When in doubt, quote Batman.
The third and final Commission on Elections (Comelec)-sanctioned presidential debate was held at the University of Pangasinan in Dagupan City on Sun, Apr 24. As usual, the participants — Vice President Jejomar Binay, Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, Senator Grace Poe, Liberal Party standard bearer Mar Roxas, and Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago — traded verbal fireworks.
“Roxas, though, caught the attention of many — not to mention drew mixed reactions — when he quoted Batman in his reply to a question from Santiago,” reports ABS-CBN News.
Santiago had asked Roxas: “In all these years, you have been shaped by the elitist background from which you come and in which you operate. Do you not think that the path has been too narrow to be able to become the President of the Philippines?”
Roxas had replied, “As Batman said, it is not important how you came into this world. What is important is what you did with your life. And my life, over the past 20 years, has been a public record.”
He added, “You have been a witness to the many elements of my life as we worked together in the Senate, fighting for cheaper medicines, fighting the banks and the insurance companies, fighting for economic opportunity through economic treaties, fighting for what is good and what is right. My record stands for itself. It is not a question of how I came into this world, it is what I did with my life and how I dedicated my life to help my country.”
In any case, we have a minor correction to make to Roxas’ Batman quote.
The actual quote from the 2005 film Batman Begins goes like this: “It’s not who I am underneath but what I do that defines me.”
In that movie Batman was portrayed by actor Christian Bale. He directed the statement at Rachel Dawes, his childhood sweetheart. It’s actually a reference to what she herself told him earlier in the film: “It’s not who you are underneath, it’s what you do that defines you.”
We are trying to verify if Roxas has a Batcave at his Cubao home or if he has worn a costume to fight crime. (We’re joking, of course.)
