By Jim Maceda, NBC News Correspondent

LONDON – There was something both unique and yet oh so déjà vu about Benigno Aquino III’s inauguration as the Philippines’15th president Wednesday.

On the one hand, here – finally – was a Benigno Aquino taking the presidential oath at the podium. That was something his assassinated father of the same name, who was revered as almost a saint in the Philippines, never lived to attain.

But the scene, and supporting cast, was troublingly familiar: hundreds of thousands of cheering Filipinos stretched across Manila’s Rizal Park in a sea of yellow, Aquino’s campaign color.

The scene was reminiscent of the "people power" rallies back in 1986 for his iconic mother, Corazon Aquino, whose signature color was also yellow. She died last year from cancer, prompting a groundswell of sympathy and support for her son.

That self-proclaimed "plain housewife" – Cory, as she was known – was catapulted into international fame for taking on the dictator, Ferdinand Marcos, by running against him in her husband’s place. And now her own son, known as a "lightweight legislator," won a landslide victory – seemingly out of nowhere. Pundits chalked up his win to his family name and the sympathy vote after his mother’s death.

True, Aquino, called "Noynoy" by his supporters, now 50, said all the right things in his mother tongue, Tagalog, and highly refined English.

"My parents sought nothing less, and died for nothing less," he told the crowd, "than for democracy, peace and prosperity. I am blessed by the legacy. And I will carry the torch forward."

He promised his people a new day, and a crackdown on endemic corruption. But those of us who covered his famous parents heard it all before.

Déjà vu all over again
Cory’s supporters once chatted, "Sobrana, Tamana, Politana," or "Too Much Already, Enough Already, Change Him!" (referring to Marcos). But long after Marcos and his cronies were "changed," corruption only changed hands.

Cory was squeaky clean, but, faced with a recalcitrant Congress, her land reform efforts were stillborn. Her promises to balance the budget were never met. In all, there were seven (unsuccessful) coup attempts against her by restless renegade military officers, some of whom went on to become popular politicians in a system that fed on corruption and nepotism.

Then came President Fidel Ramos who, granted, brought six years of relative stability, until former actor Joseph Estrada succeeded him and turned the presidential palace into a neo-colonial betting shop.

Estrada, after just two years in office, was impeached and jailed for "plundering the nation," only to be granted a pardon by his successor, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

She made big promises, too, but the trend hardly improved. Arroyo’s turbulent nine years in power saw another four failed coup attempts and several bids to impeach her on vote-rigging and corruption charges, though none ever stuck.

And that brings us to Noynoy, perhaps the greatest living personification of Filipino hopes and dreams.

But who was standing near him on the presidential dais? Joseph Estrada – the plunderer – applauded Noynoy’s every word. And Arroyo – the Teflon Lady – was even given military honors as she was sworn in, this time as a congresswoman.

"I can forgive those who did me wrong," said the new President Aquino at one point, "but I have no right to forgive those who abused our people."

Yet, Marcos never paid a penny for the abuse – martial law, tens of thousands of extra-judicial killings and political prisoners – that he wreaked on his nation.

And what about General Fabian Ver, Marcos’ Army Chief of Staff, a man linked to Ninoy Aquino’s assassination? Didn’t he go into quiet exile in the United States?

Even Imelda Marcos never received more than a suspended sentence for all her profligate – and often illegal – draining of the government coffers.

Still unrealized dreams
In steamy, tropical Philippine politics, the line between forgiveness and weakness is often blurred. It’s one reason why, nearly a quarter of a century since the fall of Marcos, the gap between "haves" and "have-nots" has never seemed greater.

Fully a third of the 90 million Filipinos live on a dollar a day. And that cocktail of poverty, corruption and a restless military feels just as combustible as ever.

True, the inauguration was democracy, of sorts, in action. And it was exciting to see. As the festivities went on long into the night, a relaxed President "Noynoy" sang jazz and pop tunes with a live band on stage.

But now the campaign rhetoric has ended and the work begins. I can’t help thinking it will be the same old song.

Jim Maceda is an NBC News London correspondent who was based in Manila in the 1980’s.

By Truus Bos, NBC News Producer

LONDON – While most English fans have slunk away after England's humiliation at the hands of Germany, and American fans have probably gone on safari to drown their sorrows after Ghana defeated Team USA, Dutch fans are still cheering and are left as one of the most visible and vocal support groups in South Africa.

The Netherlands beat Slovakia to reach the quarterfinals after four straight wins. So now they will face Brazil in the World Cup quarterfinals at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium Friday.

The last time Holland beat Brazil in the World Cup was in 1974. Brazil has won the World Cup a record five times, and they are the only team to have played in every tournament.

The Holland coach has acknowledged his team is the underdog. But if they don't win, it won't be from lack of support from the fans.

Tens of thousands of Dutch fans made the trip to South Africa. Some drove all the way from Amsterdam to South Africa, approximately a 12,000 mile trip, in a convoy of 22 orange-painted cars, buses, trucks and caravans through Europe and the length of Africa.

Dutch airlines scheduled extra flights after the team reached the quarterfinals. Many fans have been camping on special camp sites, traveling from stadium to stadium in a large convoy. It's hard to miss the orange cars full of fans dressed in orange wigs, shirts, hats, boas and outrageous costumes.

"There's a fantastic atmosphere here at the campsite. It's all Dutch people and we march together to the stadiums," a 25-year-old airline employee who was camping with three friends told a Reuters reporter. "Nobody cares about how you look, it's all very relaxed."

But earlier in the tournament, the orange outfits got some fans into trouble with FIFA when a group of 36 Dutch and South African girls showed up at the Netherlands-Denmark game wearing orange body-clinging dresses. FIFA officials suspected an ambush marketing ploy and had the girls rapidly removed from the stadium and kept in a room where, according to one of the girls, FIFA officials threatened them with six months imprisonment.

The photos, video and interviews with the women quickly hit the headlines all over the world. Two of the women, who allegedly led the group, were arrested and had to appear at a Johannesburg magistrates' court. Their crime? Violating the "Contravention of Merchandise Marks Act," which prevents companies from advertising without paying for the right to do so.

The real culprit turned out to be a Dutch a beer brewer called Bavaria. When I was visiting Holland in weeks leading to the World Cup you could buy a six pack of Bavaria beer and get a free orange dress.

My niece, a tall, blond 19-year-old, had gotten one and loved it. It had a tiny blue tag in the side seam with the Bavaria logo. Little did my niece realize that by wearing the dress she would become a walking advertisement for the beer company.

One of the arrested women, Barbara Casteleyns, admitted in a phone call to a local Dutch TV News program, "we came up with the idea with the help from Bavaria." She also said that "Bavaria provided our tickets."

Whatever the controversy over the beer company's guerrilla marketing campaign, it won't ruin the enjoyment of the Dutch fans in South Africa, who are having the time of their lives and confident that their team has a good chance to defeat Brazil.

But if their team is defeated, they'll take their orange campers and caravans on the South African roads and enjoy the stunning scenery. "We are getting to see so much of the country," a 25-year-old student dressed in a Dutch milk-maid's outfit told one reporter. "It's really wonderful!"

After all, South Africa is a the country which their forefathers settled in the 17th century as a trading post on the long sea journey to Indonesia and the Far East, and where Afrikaners speak a language they can almost understand.