He Promises to End Corruption
The new President of the Philippines, Diosdado Macapagal, has long appealed to the electorate as a tao (common man) who will never forget his humble beginnings. "I come from the poor. Let me reap for you the harvest of the poor. Let us break the chain of poverty. Let me lead you to prosperity!" he cried at his campaign whistle stops. "I have sat at the sumptuous tables of power, but I have not run away with the silverware."
Stocky and quick-smiling, Macapagal (pronounced Mock-a-pa-gahl) was born 51 years ago in a palm-frond hut in rice-growing Pampanga...