Why we love Luli?

There are a number of things you can rest assured that Luli Arroyo will not do: she will not speak in loud tones for the sole purpose of making people feel her presence, she will not run a bill the size of the national budget for designer fashion, and she will not demand special treatment for being the President’s daughter–ever.

Luli is too unimpressed with the trappings of celebrity, too secure in her own skin to feel the need to force herself on the public. She is too involved with a cause greater than herself to ever run the risk of being self-absorbed. That is the beauty of First Daughter Evangelina "Luli" Macapagal Arroyo. She is 100 percent genuine and the most unassuming woman I have ever met.

Most people have heard of Luli and have seen her in the broadsheets–sitting quietly behind her mom’s podium, walking down the aisle as a bridesmaid for her brother’s wedding or casually answering questions in a TV talk show. What few people know is that Luli is a director of operations of Foundation for Information Technology Education and Development (FIT-ED)–an organization established to increase Information Technology (IT) awareness in the Philippines. The Foundation provides a forum for discussions of issues, expectations and realizable goals relevant to this effort. FIT-ED reviews current thinking and sponsors original research on issues relevant to the attainment of an IT-enabled Philippines. It organizes public fora to discuss information infrastructure and regulatory issues. Sounds awfully highfalutin, doesn’t it? An important thrust however of FIT-ED is to bring Internet technology to remote areas of the country by supplying rural schools with the necessary tools and training in order to access the almost limitless information sites of the Internet.

"At the beginning, public high school teachers feel quite uncertain about the introduction of computers and Internet technology because they fear that they might be replaced by them," explains Luli. "We try our best to ease their apprehensions by presenting the use of computers and Internet technology as tools for further enhancing their ability to teach. Once they understand that the Internet is a friend and not a threat to their occupation, they become much more receptive and things get on smoothly after that!"

Apart from her work at FIT-ED; Luli is also a program officer of the Philippine Foundation for Global Concerns, an organization that, among others, is responsible for Philippine private sector participation in the APEC Business Advisory Council. She is also deputy director of the e-ASEAN Task Force Secretariat.

I can go on and on about her participation in this or that organization, but today I find myself in photographer Raymund Isaac’s studio checking out shoes as Luli has her makeup applied by expert stylist Babette Piguerra. The task at hand is to transmit Luli’s impish spark into film. Designer Ito Curata has fashioned three exquisite vintage-inspired dresses for Luli and she is clearly pleased with them. Her engaging personality envelops the room as she asks Ito how it was like designing for film actress Sharon Stone. She shares that some years ago, her parents had lunch with the actress and her husband Phil Bronstein. Towards the end of the meeting, her father knew that Sharon’s face was familiar but still could not quite place exactly who she was.

Luli is a quick study in front of the camera. The pictorial carries on beautifully. Unlike models who have to practise hours on end not to crinkle their eyes when they smile, Luli eyes light up naturally. She lounges on a couch or sits on a chair with much languor that she emits the serenity of a cat under a shaded tree. She does not emote. She just is. She is modeling Tao-style. Damn it! Wish I could do that.

After the shoot is done she makes a Tigger-like pounce towards me and says, "So where are you taking me for lunch?" We hie off to Italianni’s where she orders pasta and (upon being informed that the kitchen faucet had a filtering mechanism) asks for ordinary tap water. There is no one stealing side glances at the First Daughter in this filled-up restaurant, no murmurs or raised eyebrows that spoil many a meal. Hers is the persona that quietly blends with the crowd and flows where the river takes her. All the while she maintains her poise and simplicity.

As Ito, Luli and I swap stories and exercise our penchant for friendly banter, I marvel at this petite girl’s ability to be the epitome of quiet dignity and peace amidst the vicissitudes and intrigues that Philippine politics hold. Luli’s character has been as consistent as the rising of the sun. It seems to me that she has chosen to harbor no resentment in life and accepts only that which is good, kind and helpful. The achievement of such a disposition is a treasure to keep and a wonder to behold. She is a combination of her mother’s intellectual brilliance, her grandfather Diosdado’s humility and her grandmother Eva’s persuasive charms. With such a rare mix of positive qualities, any other person would aspire for the glitz and glamour of fame that often leads to the heady game of intrigue. But like a cat whose silence belies keen intelligence, Luli chooses to mark her course without sending an APB to the world.

Hers is a bubbling brook that comforts all that goes near it. Thanks for the dip Luli! It was and will always be fun!