The Bongbong Marcos I know
Bongbong Marcos campaigning for VP, 2016. [Photo source: International Business Times]
By JoeAm
I ran a brief post on Facebook extolling the virtues of Leni Robredo and wondering why there there is anyone who would not relate to her as the kind of Filipino who makes them proud. I mean, she is kind, honest, smart, strong, great mother, charming, and inspiring . . . and does incredible work with a low budget while under relentless attack by fake news and mean-spirited trolls.
Rather than go with dignity and good works, the nation puts brutal, weak, devious, greedy thugs on the pedestal and concocts reasons why Leni Robredo is no good. Define backward.
The posting ran for about a day and garnered 1,100 likes when the trolls started arriving. Marcos minions, in the main, dealing their insults and deceits and taking shots at Leni Robredo and Joe America. I love the guy who arrived on the wings of that special kind of grace reserved for the best of the best:
Jacques Phillip You’re an idiot Joe. Plain and simple.
Others recited the typical troll stories, long ago proved fake, but I guess they have traction elsewhere on the internet. When they come on to my page, I basically recite a standard response that goes something like:
This is a no-troll zone. (Description of trolling technique(s) used.) Blocking is required by policy.
I can’t comprehend how these people figure they are raising the reputation of Bongbong Marcos. They seem to represent a line of thinking that is abusive, fallacious, and full of lies. That elevates Marcos?
But enough about the background for this commentary.
I’ve never met Bongbong Marcos, but here is what I know about him from reading the news and watching Senate committee hearings. I’ve made some personal judgments that are shown in italics within parentheses:
- He is the son of a rapacious thief and was only allowed back into the Philippines because impunity and dynastic families are a part of the fabric of that part of the nation that is failed. (He is a thief. He believes in impunity.)
- He has never accepted accountability for his involvement in the bad doings of his father, or offered restitution to those hurt. He still sees his father as an icon of strength and good work. (He is a deceitful thug.)
- He railed loudly during the Mamasapano hearing, condemning the generals and President Aquino for not firing artillery into the fighting zone . . . where an unknown number of civilian families lived. (He believes people should be sacrificed to authority)
- He single-handedly stopped passage of the Bangsamoro Basic Law, setting peace in Mindanao back three years. (He believes personal political gain is a legitimate reason for public policies.)
- He is being deceitful and devious in his attack on the legitimacy of the election won by Vice President Robredo. A part of the attack and deceit is the fielding of trolls to infest social media with lies, insults, and threats. (He would use government resources to suppress or distort truth and exert authority, as his father did, and as President Duterte does now.)
That is basically what I’ve witnessed. We can go to Wikipedia to get a quick brief on his history and what he has accomplished. We will learn that:
- He was vice governor of Ilocos Norte for three years and then governor for three years. Then he joined his family in exile in Hawaii.
- His father appointed him Chariman of Philippine Communications Satellite Corp (Philcomsat) which was a beacon of corruption and crony capitalism, funneling 10s of millions of dollars out of the nation for 10 to 15 years. Bongbong headed it for the last year before it was taken over by the new government to get rid of the rot.
- Congressman from 1992 to 1995 during which he was very active in writing and sponsoring legislation. He lost a run for Senate in 1995.
- Governor of Ilocos Norte for three terms, from 1998 to 2007. He developed the wind power infrastructure for the region.
- Senator for two terms from 2010 to 2016. Directly from Wiki:
- In the 15th Congress (2010–2013), Marcos was the author of 34 Senate bills and was co-author of 17 more, 7 of which became Republic Acts. Among them are the Anti-Drunk and Drugged Driving Act, the Cybercrime Prevention Act, the Expanded Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act, and the National Health Insurance Act.
- In the 16th Congress (2013–2016), Marcos has authored 52 bills, with one enacted into law. His Senate Bill 1186, which sought the postponement of the 2013 Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections, later became Republic Act 10632 on October 3, 2013.
- Marcos has also co-authored 4 Senate bills. One of them, Senate Bill 712, was approved as Republic Act 10645 or the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010.
Marcos was implicated in the pork barrel scheme in 2014 as a co-conspirator in the Napoles PDAF scams. His activity involved P100 million distributed through four fake accounts. He claimed he did not authorize the dispersal of the money and his signature was forged.
He was also accused in 2016 of issuing nine special release orders totaling P205 million. He was directly involved in the releases. The organizations receiving the money were fictitious. I could not locate any update on the status of the cases.
He ran for Vice President in 2016 and lost to Leni Robredo by 263,473 votes. He has been bitterly contesting the loss, accusing the Robredo camp of election fraud, and making other aspersions against her, against COMELEC, and even against the Supreme Court Justices (PET) overseeing the protest. The bickering has been epic, covering everything from where audit reports were found to shading of ballots to fake news, with the PET issuing repeated instructions to the camps to stop discussing the case in public.
Wiki has a long section about his “Public Behavior” which mainly centers on alleged human rights violations and his refusal to be apologetic about his family’s misdeeds. As to complaints, he remarked: “…people have their own opinion; they have the right to their opinion. We’ll agree to disagree, I guess.” He claims the Philippines was on the way toward becoming another Singapore, but his father did not get to finish his work.
Here is a lengthy summary of the Marcos looting and recovery. The article was done by Rappler in 2016. It is helpful for readers who wish to understand the politics and results of the recovery effort: “Recovering Marcos’ ill-gotten wealth: After 30 years, what?”
Character and competence are the two great measuring sticks of prospective leaders. Or popularity, too. There is that. Indeed, for many Filipinos it seems to be the greatest qualification.
Could Bongbong Marcos win a national election today?
I think he would struggle. He could not stop the unknown Leni Robredo from her steady march upward in the minds and hearts of Filipinos in 2016. He can spend his money on trolls but the trolls are obvious, they talk nonsense, and they can’t build anything. They can only tear down. They can’t really defend Bongbong. His failure to account for his family’s brutality and thieving will be a lead stone he wears around his neck until the day he dies.
Bongbong Marcos is bombastic, not roughly charming like President Duterte. He can’t box or tell jokes. He can’t act.
President Duterte may have used him, and still have use for him.
But he can’t get him into an elected office.
He can only try to use the power of injustice to deny Filipinos the right to choose their own leaders.
The Society of Honor by Joe America 
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This is the comment I posted yesterday that is relevant to today’s topic:
*** Yesterday ***
Ah, the Marcoses.
Like all dynasties, this family is like malignant cancer cells on the body politic.
Except that this family is extraordinarily malignant for three things – wealth, persistence, and longevity.
The Marcoses have been planning a comeback since their return from exile in 1991.
The tactics in their strategy to revive their political fortunes have been systematic, comprehensive, and brilliant… with no stone left unturned. They have co-opted the executive, the judiciary, the military, news media, social media, government positions, and god-knows-what-else.
Their effective use of social media for their cause preceded Duterte’s by almost a decade. (I remember seeing anti-Aquino YouTube videos in the late years of the first decade of this century. I just checked and there are pro-Marcos videos going back 9 years ago.) I believe the repugnant soc-med creatures are more Marcos than Duterte shills.
In my estimate, the heirs cannot win back Malacañang by charisma. Imee projects a crocodile smile that cannot conceal her viciousness and Bongbong presents an effete weakness. They have to win it back by money. (But don’t take my word for it. I thought the nation would see Duterte as the ignoble brute that he is, and never believed for one moment that people would be captured by his “brutish charm.”)
But you are right. We should not underestimate what Filipinos will do for money and power. The swiftness and efficiency of the sneaky burial of the late dictator is an object lesson.
*** Today ***
Moving on.
In Filipino politics, the Marcoses are the elephant in the room.
Speaking of money, I was just wondering how much Bongbong has spent in his PET protest. Here’s a conservative guesstimate:
Poll recount – P67M
Lawyers – P10M
Trolls – P3M
Incentives – P5M
Total – P85M
P85M is roughly US$1.7.
To many of us that are fortunate, this magnificent sum is the earnings of a lifetime or a nest egg for a comfortable retirement.
But to the Marcoses, this is a drop in the bucket of $10B that the late dictator stole.
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The new CJ might just declare BBM to be VP. They will find some abstruse “reason”.
Beware the dates Sept. 11 and 21 I say and wonder who still knows their meaning.
> I remember seeing anti-Aquino YouTube videos in the late years of the first decade of this century. I just checked and there are pro-Marcos videos going back 9 years ago.
http://pcij.org/stories/a-different-edsa-story/
It is, but unfortunately, they’re still alive and well, and still being quoted and cited. Only the content of their more recent videos have taken on the “conspiracy theory” insanity more worthy of Russia Today’s attention towards the fringe and the extremist sources.
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Madlanglupa, thanks.
That was a long read and proves the point that the Marcos propagandists were/are masters of the new visual (© Irineo) medium.
I shudder at the pro-Marcos reactions of the youth in the article. Sure, Marcos did not sic the army on the nuns at EDSA but it wasn’t from lack of scruples. He was afraid of the verdict of history.
Marcos was always a victim of his own image, his outward finesse.
Everything was for show and concealed the inner corruption.
Like many, the youth in the article see the scruples of the dictator but fail to see Micha’s “chronology of plunder” that led to the rush at EDSA.
*****
“Governor of Ilocos Norte for three terms, from 1998 to 2007. He developed the wind power infrastructure for the region.” Yes, when wind power infrastructure was hideously expensive (compared to now). No indication that the province got a return on that investment.
(But what the hey, they grew up occasionally throwing a fraction of the plunder money at big populist projects, so fiscal prudence is not their strong suit.)
Yes, a very manipulative approach to everything. They don’t do good works for the works, but for the advantage they can get from them. Poe does that, too.
With all their billions, I wonder why they still covet power in the government. They cannot take the money to their graves, sad to say. They cannot buy their place in heaven.Their ambitious pursuit of power ay panggulo sa Pilipinas.
Good morning Joem, good morning all!
Good morning, arlene. Good point. I suspect they are just trying to reclaim what was taken from them. They are the center of the Philippines, in their minds. It is like China is trying to reclaim being the center of the world. They don’t care who they have to hurt to get back to their rightful destiny.
What a shame, the Marcoses are a hard nut to crack! One family, and they want to rule the whole country. Have you read about the COA’s findings on Imee’s misappropriations and misrepresentation of public funds?
Yes. Such a deep sense of entitlement. Mama’s genes I guess.
Yes, she wants her son to be president before she dies….haha! Ambitious lot, the whole of them.
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Good morning, Arlene.
*****
Good morning too Edgar!
Can change.org make people change?
https://www.change.org/p/filipinos-we-want-bongbong-marcos-to-stop-using-drugs
I call on all millenials out there to make it their life’s work to:
1. exhume Marcos’ body just like Franco
2. prevent any future Marcos progeny from attempting any revision again
You have the advantage of age, because all these Marcos loyalists that got in due to Duterte (including Duterte himself) do not have much years left.
The Marcos loyalists in govt right now:
1. Duterte
2. Calida
3. some of the SC justices
4. Panelo
5. some Congressmen, esp from Ilocos region
6. Senator Sotto
Great idea Andrewlim8 to exhume Marcos bones from the LNMB. Millennial and Generation Y activists should clamor for the exhumation. May start by getting elected to Congress or the Senate. The Boomers and Silent Generation can nurture the Exhumation Seed which you have dropped just now.
Senator Escudero and Sec Cayetano were children of Marcos cabinet men, so they are questionable.
Malacanang executive staff is full of Marcos loyalists, esp the PCOO- Cualoping, Uson, Andanar, etc.
In the last election, Con-Com member Ed Tayao was a Marcos consultant. So was Popoy de Vera.
As best as I can see, the supporters of Marcos now are either:
1. tribal Ilocanos who are so selfish that they do not care about others’ suffering- all they care about is that they benefit
2. the incredibly corrupt, who see opportunity in the ” value system” of the Marcoses where cronies benefit while the country suffers
(cont)
The hordes of OFWs who were too dumb and ignorant before are not like that anymore, I hope.
The Marcos loyalists in the military are largely gone and dead by now, and the present ones look remarkably resistant.
The resistance to revisionism has been successful amongst the youth.
We have the excellent educational institutions and the religious orders that run them to thank for this.
The OFW hordes might still be barangay minded. And easy to fool still with the bastardized version of old leftist propaganda used by the Duterte side: yellows are the rich and the Catholic church and the USA, those who made us poor. Plus Marcos will save us.
Just like Anti-Semitism and Nazism was and is the stupid man’s version of Communism. They will have to be fast now though, Tita Tessie will have to PET it through for BBM, before every OFW family realizes why rice is short. And BBM unlike his father will shoot at crowds.
Why are so many OFWs so damn ignorant? Poverty? Low quality education? Desperation for a messiah that will protect them?
Many of them are educated, though these are low quality schools- so they end up getting news from Facebook, usapang kanto, Mang Kepweng, conspiracy theories.
Unfortunately, some OFWs confessed that they have few legitimate sources of news or access thereof. They end up relying mainly on Facebook as their sole source of news, and which is why it’s the favorite vector for propaganda operations.
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Superb point — the confirmation of bias.
*****
PNP chief Albayalde gave other govt officials a technique to counter Duterte – say the right and true immediately, and if it runs counter to the President’s, issue a revision that is so idiotic and wrong that the media and the public immediately realize this government is headed to oblivion.
Just like on the damage of federalism on the economy- economic mgrs say outright that it will be disastrous, if the President says otherwise, then reverse and say that it will be good BUT present the apocalyptic projections on budget deficit, credit rating, scrambled tax code, etc. 🙂
The wind power project in Ilocos Norte was by the Asian Development Bank.
I guess they chose that area for its strong winds, not because of Bongbong Marcos.
The Marcoses indeed made the towns and roads beautiful in their province, this I noticed even during Martial Law – this is similar to the Binay approach of focusing on “one’s own folks” which will not necessarily translate to national level, but then again so many trapos are like that.
BBM wanting to shoot indiscriminately at Mamasapano is but a replay of what he was asking his father to do at EDSA, on live TV, dressed in green. Beware of a President BBM, c/o PET de Castro.
His bombast is a weak imitation of his father’s style, a style suitable to an older generation.
(Requesting permission for this full article reprint from Asian Journal))
Chronology Of The Marcos Plunder
September 1976, the Marcoses bought their first property in the U.S. – a condo in the exclusive Olympic Towers on Fifth Avenue in New York . Five months later they would also buy the three adjoining apartments, paying a total of $4,000,000.00 for the four and using Antonio Floirendo’s company, The Aventures Limited in Hong Kong, as front for these purchases.
October 13, 1977 Today, after addressing the UN General Assembly, Imelda celebrated by going shopping and spending $384,000 including $50,000 for a platinum bracelet with rubies; $50,000 for a diamond bracelet; and $58,000 for a pin set with diamonds.
The day before, Vilma Bautista, one of her private secretaries, paid $18,500 for a gold pendant with diamonds and emeralds; $9,450 for a gold ring with diamonds and emeralds; and $4,800 for a gold and diamond necklace.
October 27, 1977 The Marcoses donated $1.5 million to Tufts University in Boston, endowing a professorial chair in East Asian and Pacific Studies at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. The students and professors discovered this and forced the school to reject the donation. To save face, the Marcoses were allowed to finance several seminars and lectures.
November 2, 1977 Still at her shopping spree, Imelda paid $450,000 for a gold necklace and bracelet with emeralds, rubies, and diamonds; $300,000 for a gold ring with emeralds and diamonds; and $300,000 for a gold pendant with diamonds, rubies, and thirty-nine emeralds.
July 1978 After a trip to Russia, Imelda arrived in New York and immediately warmed up for a shopping spree. She started with paying $193,320 for antiques, including $12,000 for a Ming Period side table; $24,000 for a pair of Georgian mahogany Gainsborough armchairs; $6,240 for a Sheraton double-sided writing desk; $11,600 for a George II wood side table with marble top – all in the name of the Philippine consulate to dodge New York sales tax.
That was merely for starters.
A week later she spent $2,181,000.00 in one day! This included $1,150,000 for a platinum and emerald bracelet with diamonds from Bulgari; $330,000 for a necklace with a ruby, diamonds, and emeralds; $300,000 for a ring with heart-shaped emeralds; $78,000 for 18-carat gold ear clips with diamonds; $300,000 for a pendant with canary diamonds, rubies and emeralds on a gold chain.
After New York, she dropped by Hong Kong where a Cartier representative admitted it was this Filipina, Imelda, who had put together the world’s largest collection of gems – in 1978.
May 1979 The Marcos couple celebrated their twenty-fifth wedding anniversary in a party that cost $5,000,000.00 There was a silver carriage drawn by eight white horses.
November 23, 1978 A house was purchased at 4 Capshire Drive in Cherry Hill , New Jersey (actually near to Philadelphia where Bongbong was taking courses at that time) for use by servants and Bongbong’s security detachment. The Marcoses did not neglect their annual real estate purchase. During this year and next year, 1979, they purchased two properties – one at 3850 Princeton Pike, Princeton – a 13-acre estate for use by daughter Imee as she attended Princeton.
The other was a house at 19 Pendleton Drive in Cherry Hill for use of Bongbong and under the name of Tristan Beplat, erstwhile head of the American Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines.
April 1979 in two days in New York this month, Imelda spent $280,000 for a necklace wet with emeralds and diamonds; $18,500 for a yellow gold evening bag with one round cut diamond; $8,975.20 for 20-carat gold ear clips with twenty-four baguette diamonds; $8,438.10 for 18-carat gold ear clips with fifty-two tapered baguette diamonds; and $12,056.50 for 20 carat gold ear clips with diamonds.
June 1980 For $1,577,000.00 in New York Imelda buys Webster Hotel on West 45th Street. She rewards Gen. Romeo Gatan as a limited partner. Gatan arrested Ninoy at the beginning of Martial Law. The insurgents’ ranks grew by twenty percent a year. . Meritorious officers in the armed forces experienced low moral due to Marcos’ penchant for promoting friends over more deserving officers.
February 16, 1986 In Fe’s records of monies paid out during Marcos’ last campaign, one unusually large item was authorized by “FL” (First Lady) and paid to Assemblyman Arturo Pacificador on this day. A few days later, two carloads of men drove into San Jose , the provincial capital of Antique.
Evelio Javier, head of Aquino’s campaign, was watching the votes being counted when the men opened fire and killed Evelio after he was still able to run through town but finally got cornered in a public toilet where he was gunned down in front of shocked townspeople. Pacificador was later convicted of the murder.
February 25, 1986 Marcos fled the Philippines leaving behind a foreign debt of $27 billion and a bureaucracy gone mad. “Cash advances” for the elections from the national treasury amounted to Php 3.12 billion ($150 million). The Central Bank printed millions of peso bills, many with the same serial number. Sixty million pesos in newly printed bills were found in a vehicle owned by Imelda’s brother Bejo in the Port Area of Manila, and another Php 100 million aboard the MV Legaspi also owned by Bejo Romualdez.
How massive and humongous a loot Marcos took can be deduced from the known losses he left behind. The known losses he left at the Central Bank included $1.2 billion in missing reserves and $6 billion in the Special Accounts.
Imelda charged off most of her spending sprees to the PNB or Philippine National Bank which creatively wrote off her debts as “unresponded transfers”.
Ver also used PNB funds to finance his “intelligence” operations.
The known losses at the PNB amounted to Php72.1 billion.
At the DBP, the losses Marcos left behind totaled Php85 billion; at the Philguarantee, it was Php 6.2 billion; and at the NIDC or National Investment and Development Corporation (NDC) – the losses amounted to Php 2.8 billion.
These losses were primarily due to cronyism – giving loans to cronies that had little or no collateral, whose corporations were undercapitalized, whose loan proceeds were not used for the avowed purpose, and where the practice of corporate layering was common, i.e. using two or more companies with the same incorporators and officers, whereby one company which gives the loan owns the company which obtains the loan, or similar arrangements.
The cronies enjoyed their closeness to Marcos. With him they formed a Grand Coalition. They participated in the exercise of dictatorship. But Marcos owned them. The wealth of the cronies belonged to him. Because of the free rides taken by Imelda, Marcos and the cronies, the Philippine Airlines was in debt by $13.8 billion.
The conservative Grand Total for losses Marcos left behind (and therefore the kind of loot he grabbed and hid) amounted to $17.1 billion. The Central Bank, the PNB, and other financial institutions badly need an audit. The special review (not regular audit because there seems not to have been any – there are no records anyway) did not uncover Imelda’s spending – her name never appeared – and Ver’s intelligence fund. The review gave no hint of theft or missing money, only “downward adjustments” and “proposed adjustments” to “deficiencies” and “shortages of money”.
February 26, 1986 A few hours after the Marcos party landed in Honolulu, their luggage arrived – 300 crates on board a C-141 cargo jet. It took twenty-five customs officers five hours to tag the bags and identify the contents. The process was videotaped because of all the money and jewelry found inside.
There were 278 crates of jewelry and art worth an estimated US$5 million. Twenty-two crates contained more than Php27.7 million in newly minted currency, mostly hundred-peso denominations worth approximately US $1,270,000. 00 (It was illegal at that time for anyone to depart the Philippines carrying more than Php500 in cash.)
There were other certificates of deposit from Philippine banks worth about US$1 million, five handguns, 154 videotapes, seventeen cassette tapes, and 2,068 pages of documents – all of which were impounded by Customs.
The Marcos party was allowed to keep only US$300,000.00 in gold and $150,000.00 in bearer bonds that they brought in with their personal luggage because they declared them and broke no US customs laws.
There were 24 one-kilo gold bars fitted into 2 0$17,000 hand-tooled Gucci briefcase with a solid gold buckle and a plaque on it that read, “To Ferdinand Marcos, from Imelda, on the Occasion of our 24th Wedding Anniversary.”
February 1986 When Marcos departed the Philippines, the losses in the three Central Bank accounts surpassed Php 122 billion (more than $6 billion). The big bulk of losses was attributed to the RIR account mainly due to two items: forward cover and swap contracts.
Forward cover referred to foreign exchange provided by the CB at a fixed exchange rate to importers of essential commodities. Swap contracts referred to CB’s receiving foreign exchange from banks in exchange for pesos at the prevailing rate with a promise to deliver the foreign exchange back to them at an agreed future date. There was no mention of losses due to CB transactions in gold or foreign exchange.
February 28, 1986 On this day, Jim Burke, security expert from the US Embassy, was tapping on the wooden paneling in Imelda’s abandoned Malacanang bedroom when he heard a hollow sound. It was the walk-in vault. Inside were thirty-five suitcases secured with locks and tape.
They contained a treasure trove of documents about Swiss bank accounts, New York real estate, foundations in Vaduz , and some notepaper on which Marcos had practiced his William Saunders signature. They also contained jewelry valued at some US$10.5 million.
March 16, 1986 Did Marcos steal any gold from the CB? The CB always refused to comment. Why?
Today, the LA Times reported that 6.325 metric tons of gold was unaccounted for in the Central Bank. Between 1978, the year Marcos ordered all gold producers to sell only to the CB, and end 1984, the Bureau of Mines reported that 124,234 pounds of gold were refined. But the CB reported receiving only 110,319 pounds during this same period.
That left a difference of 13,915 pounds (6.325 metric tons).
March 1986. Jokingly referring to themselves as the Office of National Revenge, a vigilante team led by Charlie Avila and Linggoy Alcuaz received a tip in the morning that Marcos’ daughter Imee had kept a private office in the suburb of Mandaluyong at 82 Edsa. They obtained a search warrant, then rushed to Camp Crame to pick up some soldiers.
After devising a plan, they boarded four cars and drove to the premises, arriving around midnight. The soldiers scaled a fence and sealed off the area. Avila , Alcuaz, and their men moved in and found documents in cardboard boxes, desks, and filing cabinets. Gunfire could be heard outside but it didn’t deter the search.
The documents revealed the names of offshore companies and overseas investments of Marcos and his cronies – a late link in the paper trail that had been started abroad by the teams of Avila, Steve Psinakis, Sonny Alvarez, Raul Daza, Boni Gillego, and Raul Manglapus.
March 09, 1986 A Greek-American, Demetrios Roumeliotes, was stopped at the Manila International Airport before he could leave with eight large envelopes stuffed with jewelry that he admitted belonged to Imelda – valued at US$4.7 million.
March 15, 1986 Ernie Maceda, Minister of Natural Resources, revealed today that some 7 to 14 tons of Philippine gold are sold to the Binondo Central Bank annually and then smuggled to Sabah , Malaysia – this gold being part of some 20 tons produced by 200,000 panners all over the country. Maceda’s query was whether part of the gold they produced was siphoned to the “invisible gold hoard of Ms. Imelda R. Marcos.”
“We deliver to the Central Bank,” the miners said. “If it happened (the siphoning), it happened in the Central Bank.”
Is it true that Marcos propagated the Yamashita myth to hide the fact that he looted the Central Bank, that its gold bars were melted down and recast in odd-size bars to make them look old (how does gold look old, anyway?). Marcos claimed that he “received the surrender of Gen. Yamashita” after a battle with his guerrilla outfit.
History has recorded that Yamashita surrendered to Lt. Co. Aubrey Smith Kenworthy and that there was no battle. Yamashita’s peaceful surrender had been arranged at least two weeks before the event.
In one entry in Marcos’ diary he noted, “I often wonder what I will be remembered for in history. Scholar? Military hero…?”
In a supreme irony, he did achieve what he so vainly sought – lasting fame – but not in the way he envisioned:
The largest human rights case in history – 10,000 victims.
Guinness Book of Records – the world’s greatest thief.
The largest monetary award in history – $22 billion.
September 30, 1986 Questioned by Philippine and US lawyers about his hidden wealth, Marcos took the Fifth Amendment 197 times. Imelda followed suit – 200 times.
December 1989 An American jury found the Marcos estate liable for $15 million in the killing of anti-Marcos activists Gene Viernes and Silme Domingo. Manglapus, Psinakis, Gillego and other erstwhile exile oppositionists testified at the trial.
November 04, 1991 Today, a Sunday, the circus came to town. The Swiss Federal Tribunal had ruled the year before that the Philippine government must comply with the European Convention of Human Rights, especially due process. There had to be a lawsuit filed within one year. Thus, the solicitor general’s office filed all sorts of cases against Imelda and the government had to allow her to return to answer the charges.
“I come home penniless,” she tearfully said on arrival. She then repaired to her suite at the Philippine Plaza Hotel which cost $2,000 a day and rented sixty rooms for her entourage – American lawyers, American security guards and American PR firms.
December 1991 The Central Bank had accumulated losses of Php324 billion in the Special Accounts.
November 30, 1992. The Central Bank losses were Php561 billion and climbing. Cuisia asked that the CB be restructured. Sen. Romulo asked to see the 1983 audit of the international reserves. He couldn’t get a copy. It was “restricted”.
January 05, 1993 Imelda didn’t show up for the scheduled signing of a new PCGG agreement. She kept vacillating on the terms and conditions – demanding she be allowed to travel abroad for thirty-three days to confer with bank officials in Switzerland, Austria, Hong Kong and Morocco to work out the transfer of the frozen funds.
Actually she was hoping a guy she had authorized, J.T.Calderon, would be able to move the funds just as the order was lifted, before the government had a chance to transfer them to Manila . When the government discovered the authority, all negotiations with Imelda were halted and her requests for travel suspended.
August 10, 1993 Georges Philippe, a Swiss lawyer of Imelda, wrote today a confidential letter to the Marcoses’ old Swiss lawyer, Bruno de Preux, who handled almost all of the Marcos family’s hidden accounts in Switzerland.
Philippe requested de Preux for the status of:
A $750 million account with United Mizrahi Bank in Zurich; Various currency and gold deposits at the Union Bank of Switzerland , at Kloten airport and at Credit Suisse; A $356 million account (now in escrow and worth almost $600 million) which was being claimed by the PCGG.
In 1994, the human rights jury awarded the victims $1.2 billion in exemplary damages, then $766.4 million in compensatory damages a year after that, for a total of $1.964 billion. Two days after, another $7.3 million was awarded to twenty-one Filipinos in a separate lawsuit.
In 1995, the US Supreme Court upheld the $1.2 billion judgment.
March 29, 1995 The Swiss Parliament passed a law (an amendment to a previous act) that removed the need for a final judgment of criminal conviction of the accused (such as the Marcoses) in the case of criminally acquired assets which could now therefore be returned to claimants (such as the Philippine government) by Swiss court order.
July 1996 In part because of the torture of Roger Roxas, $22 billion was awarded to his Golden Budha Corporation.
December 10, 1997 The Swiss Supreme Court promulgated a landmark decision that took into account the March 1995 Swiss Parliament act and the fact that new criminal cases had been filed against Imelda Marcos.
The court held that there was no need for any criminal proceeding; that a civil or administrative proceeding would suffice, and the Marcos Swiss deposits which had been “criminally acquired” can be returned to the Philippines in deference to the final judgment of the Philippine court as to the ownership of these deposits.
The Swiss court also announced that the interest and reputation of Switzerland was at stake if it would become a haven for money launderers laundering money obtained by crime. Therefore, in the case of the Marcos deposits, because “the illegal source of the assets in this case cannot be doubted” the Swiss court ordered that the money be returned to the
Philippines to be held in escrow account in the PNB to await the judgment of the Sandiganbayan in the forfeiture case.
By the way, in January 17, 1975, a secret decree not made public until after the Edsa insurrection was signed by Marcos stating that in the event he became incapacitated or died, power would be turned over to Imelda.
On June 7, 1975, in his own handwriting, Marcos amended the January 17th decree and clarified imelda’s role as chairperson of committee with presidential powers.
In February 1979, Imelda was named chairman of the cabinet committee, composed of all ministries, to launch the BLISS (Bagong Lipunan Sites and Services) program, an ambitious attempt to centralize control of all economic and social development. She assumed responsibility for the “11 needs of Man” codified in her ministry’s multi-year Human Settlements Plan,1978-2000.
By 1986, the number of Filipinos living below the poverty line doubled from 18 million in 1965 to 35 million. And the ecological balance of the country had degraded from 75 % to 27% forest cover remaining – with 39 million acres of forest falling victim to rampant logging. This was BLISS.
She was also the head of the Metro Manila Commission, which by year-end 1985 had managed to accumulate debts of Php 1.99 billion (which included $100 million in foreign loans) in its ten years of existence. Imelda had accomplished nothing and left the people embittered and even more disillusioned.
In September 1992 Marcos was found guilty of violating the human rights of 10,000 victims. The ruling occurred just after a judge found Imee Marcos-Manotoc guilty of the torture and murder of Archimedes Trajano, a 21 year old engineering student at Mapua who had the temerity to ask Imee after a speech she gave whether the Kabataang Barangay (a national youth group) “must be headed by the president’s daughter?”
Imee and brother Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr. have been active in the political scene. Bongbong, who finished 3 terms as Ilocos Norte governor, is now running for Senator under Presidential bet, Manny Villar’s senatorial slate.. he’s been quoted as saying that if given a chance, he’d like to run for President one day…(gads).
Bongbong is now a Senator, Imelda is Governor of Ilocos Norte and Imee is in Congress. The MARCOSES are back in full force thanks to our “despicable amnesia” as aptly described by the eminent writer, F. Sionil Jose.
http://www.bantayog.org/asian-journal-chronology-of-the-marcos-plunder/
By this time they’re already at the threshold of Malacañang, and their obnoxiously loud “comeback” is a complete insult to the people whom they have scared, tortured, killed, or erased from existence.
Also, the ironic 180-degree-about-face of the then eminent Navarro-Pedrosa, who once wrote the two exposes on the Marcoses but for the pettiest reason and misguided sense of duty became a turncoat siding with this regime.
Would love to know Present-Value of all these dollars.
Thanks Micha for such interesting info. So Imelda is the most original crazy rich Asian, shopped with Philippine money she never earned, unlike the fiction stories of the rich Singaporeans in the movie Crazy Rich Asians? Am shaking my head with disbelief about the specifics! Que horror👹
Many thanks Micha for reprinting. My head shakes with disbelief. Imelda, then, is the most original but faux crazy rich Asian.
My humble observation in my retired state, with plenty of time for reading, thinking and reflection … I believe most Filipinos are tribal in their political leanings, just as I was previously: Visayans vote Visayans, Ilocanos vote Ilocanos, etc. If you don’t use your brain, you always tend to be tribalist. I used to admire FM, being an Ilocano-speaking resident of Northern Luzon myself. Now, I believe and accept the fact that Marcos was a thief, his heirs are also accomplices after the fact. For how can Bongbong & Imee spend millions upon millions not having any significant jobs or businesses? And how can I not understand the fact that billions have already been recovered from the loot? It’s as simple as that. I’m glad now that I have pass thru the spirit of “kababayan natin yan” after all those mindless years.
@Pascual Dilim
Thanks for being so forthright and honest. As a Manileno I want to have an idea how a Filipino from a province thinks- how does tribalism develop? Why is it so hard to get rid of? Is it bec of poverty? Poor quality of education or lack of it? Plain ignorance? Is the country really that cursed?
Why is their sense of right and wrong not strong enough to overcome tribalism?
How do we defeat tribalism among Ilocanos?
I have relatives, college educated, teachers, engineers, doctors, who reason out that Marcos wealth came from legitimate means with no explanation why it’s legitimate. I think the key to get out of that “kailian eh” “kapitbahay” mentality is thinking independently, analyzing the news. My being far away from homeland and thinking about my country, analyzing what’s happening, helped me out of that rotten mindset.
O:T:
”But the President quickly turned serious and said his trip to Israel from Sept. 2 to 5 was a “gift” to retiring military and police officials.”
“Now I would be going there with some of the retiring military and police officers. Marami kami. That is my gift to them for serving the country well,” he said.
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1025253/duterte-mocks-alejano-plays-with-magdalo-health-scare-claim
Sure????
News reports are now coming out of Davao that some Israeli companies are trying to get an appointment with President Rodrigo Duterte in order to set a presentation of their products to him. The curious thing is that these companies are not even in the top echelon of Israel’s defense industry and are mostly little known companies with largely unproven products and dubious systems.
Now, they are reportedly flying to Davao to make a sales presentation of these dubious products to the President. They are actually making a fool of the President by making him a Technical Working Group and Defense Acquisition Committee rolled into one. This unethical act by these Israeli companies and their Philippine representative is a major insult to the Department of National Defense and the Armed Forces of the Philippines as it not only bypasses them and disregards their technical expertise, but also tramples upon set procedures to ensure that our soldiers who lay their lives on the line for our protection will always get the best weapons systems in the most efficient and transparent way.
The current procedure, which ensures efficiency and transparency, is for presentations to be made first at the level of the end-user, and based on the expertise and experience of the end-user operating units, the end-user’s Technical Working Groups would make their thorough evaluation of the presented weapons systems and make their informed recommendation to their superiors who will eventually elevate and refer these recommendations to the President based on the parameters recently established by the President himself, which is to go government-to-government on such deals and eliminate the participation of corrupt vendors.
This is where the plot thickens. The presentation is being spearheaded by one JOCELYN MAGCALE of JOAVI who was earlier exposed by the Tulfo brothers. In his Manila Times column last April 5, 2015, Erwin Tulfo gave the sordid details about Magcale and her involvement in shady deals in the DND and Philippine Coast Guard. His article, titled “Lady contractor seduces officials to win DND, AFP deals” is quite informative:
“Perhaps, the true to life story of a lady contractor would spice up a Senate inquiry into the massive anomalies at the Department of National Defense (DND), particularly the overspending and overpricing in its procurement deals.
“Who would have imagined that a comely young woman from Visayas working as a guest relation officer (GRO) in one of the nightclubs in Makati in the 90’s would eventually become one of the wealthiest military dealers or suppliers in the country today.
“Now in her 40’s, this contractor is said to be one of the most sought after contractor by defense and military officials because of her big offer of commissions or kickbacks on every DND project awarded to her. In addition, she has turned the officials’ sexual fantasies into reality.
“This attractive woman had dealt with the DND to supply the AFP with a wide variety of items from small arms ammunition to protective gear over the past years, amassing a fortune out of sweetheart deals.
X X X
“Using her irresistible beauty, she started closing deals by sweet-talking officials DND and AFP both in the war room and in the bedroom, as well.
“Her big break though did not come at Camp Aguinaldo but rather at the auspices of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) with which she transacted business in 2001.
“Again, she capitalized on her seductive beauty to captivate the heart of a high-ranking official who served her the juicy PCG contracts on silver platters.
“Insider info has it that the former Magdalena was impregnated by the official but had the baby allegedly aborted in the guise of a miscarriage for which she was taken to a hospital in E. Rodriguez Ave. in Quezon City.
“When her PCG official lover retired from the service, this lady contractor brought her business back to Camp Aguinaldo.
“The mother of two stayed in great shape such that a ranking officer of the Philippine Army got crazy about her and made her his mistress sometime in 2013.
“It was when she began cornering most of the juicy projects of the Army through negotiated or rigged biddings.
“Her Army general lover eventually retired from service, too, leaving her with the luxury of a plush subdivision in Paranaque and a fleet of lavish cars.
“She continues to transact business at the DND and AFP to this day.
“But the problem, according to some military officials, is her frequent failure to deliver the goods on time when they were badly needed in combat operations.
“Some goods, like mortars for the Army, turned out to be defective.
“There were also instances when she did not deliver goods, at all.
“I’m wondering if this contractor honestly pays her taxes and on time?”
The is also the recent case reported by Marlon Reyes of Inquirer last May 15, 2016 about gross anomalies involving Magcale’s JOAVI and some DBM executives in the purchase of inflatable rubber boats for the AFP in2010. The article, titled “DBM execs face graft raps” reveals:
“The Office of the Ombudsman has ordered the indictment for graft of six officials of the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) in connection with the allegedly fraudulent procurement of inflatable rubber boats for the military in 2010.
“Charged in the Sandiganbayan were Budget Undersecretary Evelyn Guererro, Director Lourdes Santiago, procurement management officers Julieta Lozano and Mervin Ian Tanquintic, administrative assistant Alvin John Perater and ad hoc member Lt. Malone Agudelo.
“Included as a private respondent was Anthony Hernandez of Joavi Philippines Corp., the supplier of the substandard rubber boats.
“In an e-mailed statement, Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales said graft investigators discovered that the purchase of the rubber boats, used as rescue vessels, violated several provisions of the government’s procurement law.
“For one, Morales said, the rubber boats did not have inflation valves, over-pressure valves and roll-up floors as specified in the procurement plan./rga”
http://business.inquirer.net/210320/dbm-execs-face-graft-raps#ixzz48kGRegr9
Another news report on the case said “JOAVI also allegedly “merely copied” the technical specifications of Zodiac FC470 Futura Commando Inflatable Rubber Boat manufactured by Zodiac International and exclusively distributed in the country by S.A. Phils., Inc.”
Additional about some of Magcale’s anomalies were provided by a group of patriotic officers from the AFP:
“Here are some of Jo Magcale’s anomalous transactions:
1. 2008 – Sometime in February 2008, acting as local representative of Soltam Systems Ltd. of Israel for the supply of 29 units of 81mm Mortar tubes with ILS Package and another such contract, for unknown reasons, has caused the non-delivery of both contracted equipment resulting to the rescission of the said contracts and the eventual Blacklisting of Soltam Systems Ltd. in July of 2011.
2. 2008 – Delivery of 30,000 rounds of Non-Compliant to Technical Specifications of 60mm and 81mm Mortar Ammunitions made by Talon Security Consulting and Trade Ltd. between April and December 2008. This delivery was rejected by SND Teodoro, and its contract terminated and blacklisted thereafter. Ms. Magcale then filed an Ombudsman case against SND Teodoro. Surprisingly, despite this irregularity committed by this company and having been blacklisted for it, from the period of February 2010 to March 2011, Talon Security Consulting and Trade Ltd., was awarded with at least eight (8) supply contracts for ammunition, most of which were participated into as a sole bidder with almost equivalent bid price as that of the project’s ABC.
3. 2009 – Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro ordered anew the scrapping of the bidding process for P500-million worth of mortar ammunition. Teodoro ordered the scrapping of the bidding after the procurement committee failed to comply with the prescribed process, defense spokesman Nelson Victorino said the only qualified bidder, Talon Security Consulting and Trade Ltd., was found to have submitted false documentation. He said the awarding of contract to Talon notwithstanding the flaw would unduly favor Talon.
4. 2011 – While there seems to be no record of an award made to either JOAVIPHILIPPINES Corp. or Talon Security Consulting and Trade Ltd., or its JV which can be found at the “Award Notices” from the PhilGEPS Website, several articles available from the internet speaks of several contract awards made regarding the supply of 100 units of 81 mm mortar with integrated logistics support. It was learned that the JV of Joavi/Talon tried to source the supply of the 81mm Mortar contract from a Bosnian Company, BNT-Tvornica Masina i Hidraulike, d.d (BNT-TMiH) and not from the Serbian Manufacturer of the M69B as originally offered during the bidding. No delivery was made and the contract was eventually terminated.
5. 2011 – The Joint Venture partnership ofJOAVIPHILIPPINES Corp. & Talon Security Consulting & Trade with Aquasports Boats & Yacht Company Ltd., was awarded with two contracts for the supply of Rigid Hull Inflatable Boats by the Office of the Civil Defense (OCD), sometime May 27, 2011 and August 16, 2011. Because of the Joint Venture’s failure to deliver its contract commitment relative to the 52 units of RHIB’s, this merited a slapping of a One (1) Year Blacklisting of the JV on January 2012.
6. 2012 – With the blacklisting of JOAVI still in effect, from the termination of its 100mm Mortar project contract, Stone of David Tactical Equipment Company (SODTEC) was established in 2011 by Ms. Magcale. Immediately the following year, SODTEC began with its participation in the DND-AFP Procurements. Between the period of 2012 to 2013, SODTEC managed to land six (6) supply contracts. What appears to be highly irregular in the awards made is that all these contracts are awarded in the name of Stone of David Tactical Equipment Corp. and not the manufacturer. Another highly irregular in the above contract awards made is that the bid price and contract value is almost the same amount of the ABC itself with SODTEC appearing to be the lone bidder for the project.”
Jocelyn Magcale also owns Stone of David Tactical Equipment Company(SODTEC) which tried to supply to the AFP in 2013 some 3,480 sets of Force Protection Equipment (FPE) worth Php120,435,000.00 that were eventually found to be defective (the vests failed ballistic tests) and were rejected by the Philippine Army.
In 2015, Magcale’s Stone of David was suspended by the Government Procurement Policy Board for one (1) year for its failures in supplying 105mm munitions to the Philippine Army worth a total of Php93,600,000.00 – a pattern of failures and irregularities that has been happening to JOAVI and Magcale’s other shell companies.
The same company — Magcale’s Stone of David — represented Israel Military Industries (IMI) in 2014 in the Philippine Army’s Php6.5B Shore-Based Missile System (SBMS) Project, where they tried to sell the Philippines a hogwash of a product that President Aquino, the DND and the AFP had sense enough to set aside (a polite way of rejecting, although some very corrupt AFP senior leaders tried to recommend it).
Magcale’s product, the Extra Missile of IMI was set aside and suspended due to realizations that the missile would not only fall miserably short of the AFP’s requirements, it would also significantly increase the possibility of all-out war with China or our Asian neighbours if we ever resorted to using them. These missiles were proven to be incapable of defending the Philippines’ archipelagic territory because they had a relatively short range (only 150 km as opposed to the Philippine EEZ of 200 nautical miles or 320 km and our Westernmost claims in the West Philippine Sea which are of up to 600 km from our nearest land mass in Palawan or Bataan and Zambales) and they could not engage moving targets (for instance, all potential aggressor and threat targets in the West Philippine Sea are all moving). The Extra Missile can only hit static targets within its limited range of 150 km.
Nonetheless, Magcale moved heaven and earth to have her missile product approved, even co-opting some military and public officials particularly using her close allies in the DND and AFP. However, because of his concern for the military and what is right for the government and the country, then AFP Chief of Staff Iriberri resisted Magcale’s machinations.
Magcale had used numerous connections to Malacañang to get her incapable missile product approved, all to no avail. She even made a political alliance with then Vice President Jejomar Binay, with whom she and IMI officials became very close to, expecting that because of his popularity at that time (early to middle part of 2015) he would succeed President Aquino, and be beholden to her group.
It is now hoped that President Duterte will wise up to these irregularities and shenanigans and spare our AFP of the curse of Magcale’s corruption and her defective and substandard weapons and equipment. It is now time to rid our country of this evil.
Pinost 25th August 2016 ni Serbisyong Pilipino
http://serbisyongpilipino.blogspot.com/
Ah, this is roughly the defense equivalent of making and selling the Emperor his new clothes, as well as the scams perpetrated by certain pharmaceutical companies and their representatives to persuade, wine and dine, doctors, hospital administrators, and medical professionals to buy their products at any price.
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/703712/why-dnd-put-on-hold-p6-5b-israeli-missiles
@Sup,
The reasons mentioned was shift to internal security threats and the Shore Based program was just postponed.
ps
A door closed for the Army, but a window opened for the Navy.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/with-israeli-missiles-philippine-navy-takes-step-toward-modernization/
Why waste tax money to go ”sightseeing” with retired generals?
Grrrr. 😡
Expected to be signed during Duterte’s trip to Jordan trip from September 6 to 8 are pacts involving foreign affairs, labor and defense.
http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/666005/labor-defense-deals-set-for-duterte-s-historic-trips-to-israel-jordan/story/?just_in
If you check global partners of Joavi (same as Stone of David owner Magcale) you will find Rafael.
http://joaviph.wixsite.com/joaviph/global-partners (just put your mouse pointer at our global partners and they will change to see all.)
‘Don’t like Pedrosa, but she exposed another Magcale anomaly.
http://www.pressreader.com/philippines/the-philippine-star/20160620/281685434135485
And the politics…..
The chairman emeritus of BayanKo is former Chief Justice Reynato Puno who is going around the country calling for constitutional change
The ranks of BayanKo have been swelled recently by NACTODAP led by its secretary-general Jocelyn Magcale. This is an organization that has a membership nationwide of 3 million tricycle drivers.
Read more at https://www.philstar.com/opinion/2015/08/29/1493907/bayanko-and-katipunan#UEGro0iGVysfJRGR.99
memorandum of agreement between Stone of David Corporation and Gaia Automotive Industries Ltd. on the marketing and promotion of tactical vehicles, including technology transfer;
memorandum of agreement between Stone of David Corporation and MCTECH RF Technologies Ltd. in the development of military and intelligence products and hardware;
http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/money/economy/666629/phl-israel-sign-business-deals-worth-nearly-85m/story/
Duterte simply ate his words about Obama and Hitler and all is forgotten. Bah to this friends to all,enemy to no one.
A mix of seemingly positive deals, mostly small in scale. I view lists like this as public relations announcements, until the agreements are done, they are meaningless. I’d guess maybe 20% will get done. Maybe the military ones will if they are needed missiles. Certainly does not cause me to stand up and cheer.
“He developed the wind power infrastructure for the region.”
All this talk of BBM’s role in the wind energy makes me puke. It is the mother of credit grabs, so unashamedly in-character. I don’t think he has personally mentioned this as his achievement (because he knows it is fallatious). This BIG LIE lie has been pushed by his army or trolls and spitoon careers that surround him. But that he has never set the record straight showed the mean streak of a man who will walk roughshod over the good work of many men whose selfless efforts in the interests of the people he nonchalantly diminishes by his non-recognition.
The only credit due BBM is for officiating the commissioning of the Nowrthwind project plants on June 18, 2005 in his position as the Governor of Illocos Norte at the time.
Joe is absolutely spot on that the Illocos Norte site was accidental as far as BBM was concerned. More than 10 sites all over Philippines have been selected for future development of wind power infras. These sites fit the criteria of sufficient wind strength, no trees, wide open areas, flat terrain, far from populated areas (no environmental issues). BBM did’nt create these sites, God did. BBM did’nt identify these sites. Governmental studies under the DOE did. BBM was never in any aspect of the work done, DOE oversee the entire project.
Let me pay tribute to the hordes of engineers, scientists, financial analysts, and project managers, who spent years after years doing research, studies, financial and technical feasibility testings, and the visionaires who push and manage such a complex tasks that led firstly from nothing but a vision, to studies, to tests, to models, to financial arrangements, to legislation and finally to construction. There were many who remain in the background.
Special mention must be made to the good technocrats of DOE who oversee the dream to fruition. ONLY FOR THE CREDITS TO BE STOLEN BY BBM.
From Philippines :
DOE Dept of Energy
MOE Ministry of Education (from Dep ED)
BED Basic Education Dept (from Dep Ed)
PAGASA
PNOC Philippines National Oil Company
ERDC Education Resource Devt Center
DOST Devt of Science & Technology
NPC National Power Corp
External bodies :
Haksoning – Dutch engineering consultants
NREL- National Renewable Energy Laboratory
USAID
UNIDO – United Nations Industrial Devt Corp
WWF – World Wildlife Fund
World Bank
IBRD – Int’l Bank for Reconstruction and Development
My apologies for some whom I unkowingly left out here.
Please slap the next troll that credits BBM for the wind energy in Illocos Norte.
Quite comprehensive info-feed on energy infra, chempo. Thanks.
I hope to get similar info, geothermal side. Incidentally Sen Bam’s dad was head of PNOC right about the time when the wind-turbines were being set up at Bangui, Ilocos Norte. Also I see another wind farm of 27 turbines at Burgos, same province.
Illuminating!
Unfortunately, most Filipinos, including me (before your reply here) and especially Ilocanos believe the wind turbines are BBM’s achievement. I voted for Leni, neverthekess. Do we already have fact checkers in the Philipones? If not, Rappler can take on this task by creating a Fact Check Column. Maria Ressa, please.
I’m surprised nobody has mentioned the body language of BBM which I find both plastic and nauseating. Imee, of course, has plastic body language for a different reason. Miaow.
Chuckle snort. I agree, AM, he is not naturally a dynamic speaker and we get to watch arrogance preening, in the main. That’s my impression when I saw him in committee meetings.
I also like “effete weakness” (c.edgar).
Yes!
If I had only one word to describe BBM, that word would be “weasel”. Can anyone better that?
Blowhard? (my newly-acquired word)
*******
You tie.
*****
*******
You win.
*****
🙂
Blowhard scoundrel who is nothing but a blowfish.
“Rather than go with dignity and good works, the nation puts brutal, weak, devious, greedy thugs on the pedestal and concocts reasons why Leni Robredo is no good. Define backward.”
Leni will never gain any ‘traction’ because we have too many rotten and miserable people who love misery and tyranny.
Yes, there certainly are a lot of scoundrels about. Well-funded.
Every janitor wants to be a CEO says nobody este Bongbong Marcos.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-15/only-son-of-philippine-dictator-marcos-has-eyes-on-presidency
It is good that trolls are easily identifiable now. Netizens are more aware of how to distinguish trolls. The Marcosses are out to destroy the country and not to unify it. What they are after is power to perpetuate themselves and erase the stigma that is attached to the name MARCOS! This is their only objective! Watch how they destroy the accomplishments the Aquinos have built in order to save the Philippines from ruin. The Marcosses are so envious of the Filipinos’ love and respect for the Aquinos that they are using all their resources to destroy them! It would be best for the country for them to stay out of the country!
Well said, Willy. They for sure are the opposite of dignity and respect.
Just want to put this here:
http://integritas360.org/2016/07/10-most-corrupt-world-leaders/
Marcos is #2, only bested by Indonesia’s Suharto.
Of note is the paragraph below as Arroyo is now back in power:
“Finally, in an effort to ensure gender equality, it is worth mentioning that a lone female also made the list of contenders. While President Marcos of the Philippines managed to make it to number two on the list of most corrupt world leaders of recent history, a 2007 poll carried out by Pulse Asia, indicated that 42% of his countrymen (and women) felt that Philippine’s most corrupt leader of all time wasn’t Ferdinand Marcos … but Gloria Macapagal Arroyo! “
Talaga? Then the Asian Journal should put GMA in line, just like they exposed FM. Maybe, their research on her is ongoing.
Dear Mr. J, my family on the mother side are Ilokanos who are rabid pro-Marcoses. In fact, my aunt has been castigating me for putting Facebook posts that are critical to Imee, Bongbong and the Marcoses. One does not reason with them; any factually consistent article I offer as a rationale about my attitude against the Marcoses or Martial Law, they would scoff as part of a conspiracy theory by the Dilawans, the CIA or the old oligarchs (e.g. Lopez and company).
I am totally dejected. (This must have been what the Yankees felt when they wanted the South to abolish slavery and the southerners just would not give up their slaves.)
In any case, I fear that Imee Marcos will win the senatorial elections come 2019. I am registering to vote here in the Middle East hoping that will not happen. If she wins, I may just consider moving to another country because mine is not worth dying for 😦
I saw a tweet the other day, something to the effect that “Filipinos get what they deserve”, saying essentially if you make lousy uninformed emotional choices, you get brutality, corruption, incompetence, and high prices. I fear that way too many are like your mother’s side and that does not bode well for the Philippines if they can’t connect their “input” into democracy (their vote) with the “output” of really horrid governance.
IMHO, Ilocanos are the most tribal of Filipinos, no matter what, Marcos is their man or woman. Educated or not, rich or poor alike. Mar did not win all Visayans nor did GMA the Pampanguenos. Do Du30 and Sara ‘own’ Davawenos? Sara’s Hugpong is getting some PDPs in her fold. LP is getting back some old members, so I read. Political butterflies are in season. I suppose ‘politicking’ is a full time, 24/7 job, no time for rest and reflection for the good of the country. Yes, only to power and material enrichment.
This JA article and replies to it make my weekend. There is no other venue than TSOH to get mentally expanded and sharpened with informed opinions and referenced info.
It is humming on FB, too. Glad to have you along.
Socmedia do have its +s.
No more marcoses
Magandang araw po, pakatatag po kayo lalo na Kung Alam nyo na kayo ang nasa Tama, nasa likod nyo po kami at ang Diyos, naway lumabas na po ang katotohanan lalo na na kayo na po sa ang tanggahalin bilang VP sa Pilipinas, Isa po ako sa mga taong bumoto po sa inyo, di rin po makatarungan na hindi kayo ang nakaluklok, masama ang maingit sa kapwa pero mas masama ang ginawa nilang pandaraya. Kaya wag po kayo susuko. Ipaglaban nyo po na kayo ang nanalo, sabihan nyo Lang po kami na mga bomoto po sa inyo lalabas po kami Para makapunta. Salamat po.