If a week is a long time in politics then three weeks, is almost lifetime and over the past twenty-one days I've watched as Senator Benigno 'Noynoy' Aquino has patiently taken charge of his own ramshackle Presidential campaign.

Along with his running mate Senator Mar Roxas (yet another scion of a political dynasty), he has imposed a degree of order on what had been a disparate if well-meaning collection of NGO activists, academics, Liberal party apparatchiks as well as the incumbent President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's "haters."

In so doing, Noynoy has revealed three important character traits: firstly, a quiet self-confidence; secondly an inherently rational and deliberate mindset and thirdly a determination not to become indebted to entrenched business and political interests.

I also had the opportunity to sit down and talk to him, a meeting which has confirmed in my mind that he - while the election is far from over - if voted in, has a strength of mind to lead the Philippines. He is also more pro-business than I would have expected - an added plus.

Meeting Noynoy on the campaign trail in, of all places, Tacloban, Leyte--the hometown of Imelda Marcos , whose husband Ferdinand was the nemesis of the Aquinos--I was pleasantly surprised by how considered and thoughtful he was. Contrary to what many think, Cory's son is a pragmatic and process-driven leader.

However, there's no denying that the nature of his sudden ascent into the political stratosphere initially obscured these qualities--he was propelled into the limelight by his mother Cory Aquino's death from cancer last year.

Moreover, the Aquino legacy fell onto his shoulders at an opportune moment, just as the republic was gearing up for its next 2010 polls. His dignity while the nation was mourning attracted a great deal of positive comment, not least when people compared him to the increasingly unpopular Arroyo.

However, the drama surrounding the funeral also meant that many underestimated him. Having experienced the family's tragedies--he was 23 when his father Ninoy, was gunned down on the Manila airport tarmac in 1983--there's no denyinh that Noynoy was a reluctant candidate. Moreover, he narrowly survived an assassination attempt during his mother's administration in which three of his bodyguards were killed. A bullet from the attack remains lodged in his throat.

Still, many critics dismissed Noynoy's candidacy. They thought he was lacking substance, pulled through by the good-will, his mother Cory had earned over the decades.

Serious questions were raised about how much change a man born into and still very much part of the republic's elite milieu could bring?

At the same juncture, Noynoy was also thought to suffer from a charisma deficit. Remember this is the homeland of the bloated and botoxed, Joseph Estrada.

Moreover, the unavoidable presence in the early months of his younger sister, Kris Aquino, the "Queen of Prime-Time Chat Shows" (Oprah Winfrey AND Tyra Banks rolled into one) didn't help matters. Her personal loquaciousness and occasional vulgarity (whilst extremely popular with the 'massa', or the people) only fuelled the scepticism.

Nevertheless, Noynoy in person is approachable and straight-forward. There is nothing remotely "princely" about him. More importantly, he seemed to know what he was talking about. When asked to expand on earlier comments about his proposed "open skies" policy for the Philippines, Noynoy explained the rationale step by step.

"My central concern is the welfare of my people. They need jobs. Our manufacturing industry has withered away. The toothpaste and shampoo we use is even imported from Thailand!" he said.

"So what are our options?" he asked. Business process outsourcing, he noted, and "tourism are critical growth areas. Take a look at Leyte and Samar. The hotels aren't as good as they should be and the infrastructure is poor.

"I'm struck by Bali's example. Here's an island destination that's gone from a few hundred thousand visitors to three million in part because of an open-skies policy. We need to adopt the same approach in the Philippines. We need to make it easier for tourists to visit, improve our roads and airports."

He was equally blunt when asked about his country's many millions of overseas foreign workers.

"Yes, they send back billions of pesos (currently $1.5 billion per month)," he said. "However, there is a social cost of having so many families split up, what with children growing up without their parents.

"We need to create these jobs at home. We need to work to lower electricity tariffs, improve infrastructure and impose the rule of law."

As a close neighbour of China and a long-term ally of the United States, Noynoy adopted a conciliatory position:

"We have to find a way of maintaining our old friend [the United States] while working together with emerging powers in a win-win manner. I think Chinese corporations have realized the complexity of the Filipino market after the problems over ZTE," he said, noting a messy scandal involving Arroyo's husband and ZTE, a Chinese company that was to provide a national broadband network for the country before the dirty dealing came to light.

He also spoke of the importance of regionalism: "ASEAN is vital. We must work together, if not we'll be picked off one by one."

Talking to him, I was struck by Noynoy's grasp of the issues and his understanding of the monumental challenges he faces should he be elected. He stands a strong chance of winning despite the acknowledged financial firepower of his main challenger, billionaire, Manny Villar.

The difficulty, as the far more magnetic President Obama has found out, lies in actually governing, affecting realistic change and taking on vested interests, some of which may have gotten you to where you are in the first place.

The deep poverty, lack of economic direction and political turmoil in the Philippines will not simply fold when confronted by a decent, incorruptible man with a famous name. While Filipinos have a right to have their reservations, one gets a sense that Noynoy is up to the task.

He has been presented with the unique opportunity to step out of the long shadows of his titanic parents, and carve out his own legacy which may well surpass theirs if he has the vision as well as courage to make it happen. (CERITALAH by KARIM RASLAN/MySinchew)