(From left) Kris Aquino, the late former president Benigno Aquino III. Images: Instagram/@krisaquino, Presidential Museum and Library
Kris Aquino has nothing but priceless memories and words of love for her brother, the late former President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, a day before what would have been his 63rd birthday on Feb. 8.
She penned a heartfelt message for her brother Noynoy on her Instagram page on Tuesday, Feb. 7, where she also shared a slideshow documenting her favorite moments of them together.
Kris started her message with a memory from Feb. 8, 2022, where her staff members presented her with a passport from the U.S. Embassy, along with “my renewed 10 year multiple entry visa that we’d been waiting for since December.”
“That’s when the significance of the day dawned on me, and I started crying… then we all started crying because nagparamdam ka (we felt your presence). By that time, marami na kong nalaman na ginawa mo ng palihim to make sure ‘bunso’ and her boys would always be safe (I discovered that you’ve done a lot of things to make sure that the youngest child and her boys would always be safe),” she said.
The host-actress also apologized to Noynoy for “being a brat and wasting years” when he was still alive.
“I’m sorry na nagpaka spoiled na nga May 18, 2021 para masilip ka. For once [nag-obey] ako sa strict bilin ng doctor, when it should have been the REAL me [and] barged in para nayakap kita,” she said. “[For your information,] nakabawi ka naman, I was scheduled for a [PET scan] that night BUT in the instructions dapat emotionally calm [and] well rested, but everyone na kinwentuhan ko iniyakan ko, so I had to [reschedule]. It just felt wonderful that on your birthday you made me feel loved.”
(I’m sorry I was spoiled on May 18, 2021 just to get a glimpse of you. For once, I followed the strict instructions of the doctor, when it should have been the real me and barged in just to hug you. For your information, you got even. I was scheduled for a PET scan that night but in the instructions, you need to be emotionally calm and well rested. But everyone whom I talked to knew that I cried so I had to reschedule. It just felt wonderful that on your birthday you made me feel loved.)
Kris also noted how Noynoy would dote on her eldest son Josh, who was his “super favorite,” and how his presence would give her the “faith to remain strong.”
“Thank you for everything [I] never thanked you for. [I] hope you’ve noticed [I’m] more private now… [I’ve] seen the wisdom in quietly enduring my physical suffering, just like you, because that’s what courage is all about. Thank you to all who continued praying for us,” she said. “Happy 63rd birthday to the best Kuya (big brother) any bunso (youngest child) [could have ever] wished for.”
The Queen of all Media is the youngest of five children, while Noynoy was the third and only son of the late senator Benigno Aquino Jr. and the late former President Corazon “Cory” Cojuangco Aquino.
Kris, who is diagnosed with several autoimmune diseases, is currently based in the United States for medical treatments. She recently enjoyed a trip to Disneyland in California with her sons Josh and Bimby in January 2023, in what she described as a “promise fulfilled.” EDV