Aquilino Pimentel Jr.

Aquilino Quilinging Pimentel Jr. (, December 11, 1933 – October 20, 2019), commonly known as Nene Pimentel, was a Filipino politician and human rights lawyer who was one of the leading political opposition leaders during the regime of Ferdinand Marcos from the declaration of martial law in 1972 until the People Power Revolution in 1986, which removed Marcos from power.

Nene Pimentel was born on December 11, 1933, to Aquilino "Aquio" E. Pimentel Sr. (January 4, 1909 – November 8, 1987), a lawyer from Cagayan de Oro, and Petra Quilinging (July 27, 1911 – May 11, 1956), a public school teacher from Batac, Ilocos Norte.

He married Lourdes "Bing" de la Llana on April 30, 1960, and they had six children, including Aquilino Pimentel III.

In 1971, Pimentel rose to national prominence as an elected delegate to the Constitutional Convention of 1971, representing Misamis Oriental.

The nature of the Constitutional Convention changed when then-President Ferdinand Marcos declared martial law on September 21, 1972.

Pimentel and a few like-minded delegates feared the Constitutional Convention would produce a Marcos-scripted Constitution and were vocal in their opposition.

Pimentel also protested certain provisions as being contrary to the people's interest.

In the subsequent roundup of those who opposed Marcos, he was arrested in early 1973 and jailed for three months at Camp Crame.

Pimentel, who had a young family, bade his wife Bing "Be brave. Don’t cry," and submitted to the incarceration.

He was released from prison in time for the signing of the Constitution.

Along with a few other delegates, Pimentel refused to sign the Constitution.

He then went to work as a lawyer for the National Secretariat for Social Action of the Catholic Bishops Conference.

In April 1978, Pimentel ran for a post in the Interim Batasan elections as an official candidate of the Laban party of Metro Manila with Benigno S. Aquino Jr. Members of Marcos' KBL party swept the seats.

Pimentel and other opposition leaders like Senator Lorenzo Tañada, Francisco Soc Rodrigo, Tito Guingona, Archie Intengan SJ, and Chino Roces loudly protested the defeat of all opposition candidates and denounced the massive cheating that had taken place.

Pimentel was one of those arrested for leading a demonstration against what he termed farcical elections.

He had spoken out against Marcos' bid to produce a rubber stamp legislature to win legitimacy for his iron-fisted regime which was increasingly being criticized here and abroad.

Pimentel was jailed for two months in Camp Bicutan in Taguig, Metro Manila.

Pimentel's second stint in prison did not silence him.

In fact, it strengthened his resolve to fight for freedom and to oppose electoral fraud.

The COMELEC cited Pimentel for switching from Laban in April 1978 to the Narional Union for Democracy and Freedom in December 1979 and then running as candidate of the Mindanao Alliance in January 1980.

The COMELEC's move ired the Cagayanons.

Pimentel partisans immediately staged peaceful demonstrations to express their displeasure.

About 30 of his supporters also started fasting in protest.

Six days later, 10,000 of his supporters marched around the city in a nonviolent show of support for Pimentel who was then on an official trip to the US.

Thousands more lined the streets to cheer them on.

This first-ever demonstration of "People Power" came at a time when Marcos did not lightly tolerate dissent.

Meanwhile, in Manila, Pimentel's lawyer, headed by opposition leaders former senators Lorenzo Tañada and Soc Rodrigo, along with Abraham Sarmiento, Raul Gonzales and Joker Arroyo, claimed that the COMELEC had acted without jurisdiction and contented that the electorate's will should be respected.

The COMELEC, however, reaffirmed its decision to oust Pimentel.

Ever the parliamentarian, he brought the battle from the streets to the polls in January 1980 when Marcos allowed local elections.

His wife Bing recalled they launched his mayoralty bid in Cagayan de Oro with a mere ₱2,000 in his war chest – all the money the couple could muster.

But Cagayanons who believed in him contributed to his campaign and penned his name on their ballot.

Pimentel won by a 3–1 margin over his KBL rival, who was fielded by Marcos.

Pimentel ran under the coalition banner of the National Union for Democracy and Freedom and the Mindanao Alliance which busted KBL dominance in Misamis Oriental.

He and his entire slate of candidates for vice mayor and seven city councilors swept the elections in Cagayan de Oro.

His candidates for governor and vice governor also won.

Pimentel was not to govern his city unhindered.

In 1981, while he was on a five-week training course in the United States, the COMELEC ousted him for "political turncoatism", installing the KBL candidate as mayor.

He co-founded the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino–Lakas ng Bayan (PDP–Laban) and served as the President of the Senate of the Philippines from 2000 to 2001.

He is the father of incumbent senator and former Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III.

In 2018, Pimentel was identified by the Human Rights Victims' Claims Board as a Motu Proprio human rights violations victim of the Martial Law Era.