WASHINGTON – Philippines President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (uh-ROY’-oh) is remembering former President Corazon Aquino as a “national treasure” who led the country at a time of great peril.

Arroyo, on an official visit to Washington, says the Philippines will observe 10 days of official mourning following Aquino’s death early Saturday in Manila.

She says Aquino “picked up the standard” after her husband, Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr., was assassinated on the tarmac of Manila’s international airport in 1983 as he returned from exile in the United States to challenge longtime leader Ferdinand Marcos.

Arroyo says Aquino “helped lead a revolution to restore democracy and the rule of law to our nation at a time of great peril.”