4 honor guards endure slow cortege

MANILA, Philippines – For more than eight hours, they stood in snappy military fashion, undaunted by rain and steadfast in form despite the hunger everybody else experienced during the long procession that brought the late former President Corazon Aquino to her final resting place at Manila Memorial Park in Parañaque City yesterday.

Army Pfc. Antonio Cadiente, Airman Second Class Gener Laguindan, Navy Petty Officer 3 Edgardo Rodriguez and Police Officer 1 Danilo Maalab, who served as honor guards for Mrs. Aquino’s remains, displayed exceptional discipline in the performance of their extraordinary task.

The ride from the Manila Cathedral in Intramuros was agonizingly slow due to tens of thousands who wanted to pay their last respects to the leader they fondly call “Tita Cory,” but the four men in uniform stood in finest tradition, adding solemnity and honor to the ceremony.

Lt. Col. Romeo Brawner, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) spokesman told The STAR that the organization is glad to have been given the chance to honor their former Commander-in-Chief.

“And we are happy because our soldiers and our police counterpart displayed our finest tradition of discipline and professionalism.”

Brawner said that the army and air force soldiers came from their mother unit’s escort battalions, while the navy enlisted man came from the office of reservist affairs.

He said that after the exceptional display of dedication to duty by these soldiers, the AFP might recommend that they be given awards equivalent to their recent task.

“They were handpicked from the among the best our honor guards. They can withstand hours and even a day without doing something but stand in attention. It’s part of their training. We call it discipline,” Marine Col. Lt. Edgard Arevalo, spokesman for the Philippine Navy (PN), said.

Also during the funeral rites, Mrs. Aquino’s former security chief, retired Lt. Gen. Voltaire Gazmin, her former junior military aide now Cavite Rep. Jun Abaya and her former close-in escorts chief Lt. Gen. Jose Angel Honrado served as pallbearers at the Manila Memorial Park.

At the Manila Cathedral, senior police officers carried her casket out of the church for the funeral march.

The Philippine National Police also rendered full honors to the former president before she was laid to rest. – Jaime Laude, Cecille Suerte Felipe