President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III Saturday urged the Filipinos to support him as they did to his mother in facing the challenges of the presidency. Aquino made the call at the Rizal Park Saturday afternoon to lead the unfurling of a photo mosaic in honor his mother, the late president Corazon “Cory” Aquino, on her first death anniversary Sunday. “The burden she once carried is now upon me. She managed to overcome it with the help of the people,” said Aquino, who decided to run for president in the May 10 elections after his mother's death on Aug. 1 last year. “I hope and pray you will also be at my side so the change we committed to work on together will soon become a reality,” he said. Corazon Aquino led a bloodless People Power Revolution that toppled the 20-year rule of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos in 1986. He said that while the mosaic is a symbol of the renewed hope following his mother's death, the real challenge is in making her example and legacy “part of our daily lives.” “All throughout her life, she demonstrated love not only for her family but for every single Filipino. Remember this as you widen your horizons and realize there are people who may not be as fortunate as you are,” he said. The president exhorted Filipinos not to give up in facing many problems, saying his mother confronted many challenges and never gape up, “no matter how difficult they were.” Aquino, with Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim and members of his mother's former Cabinet, inspected the four-ton 3,200-photo mosaic measuring 200 by 250 feet, after its unfurling. The ceremony was held past 2 P.M., shortly after heavy rains had subsided. “This is Cory weather. The rain finally stopped,” said Corazon Aquino's former spokeswoman Lourdes Siytangco. Aquino was clad in black. Vice President Jejomar Binay, a close supporter of his mother, wore yellow. Corazon Aquino, who was credited for restoring Philippine democracy following a bloodless revolution in 1986, succumbed to colon cancer. Her death sparked calls for her son, then a senator, to run in the presidential race. Aquino said that when her mother died last year, he was concerned that public support for principles she stood for had waned over the years. But he said he did not expect the record number of people who paid tribute to her. “It was a resurgence of hope and a realization that each of us has a role in alleviating our common burden,” he said. “I remember her best for what she taught me when she said I could not live with myself knowing that I could have done something and I chose not to. That lesson about conviction was critical in my decision to run for the presidency,” he said.
