On the eve of former Senator Ninoy Aquino's 40th anniversary of his assassination, his grandson shared the story of his grandfather’s sacrifice and personal transformation during Martial Law at the Ninoy Aquino Monument in Makati.

Kiko Dee, whose mother Viel is one of the ex-senator's daughters, said his grandfather was considered the ''boy wonder'' of the opposition.

Aquino was a correspondent for the Manila Times at 17 years old during the Korean War, the youngest mayor of Concepcion, Tarlac before becoming governor and senator.

“He was really considered the ‘boy wonder’ and was the most outspoken among the members of the opposition during his term as senator,” Dee said.

Dee said that Aquino had considered running for president before he was arrested on the morning of September 23, 1972.

“Everyone thought that he would run for president and that was his plan. My Lola (Corazon ‘Cory’ Aquino) told me he thought of nothing but how to become the president of the Philippines in the soonest possible time,” he recalled.

However, the turning point in his grandfather’s life was when he was imprisoned.

Dee said that during Aquino’s time in prison, he had more time to think his life over and his realizations led him to his personal transformation.

“Maybe when Lolo Ninoy was imprisoned, that was the moment when he began his fight, his journey, and his sacrifice with the Filipinos. Because just as our countrymen suffered during the Martial Law, he also suffered seven years and seven months in prison,” Dee said.

He said that Aquino's sacrifice paved the way for the opposition to have a voice in the government.

“Because of the sacrifice of Lolo Ninoy, the opposition had a space in the government. If the opposition didn’t have anyone to represent them in the parliament, which was called the Batasang Pambansa back then, (President Ferdinand Marcos, Sr.) wouldn’t be pressured to have the snap election. And if there is no snap election, the EDSA Revolution wouldn’t have happened,” Dee said.

“So there is a clear line that can be seen from Lolo Ninoy’s murder of what the sacrifice of one person can do,” he said.

On August 21, 1983, Aquino was shot on the tarmac of Manila International Airport while he was being escorted from a plane by soldiers.

His widow, Corazon, became the opposition candidate during the 1986 elections. Marcos won but on February fled the country due to a bloodless coup. Aquino assumed the presidency until her six-year term ended in 1992. Jaspearl Tan/DMS