My dad, Bingo Altavas was, for the longest time in his 46 years, singularly and openly critical of the Roxases. In my memory, there was no one more passionate about Capiz politics, as knowledgeable of its history and dynamics, nor as dead sure about the shape it was to take this 2010.  I grew up breathing local politics and I have known of no one more rabid an anti-Roxas than Daddy was.

He wrote regularly at the Capiz Times. I do not remember the why’s and wherefore’s of the things he said about the Roxases. Nor do I truly care to recall them now. What I choose to remember is his fire. And equally important, I choose to remember this crucial and incontrovertible fact: that somewhere along the way, Bingo Altavas had a radical change of heart.

Allow a cherished memory by this son of his father: no one was more possessed of greater humility than Bingo Altavas. He was a man who owned up to his mistakes. And as he gained the maturity that came from the frustrating years he spent engaged in local politics, and ever the circumspect man that he was, he must have reviewed his premises and realized he was wrong. With these realizations, he sought out Mar Roxas.

In the last three or four years of his life, Dad, in his small capacity, served Senator Mar. And he served the Senator with the utmost passion and loyalty. Mind you, Dad did so, not to make amends, for he believed one need never apologize for one’s political beliefs. He supported Sen. Mar solely because, having seen and heard the man as close as circumstances allowed him, he had come to admire the Senator’s character and believed both in the merits and the promise of Sen. Mar’s leadership. He was so looking forward to 2010, convinced that Sen. Mar would make the only worthy president of the Philippines. And what greater possibilities Dad saw for Capiz, with Sen. Mar as president.

It goes without saying, Senator Mar has his detractors in Capiz.

A certain group has even gone as far as quoting my dad as accusing the Roxases for the loss of our family patrimony, the lands and titles that were passed from generation upon generation of Altavases.

Dad himself, would that he were alive today, will certainly deny such allegations.

Though Bingo Altavas died leaving very little of what he owned, it did not have anything to do with the Roxases. Dad decided to let go of his inherited properties for the one thing he would broach no compromise on: his children’s education. So let it be said categorically that there is absolutely no truth to the accusations, whatever form they take.

In support of this, I wish to share a deeply personal gesture extended by Senator Mar to me, to our family, to the memory of my father and to their friendship. Two years ago, Dad died so suddenly, and our family floundered. Senator Mar quietly visited us at Dad’s wake. And just as quietly, in a remarkable gesture that could have only have been borne out of a compassionate heart and genuine concern, Senator Mar offered to finance the rest of my college education. The Roxases, through Tita Ria and Mrs. Judy, have done so ever since. It was unsolicited, spontaneous and immediate.

Our family needs no greater proof to refute any malice attributed to the Roxases, especially on our account. For us, nothing could be farther from the real truth. I remain at the Ateneo – my every day in school, a continuing testament of Sen. Mar’s good heart. For that gift, I am grateful and from it, I am hopeful for many others.

In a country crowded at all tiers with corrupt and self-serving politicians, Sen. Mar to me represents decency and hope.

His tricycle ad was heavily lampooned because of the public perception of him as a patrician far-removed from the masses. But you people have missed the point. I am the little boy in the tricycle ad: a fatherless young man Mar Roxas is helping get to a future, which, otherwise, he would have lost. Dad was right. On a grand scale, I too have come to believe, Senator Mar will do the same, through many ways and in many forms, for this country.

Originally written as a response to a Facebook posting, I’ve edited the same as a testimonial for the site.

I first met Mar in day one of first year college in Ateneo. Mar was one of the student managers of my team mates from the Ateneo juniors team. From that first day, there were many surprising revelations about the future Senator, his true character of fairness and fondness with everyone, whether rich or poor.

Being classmates, having a mutual fondness for basketball, as well as coming from the same region (we’re both Ilonggos), we immediately became friends. What made it easier to be friends with Mar was his simple, friendly and unassuming ways. He was one of the boys, in spite of coming from the “royal blood” Roxas-Araneta lineage. There was no gap between him being wealthy and me being ordinary.

One day he dropped by my house at around lunchtime and asked me if I wanted to watch a movie. I naturally invited him to lunch with trepidation because the food on the table consisted of very ordinary “gulay and isda”. His simplicity and demeanor changed my uneasiness to honor, for having him as guest and eat the very ordinary food with gusto.

After lunch, I assumed we would be riding his chauffer-driven huge car (Lincoln Continental I think it was) to Quezon theatre (formerly located in what is now the Gateway).  Again my second surprise was that we were going to walk (from my home in West Point St.). I did not expect him to be walking with ordinary commuters in Cubao.

When we got to the theater, he paid for his ticket and I paid for mine. This gesture meant two very important traits; 1) Mar was not spoiled and abusive, to get us in free (since his family owned all of Cubao); and 2) He was not going to buy one’s loyalty and friendship, by paying for my ticket, or act patronizingly. I was a co-equal regardless of our differences in wealth.

The third most revealing character of Mar was when we were enjoying the movie. While seated in the cinema house, our legs were extended so that it hit the back seats in front of us (the place was half-empty). A person who was 5 seats away (pretty far from us), moved close to where we were, and pushed Mar’s feet out, saying we were disturbing him. Immediately I said to myself, this is the end for this guy. Mar was going to have him kicked out of the theater by the guards.

Mar’s subsequent actions however really caught me by surprise. He castigated the much older (bullying) man saying loudly, “Why don’t you mind your own business, we’re not disturbing you and like you, we are also paying customers.” This shows Mar’s fairness by reasoning out (giving the person a chance to redress his stupid action) as well as his inherent toughness as an individual, by not calling on the guards nor even asking me to gang up on the guy.

There are many more anecdotes I’d like to share… but what is striking is that then and now, Mar is still the same guy with the same traits and character. A leader, a friend, and hopefully, our soon to be Vice-President.