PDI's de Quiros explains 'power hungry' tag

MANILA - Korina Sanchez, the fiancée of Sen. Manuel Roxas, wept openly during a radio interview Wednesday as she castigated a newspaper columnist for describing Roxas as power hungry.

Sanchez, who is engaged to marry Roxas on October 23, said she was deeply hurt with Inquirer columnist Conrado de Quiros for describing the current crop of presidential bets as "too hungry for power."

"One columnist said we should give the presidency to those who don't really want it. If you ask me, nilalahat niya. Parang si Mar kasama dun. Doon ako naiiyak," she said.

Roxas, the Liberal Party standard-bearer, withdrew from the race on Tuesday and endorsed the candidacy of his partymate, Sen. Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III.

Sanchez said Roxas' decision to withdraw from the race proved that he was willing to put the country above his own interest. "To Conrado de Quiros, what do you say now? I think he owes Mar an apology for making sweeping statements like that," she said.

Sanchez said she openly wept during Roxas' speech at the Club Filipino Tuesday night because she knew that Roxas was sacrificing his own ambition for the good of the Liberal Party and the country as a whole.

"Ganun pala ang pakiramdam nang isang asawa ng isang pulitiko pag nalalaman mo kung ano yung nakikita mo sa entablado na nagpapaka-lakas ng loob at nakangiti dahil disente siya at hindi siya maramot at hindi poder ang habol niya kundi kung ano ang ikatatahimik ng kanyang pamilya."

"Ang sama ng loob ko ay hindi dahil hindi tatakbo si Mar. Malinaw yan. I weep and I am very hurt not because Mar slid or gave way to somebody else. I am hurt because of some people who expressed doubt about Mar. That is the most painful to me. No one can say that about him. If it was about reluctance to power, I believe that among all of them, Mar is the most reluctant as if reluctance is the main reason why somebody should lead the country."

Not just Roxas

In response, De Quiros told radio dzMM he had nothing to apologize for since everyone in the current crop of presidential wannabes has been accused of premature campaigning. He also said that if he had to draw a list of the people he had offended over the years "there would be a long list of people who would demand his apology."

He also pointed out that he backed Sen. Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino because he was the most reluctant to run as compared to the other candidates. "It’s not a question of saying those things. It’s a question of showing yung reluctance mo. And if you go by that, the most reluctant to run for president so far is Noynoy Aquino."

De Quiros said he would have backed Roxas if not for the death of Aquino's mother, former president Corazon Aquino, last August 1. He said the groundswell of support for Noynoy after his mother's death made him realize that Noynoy could win the 2010 presidential election.

"August 5 happened and I think Noynoy was thrust into the situation. Suddenly we have a candidate who not only deserves to win but can win. He’s the only one I think na makaka-kung baga, summon People Power. Wala ng iba eh. Siya lang talaga ang puwede," he said.

De Quiros, meanwhile, praised Roxas for withdrawing his presidential bid but noted that it was more a case of "force majeure."

"I thought it was a very graceful act notwithstanding that a great deal of it was force majeure na mukha naman talagang yung bid niya it was getting snagged, dahil if you look at the survey, ‘di gaanong tumataas. Notwithstanding that...I think it was very graceful of him. It showed very good qualities about him [that he stepped down]," he said.

A prayer for guidance

During her interview, Sanchez said Roxas often prayed about his decision to run for president, both privately and when they were together in church.

She said she once stumbled on a notebook that contained Roxas' private prayers. She said the notebook had the words "Para Sa Itaas", which made her think that it was plans for the renovation of his room upstairs.

"So I opened the notebook and I found that it was full of prayers. It was something that he had never shown me. Parang halos every other day or ever three days, he had an entry and he kept asking 'Panginoon, ito ba talaga ang gusto mong ipagawa sa akin? Is this really what you want me to do?' This has been so daunting on me. I want to cure this country. Gusto kong baguhin ang mga nakikita kong mali pero bakit ba napakahirap. Yan ang dasal niya," she said.

At one point during the interview, Sanchez broke down and wept as she described how she and Roxas would go all over the country to campaign for presidency.

"Kitang-kita ko sa mata ko yung paghihirap ni Mar sa kanyang paglibot sa buong Pilipinas kasi kasama ako dun eh. Alam mo naman na ayaw kong iwan ang trabaho ko lalo na sa radyo. Hirap na hirap ang katawan namin ng kakaikot ng buong Pilipinas. Nakita ko ang pagmamahal ng tao kay Mar," she told radio dzMM anchor Ted Failon.

She said one of the reasons why Roxas decided to give way to Aquino was because of his great respect for Aquino's mother. Roxas earlier revealed in an ANC leadership forum that former President Cory Aquino was one of his heroes.

After the forum, the late former president called up Sanchez to express her thanks to Roxas. "Cory told me, 'Korina, you're on the right track. I'm so proud. Ang galing-galing mo naman.' I asked her: 'Anong magaling?' 'Well, you're a political wife now.' Nagkatawanan kami."

She said she and Roxas were surprised to hear rumblings about Noynoy's possible candidacy after the death of Aquino's mother on August 1. She said Roxas made his decision to withdraw after he and Sen. Aquino's talk late last month. "I know he was very hurt at one point but no matter how much it hurt him, the decision was painful but swift," she said.

Sanchez said Roxas' respect for Cory made it easy for him to give way to Noynoy. "Mar has great respect for the former president, and so if the son wants to run for president, ayaw na niyang labanan yan. That's why it was so easy. He didn't want any more speculation," she said.

Wedding plans

Now that Roxas has given up his presidential bid, Sanchez said they now have more time to work on their wedding.

"I told him that I love him and now we can concentrate on the wedding. Hindi na masyado yung tensyon, hirap ng katawan at pag-iisip. Mar is a very decent man. Whatever is true to his heart is what I want for him. I don't worry about him. I know he was very hurt at one point but no matter how much it hurt him, the decision was painful but swift. That is a leader," she said.

She added that she has no idea if Roxas is going to run for vice-president. "One miracle at a time," she said.