Agapito "Butz" Aquino (May 20, 1939 – August 17, 2015) was Filipino politician and human rights activist who previously served as

Senator of the Philippines The Senate of the Philippines () is the upper house of Congress of the Philippines, Congress, the bicameral legislature of the Philippines, with the House of Representatives of the Philippines, House of Representatives as the lower house. The ...

from 1987 to 1995, congressman from

Makati Makati ( ; ), officially the City of Makati (), is a highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines, known for being one of the leading financial centers in the country. As of 2013, the city has the highest concent ...

and a part-time film and television actor. He was born to former senator Benigno S. Aquino Sr. and Aurora Aquino. He was the brother of former senators Benigno S. Aquino Jr. and Tessie Aquino-Oreta, as well as the uncle of former President Benigno S. Aquino III and former senator Paolo Benigno "Bam" Aquino IV. In 2024, Butz Aquino was honored by having his name inscribed at the wall of remembrance of the Philippines' Bantayog ng mga Bayani memorial, which honors the martyrs and heroes who fought against the Martial Law regime of Philippine dictator

Ferdinand Marcos Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. (September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino lawyer, politician, dictator, and Kleptocracy, kleptocrat who served as the tenth president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled the c ...

Early life

Aquino was born at May 20, 1939. His parents were former senator Benigno Aquino Sr. and Aurora A. Aquino. His siblings were: Benigno S. "Ninoy" Aquino Jr., Paul Aquino, Maria Teresa Aquino-Oreta, Maria Gerarda "Ditas" Aquino-Valdes, Maria Guadalupe "Lupita" Aquino-Kashiwahara, and Maria Aurora "Maur" Aquino-Lichauco.

Early career

He started out as an entrepreneur and was the President of Mofire Fiberglass Inc. from the 1970s until the 1980s. In that period, he wasn't interested in politics. He was said to be cynical about politics and believed that it was a "ballgame of the rich". He started participating in politics when his brother Ninoy, was assassinated on August 21, 1983, at Manila International Airport.

Political career

Under the administration of President

, Agapito was one of the founders of the August Twenty One Movement (ATOM), Coalition of Organizations for the Restoration of Democracy (CORD) and Bansang Nagkakaisa sa Diwa at Layunin (BANDILA). Jejomar Binay was also one of the founders of ATOM as a legal counselor. Agapito became close friends with Binay as co-founders. In 1987, he was elected to be a

and continued to be part of Senate in his 2nd election in

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

. He then became part of the House of Representatives when he was elected as the first representative of the 2nd District of Makati in

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

. He continued to be as a representative until his third term ended in 2007. In addition, he also was the Deputy Speaker for Luzon from November 2000 to January 2001 and the Minority Floor Leader from January 2001 to June 2001. In 2010, he said in an interview with

The Philippine Star ''The Philippine Star'' (self-styled ''The Philippine STAR'') is an English-language newspaper in the Philippines and the flagship brand of the Philstar Media Group. First published on July 28, 1986, by veteran journalists Betty Go-Belmonte, ...

that he had plans in returning to the Senate but after learning that his nephew, Benigno Aquino III, was one of the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

's candidate for president, he backed out and supported his nephew. He instead ran for Mayor of Makati as an independent candidate but lost to 1st district councilor Jejomar Binay Jr. After which, he never again pursued any political positions. He was known for being an advocate of small farmers and of cooperative principles as he legislated the notable Magna Carta for Small Farmers, Seed Act, and the Cooperative Code of the Philippines.

Filmography

Film

* ''The Passionate Strangers'' (1966) - Julio Lazatin * ''Impossible Dream'' (1973) - Atty. Barredo * '' The Last Reunion'' (1978) - Japanese General

Television series

*'' Palos'' (2008) - Mr. President of the Philippines *'' I Heart You, Pare!'' (2011) - Mr. Henry Castillo

Death

Aquino died on August 17, 2015, while confined at the Cardinal Santos Medical Center, citing "natural causes", according to his nephew, Senator Bam Aquino. He was 76. His remains were cremated, brought to the Senate for a tribute on August 19, and laid to rest at St. Therese Columbarium in

Pasay Pasay, officially the City of Pasay (; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 Philippine census, 2020 census, it has a ...

References

External links

Family and relatives of Agapito Aquino
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aquino, Agapito 1939 births 2015 deaths Agapito Members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines from Makati Senators of the 9th Congress of the Philippines Senators of the 8th Congress of the Philippines Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino politicians People from San Juan, Metro Manila Deputy speakers of the House of Representatives of the Philippines Filipino male film actors Filipino male television actors Individuals honored at the Bantayog ng mga Bayani