Babae sa dilim, padaplin!
Babae sa dilim is the caption given by the narrator in you tube about the passing of Danding Cojuangco. And this is the story.
Eduardo Danding Cojuanco was the chair of San Miguel Corporation when he bought San Miguel brewery from Andress Soriano and Mercedes Mcmiking by buying the majority shares of stocks including the stocks of Enrique Zobel, the brother of Jaime Zobel De Ayala. Those were the martial law years. Jaime Zobel De Ayala, then, was the Ambassador to the court of St. James.
Danding Cojuangco was married to Gretchen Oppen Cojuangco of Negros. The Cojuangcos, then, of Tarlac married beautiful and pedigreed ladies of their time. Ramon Cojuangco of PLDT married Imelda Ongsiako Cojuangco; Peping Cojuangco, the brother of Cory Aquino, married Tingting De Los Reyes Cojuangco; Danding married Gretchen Oppen. They are first degree cousin Cojuangcos and the ladies they married are all in the world’s prettiest faces and best dressed according to the Forbes magazine.
The most beautiful of faces is not a guarantee that you will live happily ever after. Danding had a second family from his partner of 22 years, a starlet and a former Binibining Pilipinas with whom they have two children.
In his wake, the first family took over. So babae sa dilim padaplin. It’s just the word padaplin that I supplied.
In relation to this, I remember the line from the movie, Bridges of Madison County. Though the situation was different, the couple remained a couple until death. But the lady’s lover, Robert Kinkaid, somehow made a wish that his ashes will be brought to the love of his life. That in the end, she said to herself, I’ve given my life to my husband and now I have his body – something to that effect.
So women, please, padaplin sa dilim and beware. What god has joined together, let no man put asunder. So the title tells us that legitimate family will always prevail over any other person/s. So, it is really true, padaplin gyud ang naa sa dililm.
Another prominent personality in the Visayas is the late Councilor (who used to be a congressman) Antonio “Tony” Cuenco. He succumbed to Covid. He was a prominent opposition congressman from the Visayas. I prayed the novena for the two of them: for Mr. Danding Cojuangco, who was the former boss of my husband Roger at Granexport. Danding bought Granexport through San Miguel Corp at the height of martial law. He was with Pres Marcos on their exile to Hawaii. On the other hand, Tony Cuenco and wife Nancy (with a good friend of mine) secured Cory and Kris at the Carmelite convent at the start of EDSA revolution.
In a way they have a strong connections to the Aquino’s. Even if Danding was a fierce political enemy of Ninoy, in the end, he became a staunch supporter of Noynoy. Let history be kind to the man.
