Buddy Britanico: ‘Tempted but never tainted’

By Alex P. Vidal

“I can assure you, public service is a stimulating, proud and lively enterprise. It is not just a way of life, it is a way to live fully.”— Lee H. Hamilton

DURING the Regular Batasang Pambansa election on May 14, 1984 under the administration of the late former President Ferdinand Marcos Sr., Deputy Minister for Education Salvador “Buddy” Britanico was one of the only two Kilusang Bagong Lipunan (KBL) candidates to win in Iloilo, which had five seats.

He finished fifth with 225,557 votes among the five winners: 1. Fermin “Nene” Z. Caram Jr. (UNIDO) 360,555 votes; 2. Arthur “Art” Defensor Sr. (UNIDO) 331,322 votes; 3. Rafael “Nono” Palmares (Nacionalista) 309,839 votes; and 4. Narciso “Narcing” D. Monfort (KBL) 248,680 votes.

During the campaign period, then 46-year-old Britanico used the battlecry, “Tempted but never tainted.”

Because he never enriched himself while in office during the Marcos Sr. dictatorship, the Ilonggos embraced Britanico’s political slogan and elected him to the national legislature.

“Tempted but never tainted” actually refers to the theological concept that Jesus Christ experienced the full range of human temptations—including hunger, power, and suffering—yet remained completely without sin.

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This phrase highlights that experiencing temptation is not a sin in itself, but rather a universal human experience that can be overcome through reliance on divine strength.

It reflected how Britanico served as a public servant. He was untarnished and immaculate.

Britanico was tempted many times, but he never succumbed. Ilonggos always remembered his ties with Marcos Sr. but they could not forget that he gave public service a reputable and decent meaning.

Thus, Britanico earned the respect of no less than former First Lady Imelda Marcos, now 96, who initially wanted him to run for vice president when the Mrs. Marcos ran for president in 1992.

The former national president of the Philippine Trial Lawyers Association started his checkered political career as municipal councilor of Oton, Iloilo and was one of the youngest delegates to the 1973 Constitutional Convention.

“After a long and difficult illness,” according to the statement released by the Britanico family, the former Banat Partylist representative passed away on Good Friday. He was 88.

We mourn the passing of a great Ilonggo leader, an epitome of decency in public service, public servant, father, teacher, unlce, patriot rolled into one. Rest in peace, Sir Buddy.

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THE United States and the Republic of the Philippines signed a Joint Declaration of Intent to establish a framework for health cooperation to transition the Philippines to greater autonomy and self-reliance in its health systems April 9.

The signing strengthened the Philippines’ capacity to detect and respond to global health threats, including HIV, tuberculosis (TB), and other infectious diseases.

Signed through the Trump Administration’s America First Global Health Strategy, the U.S. Department of State said the Joint Declaration of Intent commits to co-funding mutually agreed upon global health objectives in the near future, furthering U.S.-Philippine bilateral collaboration in the health sector.

“This Joint Declaration is complemented by the U.S. health assistance announced in September 2025 to combat tuberculosis, advance maternal health, and strengthen disease surveillance and outbreak response,” announced the U.S. Department of State.

Under the Joint Declaration, the United States and the Philippines will negotiate a five-year Strategic Objective Agreement that advances all three pillars of the Trump Administration’s America First Global Health Strategy.

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The new arrangement will reportedly save American and Filipino lives, increase the resiliency of the Philippine health system through coordinated co-funding, and promote innovations in program delivery to slow the spread of infectious diseases like TB and HIV. “The Trump administration’s America First Global Health Strategy helps safeguard Americans from health threats while enhancing the well-being of people in the region,” added the U.S. Department of State.

America’s First Global Health Strategy Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) signed so far represent more than $20.6 billion in new health funding including more than $12.8 billion in U.S. assistance alongside $7.8 billion in co-investment from recipient countries, building on decades of progress fighting HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, and other infectious diseases around the world.

The State Department has signed 30 bilateral global health MOUs with Angola, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Guinea, Honduras, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Panama, the Philippines, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Tajikistan, and Uganda as of April 7.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor-in-chief of two leading daily newspapers in Iloilo, Philippines.—Ed)