NAGDADALAMHATI rin ang mga senador sa pagpanaw ni dating Pangulong Noynoy Aquino, Huwebes ng umaga, sa edad na 61.

Agad na ipinag-utos ni Senate President Vicente ‘Tito’ Sotto III na ilagay sa half-mast ang watawat ng Pilipinas sa Senado bilang pagpapakita ng pagluluksa sa pagpanaw ng isang dati ring senador.

“No matter what political side you’re on, when a former president passes away, the country mourns,” saad ni Sotto.

Inilarawan naman ni Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto si Aquino bilang ‘profile of courage, a man of convictions’.

“When politics clashed with the principles he held dear, he would choose the latter, even at the expense of friendships and alliances a leader must maintain in order to govern,” diin ni Recto.

“He did not treat his office as a theatre, where he was obliged to make grand gestures to incite his base or distract them from his mistakes. He preferred silent, solid work over flamboyance. He took care of his country during his watch,” dagdag ni Recto.

“Through his time as Congressman, as Senator, and eventually as President, he was able to balance the weight of being an Aquino—carrying all the history of the name, and all the expectations that came with it—while also carving a path for himself,” pahayag naman ni Senate Majority leader Migz Zubiri.

Labis naman ang kalungkutan ni Senador Joel Villanueva na nakilala bilang TESDAMan sa panahon ng administrasyon ni Aquino.

“If I was Tesdaman, he was the TESDA Godfather. He believed  in the great talents of our youth, waiting to be unlocked if given good training, right breaks, and inspiring success stories. By ordering that they be trained, he invested in their dreams,” diin ni Villanueva.

Para naman kay Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon, sa pagpanaw ni Aquino ay nawalan ang bansa ng isang gentleman na nagsilbi sa bayan nang buong katapatan at sinseridad.
Aminado naman si Senador Panfilo Lacson na heartbreaking para sa kanya ang pagpanaw ng dating pangulo.

“So sad to hear that at a relatively young age of 61, he had passed on to the Great Beyond.

As our country’s leader, he did not deserve to be unappreciated. He served his country very well with humility, honor and integrity. Even as President, he always managed to promptly respond to my messages, no matter how casual and trivial. It was indeed a privilege to have served with him – both in the Senate and the Executive Department,  but more than that, to be his friend,” saad ni Lacson.

Habang inaalala ni Senador Sonny Angara ang mga anti-corruption policy ni Aquino.

“‘Walang wang-wang, walang counterflow, walang tong’ ‘Walang tongpats’ ‘Kayo ang boss ko. These are just some of the quotes of PNoy that are forever etched in the hearts and minds of every Filipino and aptly captures his stance against the abuse of power by the people in power,” diin ni Angara.

Maging si Senador Grace Poe ay naaalala kung paano siya natulungan ni Aquino na pumasok sa public service.

“Sa nagbukas ng pinto ng serbisyo publiko para sa atin, maraming salamat sa iyong legasiya ng pagsisilbi nang buong katapatan at dedikasyon. Ipinakita sa atin ni PNoy ang kahalagahan ng mabuting kalooban sa isang pinuno: walang pag-iimbot sa kapwa, malinis ang intensyon, at walang pagkagahaman sa kapangyarihan. Pinapahalagahan namin ang iyong matapat na paglilingkod, PNoy,” saad ni Poe.

Sinabi naman ni Senator Lito Lapid na “Naging makahulugan ang kanyang pamumuno sa panahong kailangan ng bansa ng isang lider na matuwid at tunay na umalalay sa atin sa tamang daan.

Naging makabuluhan din ang aming samahan bilang Senador noong ikalabing-apat na Kongreso at ang karanasang makadaupang palad ang isang kapita-pitagang pinuno ay lubos kong ipinagpapasalamat.

Nagpahayag din ng kanilang pakikiramay sina Senators Risa Hontiveros, Leila de Lima, Bong Go, Imee Marcos at Richard Gordon. (DANG SAMSON-GARCIA)