Just a lucky sperm?

by Manuel Buencamino

I want to make democracy work, not just for the rich and well-connected, but for everybody.—Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino

When people began talking about the rebirth of the Edsa spirit and a possible candidacy for Noynoy Aquino, cynics immediately suggested that he was nothing more than a lucky sperm.

Lakas-Kampi stalwart Prospero Pichay said, “Noynoy’s greatest achievement is being the son of Ninoy and Cory Aquino.” Palace mouthpieces, a few bishops and anyone who felt threatened by Noynoy’s candidacy echoed Pichay. “He has to be his own man,” they said.

The negative comments got me thinking, the man served three terms in the House before going to the Senate, and he has done nothing?

I decided to do a little research; it’s a lot better than taking the word of cynics, Palace factotums and user-friendly clerics and pundits, none of whom, I’m sure, bothered to look at Noynoy Aquino’s record as a senator.

Here’s what I learned about the senator. He is not a manic legislator who authors hundreds of inconsequential bills a year. He authored nine bills over two years in the Senate.

The bills seem to show that the senator is committed to making democracy work for everyone. Two of them sought to improve the welfare of workers.

Senate Bill 1370 grants “an annual productivity bonus for all workers in the private sector.”

Senate Bill 2036 increases “the penalties for noncompliance of the prescribed increases and adjustments in the wage rates of workers.”

Four of the senator’s bills are aimed at curtailing corruption.

Senate Bill 2160, an amendment to the Government Reform Procurement Act, plugs loopholes that mega scams like the ZTE-NBN project and the CyberEd project slipped through. It’s a vaccine against deadly swine influence.

Senate Bill 2035 is a bill requiring contractors “to handle the regular maintenance and preservation for public infrastructure after the end of the project.” A contractor who skimps on the construction phase of a public infrastructure project eventually pays for it in higher maintenance and repair costs.

Senate Bill 2978 puts “parameters for the selection of PNP provincial directors and city/municipal chief of police for local government units” because personal discretion in law- enforcement matters is the root of corruption.

Senate Bill 1710 bans “the reappointment of a regular member of the Judicial and Bar Council who has already served a full term.”

Two of Noynoy’s bills address the checks and balance on the power of the Executive.

Senate Bill 1719 limits “the reappointment of presidential nominees bypassed by the Commission on Appointments.”

Senate Bill 3121, or the Budget Impoundment Control Act, strengthens the Legislature’s power over how the Executive spends appropriations.

His bill on human rights would make commanders accountable for the actions of their subordinate officers. Senate Bill 2159 “adopts the doctrine of superior responsibility to all actions involving military personnel, members of the Philippine National Police and other civilians involved in law enforcement.”

Noynoy’s nine bills address the welfare of workers, corruption, checks and balances on Executive power, and human rights. That’s not too shabby for a lucky sperm.