Formal Announcement of Intention to Run

as Presidential Candidate in the 2010 National Elections

17 June 2009

Before anything else and from the depths of my heart, I would like to thank all of you who have gathered here today for this occasion. I would also equally like to thank all those who are now viewing my message through media and the Internet. You demonstrate that passion and commitment to a better country, a better world, can exist and prevail against the overwhelming forces arrayed against us.

We realize the darkness of the hour. We realize that a tyranny of the few is upon the land. They have corrupted and destroyed our institutions. And they are bent not only stealing our democracy in 2010 and beyond. They are also bent on destroying our soul. They are bent on wiping out any remaining hope in us, in our spirit.

I was recently in Bangkok with leaders from 40 countries. They admire Filipinos, our sense of joy, friendship, hospitality, creativity, entrepreneurship, and expertise. But then they asked without malice but with great concern: What happened to you as a people? Why do you have the kind of government you now have?

Dear Friends, were we born corrupt? Were we born to be poor? Were we born to suffer injustice? To be mis-educated? To be jobless? To wreck our environment? To be immoral and hopeless? To live fearful, passive, meaningless lives? And be helpless victims of traditional politicians?

I am here today because I would like to give a definitive answer to these questions. And I will begin by telling you a story that points to the real nature of the Filipino.

As a student, I took up farming. Our family had a farm in the hills of Iloilo. One day, I was walking home. As there was no road to the farm, I had to hike. It was a 6-kilometer hike. It started to rain, hard. There was a thunderstorm. Lightning was all around. I was wet and chilled.

Halfway home, I saw a mountain farmer coming. He was also soaking wet. We met and chatted briefly but pleasantly. As we were parting, he took out something from his bag. It was a piece of fish. He had been fishing the whole day and he only caught one fish. He gave it to me. I refused. I did not want to deprive him and his family of their dinner staple.

But he insisted. Friendship, care, and dignity were more important than his food. He was telling me that not all things could be bought. Money was not everything. But that honor and compassion was.

That incident never left me. We, rich, middle class, or poor, are a people of freedom, honor and dignity. We already had these and many other positive traits even before the colonizers came to our country and subdued us because they took advantage of our trust, openness, and peace-loving nature.

It is clear to me that as human beings, and as a people, we were born to serve a higher purpose. We were born to honor the truth. We were born to have a life of freedom and dignity. We were born to aspire for greater heights and meaning. We are capable of noble deeds, to right what’s wrong, to heal what has been wounded, to restore our institutions to truly serve the people. We were born to uphold everything truly human.

That is why I am here standing before you today. I see the dawn of a new day, of a new era for the Philippines. I see our nation rising from the ashes and I want to help in the reconstruction of the country.

But it is not just about me. It is about us uniting together to create a new country.

Tayong lahat ang magbibigay liwanag sa kalagayan ng ating bayan.

Tayong lahat ang gagamot ng mga sakit ng ating lipunan.

Tayong lahat ang magbibigay ng solusyon sa kahirapan ng ating mga kapatid.

Tayong lahat ang tatanggal ng korupsyon.

Tayong lahat ang aayos ng ating hukuman.

Tayong lahat ang magbibigay ng sapat na edukasyon sa ating mga kabataan.

Tayong lahat ang magbabalik ng ating moralidad.

Tayong lahat ang magbibigay ng kahulugan sa buhay natin.

Tayong lahat ang magbibigay ng pagasa sa bayan.

Hindi na natin kailangan maghintay pa sa mga pangako ng mga pulitiko.

TAYO ANG SAGOT!

I can imagine that, together, we can snatch rebirth from the jaws of almost certain defeat and shame. I can imagine that, together, we can use the very tragedy that faces us as the very force to lift us to the heights of excellence and promise. I can imagine that we have the maturity to mobilize our pain to strengthen our inner character and resolve to pursue the best we can for our country and the world. And, yes, I can imagine that, together, we can join the ranks of progressive nations of the world and contributing our share to a new world civilization worthy of our dignity as human beings. TAYO ANG SAGOT!

We did it in 1898 when we threw away the yoke of Spain. We did it in 1986, when we toppled a military dictatorship. And we will do it again in 2010.

The 2010 elections will be the venue for the beginning of this massive positive change that awaits us. I see millions of Filipinos awaken to their true calling. When this happen, nothing will stop them from birthing a new country. Not all the goons, guns and gold of this country will stop them. Not all the tricks of the traditional politicians will stop them. Not all the cheating and vote buying will stop them.

People are sick and tired of having no choices. They want real choices, not an empty choice between lesser and the greater evil. They want real dignified change. And they know it will start with REAL choices in the national elections of 2010

This is the reason why, dear Friends, I am publicly announcing my intention to run as President in the 2010 national elections. Like many of you, I am yearning to create a better Philippines. Together, we can create a better world.

This is not an empty hope. Together with others, I have had many experiences making the difficult, the seemingly impossible happen. People said it was impossible to stop a nuclear plant under a dictatorship. But we did it. People said impossible to ban 32 pesticide formulations that were destroying the health of millions of farmers. But we did it. People said it was impossible to convince 18 Presidents and Prime Ministers of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation, including the US, China, and Japan, to advance strong sustainable development language and policy in their agenda of globalization. But we did it. There are other similar experiences that you can explore in my official website, www.nicanorperlas.com.

Many people from the Philippines and the world, for several years now, have strongly encouraged me to run as a presidential candidate for the national elections in 2010. They realize that billions of pesos cannot defeat hearts and minds that are truly longing for something different, something dignified, something free, and something meaningful. They understand that inspired volunteers will create machinery, organization and financial support where none exists.

Truly what we are planning to do is out of the ordinary, but not impossible. In the end, with God, we will ultimately triumph.

Dear Friends, our heroes sacrificed their youthful promise and vigor so that we may live and continue to dream on. Let their words of wisdom, honor, fortitude, courage, and undying love for country, resonate deeply within our hearts and in our spirit. Let us not betray their legacy, a legacy that captures who we really are when we are at our best. I, for one, am ready for the deep sacrifices required to link the greatness of our forebears to today’s realities and finish their unfinished revolution, but through peaceful and democratic means.

Dear Friends, today, let us throw off the chains that have imprisoned us for too long. Let us struggle. Let us work hard. Let us fight, to the very end, so that we can claim, with Rizal and other heroes, that in 2010, there will be no tyrants. For we have awakened to inaugurate a new era of promise, to usher in the new Philippines, and to change our destiny forever.

Thank you.