Aquino does well to tackle old enemies

Re: "Already one of the Philippines' best leaders?" Opinion, January 17.

The two cancers that have turned many potentially good Philippine presidents into bad ones are corruption and the Catholic Church. Corruption destroyed Marcos, and the influence of the Catholic Church was one reason Cory Aquino was a lousy president.

So it's promising that, rather than yielding to these cancers, Benigno Aquino has fought them. His Reproduction Family Bill, requiring the government to provide poor people with free family-planning services, is a monumental accomplishment.

Of course, corruption and family planning are not the only two issues that will determine his place in history. But, by fighting corruption and promoting family planning, he at least has a chance of being the second decent Philippine president (after Fidel Ramos) since the pre-Marcos days.

Eric Bahrt

Pattaya