Parliament of the streets bids goodbye to Butz

MANILA, Philippines - Veteran street parliamentarian Agapito “Butz” Aquino died yesterday afternoon, just four days before the date after which he named his movement against the dictatorial regime of  Ferdinand Marcos.

Aquino, a former senator and Makati congressman, was 76.

He died of complications from dialysis and multiple organ failure at the Cardinal Santos Medical Center, where he had been confined for a few days.

Aquino, uncle of President Aquino, became ubiquitous at anti-Marcos rallies after his brother, former senator Benigno Aquino Jr., was assassinated on the tarmac of what was then known as the Manila International Airport on Aug. 21, 1983. Butz Aquino organized a group called ATOM – the August Twenty-One Movement.

Malacañang paid tribute to Aquino.

“Today, the Filipino people lost a committed public servant. Agapito ‘Butz’ Aquino had originally chosen a quiet life as an entrepreneur, but in the face of the dictatorship’s tyranny, he became one of the frontline fighters for the restoration of our democracy,” presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said in a statement.

Aquino’s nephew, Sen. Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino IV, announced the death.

Lacierda recalled that Butz was the “first public figure to ask Filipinos from all walks of life to gather at the Isetann department store and provide civilian protection” to security officials who decided to go against the Marcos dictatorship.

Butz’s call preceded the late Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin’s exhortation to the people. The response to the calls evolved into the people power revolution in February 1986.

Butz also organized the Bansang Nagkakaisa sa Diwa at Layunin (Bandila).

President Aquino shares a light moment with his uncle, former senator Butz Aquino, in this file photo taken in Quezon City last year.

“We know that in this time of grief and loss for his family, the Filipino people will take his loved ones into their warm and grateful embrace,” Lacierda said. “He was known for his optimism, his wit and his steadfast dedication to the ideals of his brother Ninoy and sister-in-law Cory.”

Presidential sister Ballsy Aquino-Cruz told The STAR that she had never seen Butz, her baptismal godfather, lose his temper.

Maria Montelibano, the President’s first cousin, recalled Butz as her “handsome uncle, a lady’s man, who was thrust into the political limelight to carry the torch when Tito Ninoy was assassinated.”

“He will be remembered by his nieces and nephews as the elder who could make us laugh even when the days were bad,” she added.

As well, Vice President Jejomar Binay mourned the passing of the former senator, whom he described as a “true friend until the end.”

In a statement, Binay recalled how he used to work with Butz in ATOM. He said Butz was a man of courage and principles.

“Even when he became a senator and congressman, never did he use his position and relationship to (President Cory, his sister-in-law) for personal interest,” he said.

Senate President Franklin Drilon, meanwhile, led the chamber in mourning the former senator’s death.

Drilon hailed Butz as a great legislator, noting his “legacy laws” such as the Magna Carta for Small Farmers and the Cooperative Code of the Philippines.

The Senate’s official website described Butz as a public servant with his “own personal style, vision and concrete action programs towards a better life for the impoverished masses.”

Butz was guided by the principles of “living simply, seeking justice, being humble and loving always,” the website read. – Aurea Calica, Delon Porcalla, Helen Flores, Christina Mendez