s “It’s Time!” financial literacy campaign, in which he is one of the advocates, Bam talked about his Tito Ninoy and more including his early exposure to politics, his passion for social enterprise, his brief dip into acting (never again, he swears), and everything else that comes with being part of the illustrious Aquinos of Tarlac.

“Yung Tito Ninoy kasi na nakilala ko, yung namatay na siya. It’s weird that my concept of him, which was really an important part of my life, was really from the time he passed away,” he continued.

Bam gets a slight thrill from the fact that Ninoy did meet him and even acknowledged his birthdate through a marking in his cell wall.

 “In the museum in Tarlac that’s dedicated for Tito Ninoy, naka-blow up yung markings niya sa wall. Di ba sa kulungan, mina-mark mo yung days mo inside? Meron siyang parang maliit na kalendaryo. Tapos naka-mark sa May 8, 1977, ‘Paul and Melanie have a boy. Paolo Benigno’,” he related. “But I really didn’t know him. Kind of sad, noh?”

His complete name is Paolo Benigno ‘Bam’ A. Aquino IV (“I’m named Benigno because Tito Ninoy was in jail when I was born”). And just like his namesake, he seems bent on blazing the same political trail that his uncle did. He became the youngest person in Philippine history to head a government agency when he was appointed at age 26 to become Chairman of the National Youth Commission.

The 33-year-old was also recognized as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum and is part of the pioneer batch of the Asia Society’s “Asia 21” group of promising leaders in the region.

Asked if he has plans of continuing his halted stint in government, he replied: “If you’d asked me five years ago, I would have said I wanted to continue my career in government service. But now that Noynoy is there as president, I can’t be appointed so hindi na pwede yung avenue na yun. There’s a restriction that you can’t be appointed if you’re within the third level of consanguinity. Actually I was already Undersecretary when I was in the Youth Commission. Maybe down the line I’ll go back to government because it’s really what I want to do.”

Natural Communicator

Bam was also host of the youth-oriented shows on Studio 23’s “Y-Speak” and “Breakfast” then later on in ANC’s entrepreneurship show “Start-Up”. Did hosting and being in front of the camera come naturally for him?

“Yes, because exposed na ako sa public speaking as early as six years old,” he said.

He further shared that after Ninoy’s death, there was a call for his family members to come out and speak in protest rallies and sorties all over the country.

“We weren’t campaigning for anyone yet. Before the Internet and Facebook, there was no medium of expression. All the media was controlled by the Marcoses and the government so walang venue yung mga tao na magsalita. The venue became rallies and protest actions. Sa pamilya namin, ako yung naka-toka. I was the designated speaker: young, six-year-old kid na mataba,” he said. “We’d go to school, come home, take a nap, do my homework then after dinner, iikot na kami sa rallies. That was from 1983-1986 until Tita Cory ran. So that was my start in public speaking.”

Exposed to things people his age never saw and probably might never see, he said that this was the most influential time in his life. With a speech made by his mom, young Bam climbed up platforms to speak on behalf of his uncle.

“People forgot kasi. When he came home in 1983, it was already 11 years that he was out of the public eye. So marami sa mga youth nun na hindi masyadong kilala kung sino si Ninoy. When he came home, they just knew there was this politician na kinulong who came home and then pinatay. So there was really a need to reintroduce what he went through, why he decided not to compromise with the Marcoses kaya siya nakulong, why he decided to come home kahit relatively maayos yung buhay niya sa US.”

“I guess marami dun sa mga nanonood, yung six- year old na nagsasalita hindi nila sineseryoso. In truth, I was probably more of an intermission number kasi we had Jovito Salonga and Nene Pimentel talking there. But, ako sineseryoso ko siya. Feeling ko yun talaga yung contribution ko for the country,” he recalled.

He said he would never trade his childhood experience for anything because it helped him know right away what he wanted to do in life.

“I knew right after college that I wanted to be in social development. Once malaman mo na kung ano yung gusto mo, everything else will fall into place. You tend to be bolder with your decisions, you can risk more kasi alam mo na tama yung ginagawa mo, na ito yung dapat mong ginagawa,” he declared.

These days, the management engineering graduate (summa cum laude) from Ateneo de Manila University is busy with the social enterprise companies that he helped put up namely, Hapinoy (to empower sari-sari stores with micro-financing) and Rags2Riches (to aid women communities with livelihood programs).

“These are both social enterprises, which means there’s a social mission but we use business models to achieve our mission. So para siyang negosyo but with a social purpose as opposed to a straight-out NGO na walang business model, mostly donation-based and puro charity. And as opposed to a business na profit ang main thrust and technically walang social mission. So marrying the two concepts is a social enterprise,” he said.

Portraying Ninoy

Last year, Bam played a small but crucial role in the documentary film that chronicles the last few days of Ninoy titled, “The Last Journey of Ninoy”. The docu featured interviews, old clips, and reenactments with Bam playing the role of Ninoy. It was shown in theaters last August 21, the 26th death anniversary of Ninoy.

Bam shared that he was initially reluctant to accept the title role.

“That docu was in the making for over two years already and early on they asked me na to be part of it but I said no kasi wala akong confidence sa acting ability ko. Actually yung pitch sa akin ng director was, ‘You don’t have to act. You already look like your uncle. So you just stand up, smile-smile, okay ka na.’ Eventually I found out rin na the director and many of the people behind the scenes either weren’t charging at all or they weren’t charging their full rate. Nahiya naman ako sa kanila, so I said yes.”

How was the experience shooting the docu-film?

“It was very emotional kasi it was about my uncle, di ba? When I showed up on the first day, may acting coach. Sabi ko bakit may acting coach, akala ko ba patayu-tayo lang ako? Yun pala, there’s one scene, the ending, medyo emotional. All of the other scenes kasi were just traveling so just in the airport, handshaking with people and smiling. There was just one scene, yung last conversation niya with Tita Cory and the kids, ‘yun ‘yung emotional scene na kinakailangan akong i-acting coach nung direktor. But I’m very proud of it. In fact, I would say it’s probably the best documentary made about Ninoy.”

Last March, the film earned a nomination in the Documentary category of the 2010 New York Festivals Television and Film Awards.

On Cousin Kris

On a lighter side, Bam revealed that he is currently in a four-year relationship with Timi Gomez, a brand manager for a multinational company. When teasingly queried if he was settling down anytime soon as he was of the marrying age already, he said he’s giving it about five years before getting hitched.

“Definitely I plan to settle down one day but no definite plans yet,” he said.

Before our encounter with Bam came to a close, we couldn’t resist asking him how it was to have numerous public and often controversial relatives, one of whom is actress-host Kris Aquino who is again making headlines due to her marital woes.

“Well, we’re cousins. I would actually say I’m closer to her sisters, like Balsy and Pinky. Do people come up to me and ask about her? Not really. I think they sort of respect that space. I’m trying to recall kung meron eh, pero parang people don’t naman. Like talk to me specifically about ate Kris? Wala naman.”