Marco continues to pay it forward

He has such a tantalizing effect on the female members of society. Women in their 30s to their late 50s swoon like high school students whenever he is around. At Tropezz (formerly Tavern) in Greenbelt 3 where I conducted my interview, the ladies could not help making side glances at him with matching giggles in between.

Owners Jiji Fernadez and Issa Pascual had to agree with me. He is indeed drop-dead gorgeous! (Like our husbands, of course!)

At a concert I watched at the Manila Pavilion Hotel where he was a guest, he almost stole the show as women from all age brackets screamed "I love you, Marco!" non-stop, with the most shrill shrieks and squeals coming from the matrons.

Women jumping on stage just to be with him, to hug, kiss, and hold him, are a common sight. This man is such a phenomenon!

Has he been getting such adulation all his life? A fat, plain woman recently approached him and asked if he remembered her from 30 years ago. Marco Sison tries very hard to recall.

Flashback to his first year in college at the PUP (Polytechnic University of the Philippines). Marco was a mere provinciano who commuted to and from Laguna. They had no car. His baon was just enough for his transportation.

The only reason why he was in PUP was because he had a scholarship. He was attracted to a very beautiful city girl whom he courted. She did not give him a chance. He was too baduy for her.

"Binasted ako," he distinctly recalls, "because I looked cheap daw. But what could I do?" Marco looks back.

"I simply could not afford to buy expensive clothes and other stuff like my better-off classmates."

Back to the present: Marco remembers who this fat, plain-looking woman is. She was the one who broke his heart; whose rejection made him promise to himself that, "Someday, I will stop looking baduy." Aaarrgghh! (Seeing how Marco is adored by women now, if I were that woman, I would have jumped off the nearest cliff in regret.)

Marco’s life has always been studded with challenges and struggles. When he was seven, his homemaker mom prodded him to join singing contests in Laguna. He won each of them.

In 1975, already studying in Manila, he took the courage to join the Student Canteen singing competition. He became the champion. From then on, Marco became self-supporting.

He strove hard to become a well-known professional singer. But, as time passed, it seemed like this dream would never happen. His parents insisted that he go to Japan or Australia to earn dollars. People started comparing him to his contemporaries like Nonoy Zuñiga and Ric Segreto who quickly became popular because of their hit songs.

Marco had recordings, yes, but his singing career simply would not take off. He was cajoled into joining a band and live abroad. He refused to budge. Night after night, he prayed to God.

After seven long years, in 1982, his prayers were answered, and he woke up one day finding himself famous with the hit song Make Believe. A few months later, my good friend Nonoy Tan composed My Love Will See You Through for Marco. It was another hit. The beautiful song made Marco one of the most popular singers in the country.

His patience and determination paid off. He did not need to go to Japan or Australia to earn good money.

Within the next decade he was thrust into the dizzying world of celebrity. Asked if he received, uhmm, offers from pretty, young, rich girls, he replies without batting an eyelash, "A lot!"

"At first, I could not even understand it!" he exclaims. "I just did my best and enjoyed the audience’s reaction. Then, slowly, I came to realize I did have other God-given gifts" (translation: apart from his talent — his dashing looks, unnerving smile and boyish charm that made everyone want to bring him home to cuddle).

A few years later, at the peak of his popularity, Marco was sounded out for another kind of opportunity: to run for public office which he just laughed off. Then came the serious queries. He merely shrugged off the first one. He flatly refused the second. Then, in a sudden turn of events, Marco accepted the third.

What happened? Marco replies, "Ganun pala yun, Dot. When you get older, you gradually feel the need to give back. You develop this urge to do something good for the public. You see so many flaws in the system. You feel you can do a lot to change the system, and you suddenly say to yourself, ‘Why not do it?!?’ All these made me decide to run for councilor in my hometown, Biñan, Laguna."

As expected, he received a lot of denigration.

Being an entertainer, Marco was accused of having nothing between his ears. He was disparaged for having none to offer but his singing. But, being the strong-willed person that he is, Marco took all these criticisms as challenges and proved his detractors wrong.

He won as councilor of Biñan. He did well. He ran and won again as councilor. He did very well. Then he ran and won as provincial board member.

And now, after nine years of serving in two different elective positions, he has been offered to vie for the position of vice governor of Laguna. The criticisms being hurled are now even stronger.

But Marco, being made of firmer stuff, takes these criticisms as new trials to be hurdled. "I have a track record to show. Unlike other aspiring entertainers in the political world, I started below and worked my way up. I have learned so much and helped a lot of people in my years in government service. Most importantly, unlike other candidates, I am prepared."

For now, he urges all his provincemates to pursue their dreams. (His slogan, "Don’t Be Afraid to Follow Your Dreams," is culled from Nonoy Tan’s immortal Marco Sison original, My Love Will See You Through.) He is an inspiration to the youth of Laguna as a country boy who made good in spite of the odds.

Marco dreams of new album of hit songs and more prosperity and economic development in Laguna, which he hopes to accomplish by focusing on tourism. Lastly, he dreams of the day when the Philippines will be great again.

I share this vision with you, Hon. Marco Sison. But we all know that we can only attain this if all our government officials, whether elected or not, sacrifice and unite to achieve this purpose; if only highly-principled, hardworking and competent persons are elected into public office... sigh!

And so, Marco, do what you can do to make this country great once again! Just like you and how you have tenaciously stayed on, we are all dreaming of a better Philippines, not only for ourselves but for our children and our children’s children.

(E-mail me at [email protected]).