Jack The Scribbler

Picture from an eBay.ph seller

“In the beginning there was a marked reluctance among witnesses to come out and contradict the military theory [that Rolando Galman shot Marcos opposition leader Benigno Aquino Jr.]. In fact, people like Butz Aquino [Aquino's brother] openly stated that he had eleven witnesses to the assassination, although admittedly he only spoke with two; he refused to allow any of these witnesses to testify. As Butz Aquino reasoned out, these witnesses feared for their lives and the [Fact-Finding Board] did not have the power to protect them, moreover, he did not recognize the legality of the Board nor did he have any faith in its ability to arrive at a fair decision. Personally, I did not give credence to his story. It made front-page news, but as far as I was concerned it was patently a political decision. He had nothing to gain by presenting these witnesses if they really existed. On the witness stand they could have easily failed to test or they could have been exposed as keeping skeletons in their closet; skeletons totally unrelated to whatever they imagined they have witnessed. Butz Aquino had come out with a definite theory as to how his brother was assassinated. This earned him some publicity without exposing his witnesses to the risk or probably likelihood of being discredited. If the Board’s decision went his way he could say, “I told you so.” Either way, he was a winner. From a non-political standpoint, there was no justification for his stance, which so exasperated me that, for solace, I bought myself a new set of golf clubs.”