Ferdinand Marcos

Ferdinand Marcos

FERDINAND EMMANUEL EDRALIN MARCOS

EARLY LIFE • Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos, Sr. was born September 11, 1917, in the town of Sarrat, Ilocos Norte to Mariano Marcos and Josefa Edralin.

• In December 1938, Ferdinand was prosecuted for the murder of Julio Nalundasan along with his father, Mariano, his brother, Pio and his brother-in-law Quirino Lizardo.

• In January 1939, they were denied bail and in the fall of 1939 they were convicted. Ferdinand and Lizardo received the death penalty for premediated murder, while Mariano and Pio were found guilty of contempt of court.

• Marcos studied law at the University of the Philippines, attending the prestigious College of Law. He excelled in both curricular and extra-curricular activities, becoming a valuable member of university’s swimming, boxing, and wrestling teams. He was also an accomplished and prolific orator, debater, and writer for the student newspaper.

• He sat for 1939 Bar Examinations, receiving a near-perfect score and graduating cum laude despite the fact that he was incarcerated while reviewing; had he not been in jail for 27 days, he would have graduated magna cum laude.

THE GIFTED CHILD • In Seagrave’s book “The Marcos Dynasty”. He mentioned that Marcos possessed a phenomenal memory and exhibited this memorizing complicated texts and reciting forward and backward.

• “One time, the Secretary of Justice forgot to tell me that the President had requested him to draft a speech that the President was going to deliver before graduates of the law school. And then, on the day the President was to deliver the speech, he suddenly remembered because Malacañang was asking for the speech, so he said, ‘This is an emergency. You just have to produce something.’ And I just dictated the speech. He liked long speeches. I think that was 20 or 25 pages. And then, in the evening, I was there, of course. President Marcos recited the speech from memory.” - Philippines. Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago

PERSONAL LIFE • He was married to Imelda Romualdez-Marcos, on May 1, 1954

• Maria Imelda “Imee” Marcos (born November 12, 1955) • Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr. (born September 13, 1957) • Irene Marcos (born September 16, 1960)

CONGRESSIONAL CAREER

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES • Marcos ran and was three times elected as representative of the 2nd district of Ilocos Norte, 1949-1959). He was named chairman of the House Committee on Commerce and Industry and member of the Defense Committee headed by Ramon Magsaysay.

Senate • He was Senate minority floor leader, 1960; executive vice president, LP 19541961; president, Liberal Party.1961-1964; Senate President, 1963-1965.

PRESIDENCY FIRST TERM (1965-1969)

Infrastructure programs • Marcos wanted to immediate construction of roads, bridges and public works, which included 16,000 kilometers of feeder roads, some 30,000 lineal meters of permanent bridges, a generator with an electric power capability of one million kilowatts (1,000,000kW), and water services to eight regions and 38 localties.

SECOND TERM (1969-1972)

Martial Law and the New Society • Marcos declared martial law on September 22, 1972, by virtue of Proclaimation 1081 which he signed on September 21, 1972, extending his rule beyond the constitutional two-term limit.

• Ruling by decree, he curtailed press freedom and other civil liberties, closed down Congress and media establishments, and ordered the arrest of opposition leaders and militant activist, including his staunchest critics, senators Benigno Aquino, Jr., Jovito Salonga and Jose Diokno.

• Marcos claimed that martial law was the prelude to creating his Bagong Lipunan, a “New Society” based on new social and political values.

• Marcos confiscated business owned by the oligarchy. More often than not, they were taken over by Marcos’ family members and close personal friends, who used them as fronts to launder proceeds from institutionalized graft and corruption in the different national governmental agencies as “crony capitalism.” Marcos friends using them for personal benefit.

• Marcos also silenced the free press, making the state press the only legal one. He also seized privately owned lands and distributed them to farmers. By waging an ideological war against the oligarchy. Marcos gained the support of the masses though he was to create a new one in its place.

• Leading opponents such as Senators Benigno Aquino, Jr., Jose Diokno, Jovito Salonga and many others were imprisoned for months or years. This practice considerably alienated the support of the old social and economic elite and the media, who criticized the Marcos administration endlessly.

• The Marcos regime instituted a mandatory youth organization, known as the Kabataang Baranggay, which was led by Marcos, eldest daughter Imee. Presidential Decree 684, enacted in April 1975, required that all youths aged 15-18 be sent to remote rural camps, where they underwent a ritualistic program designed to instill loyalty to the First Couple.

THIRD TERM (1981-1986)

• Marcos’ regime was marred by rampant corruption and political mismanagement by his relatives and cronies, which culminated with the assassination of Benigno Aquino.

• During his third term, Marcos’ health deteriorated rapidly due to kidney ailments, often described as lupus erythematosus. He was absent for weeks at a time for treatment, with no one to assume command.

• With Marcos ailing, his equally powerful wife, Imelda, emerged as the government’s main public figure. Marcos dismissed speculations of his ailing health as he used to be an avid golfer and fitness buff who liked showing off his physique. In light of these growing problems, the assassination of Aquino in 1983 would later prove to be the catalyst that led to his overthrow.

• The “People Power Movement” drove Marcos into exile and installed Corazon Aquino as the new president. At the height of the revolution, Enrile revealed that his ambush was faked in order for Marcos to have a pretext for imposing Martial Law. However, Marcos maintained that he was the duly elected and proclaimed president of the Philippines for a fourth term.

• The Philippine government today is still paying interest in public

debts during Marcos’ administration. It was reported that, when Marcos fled, U.S. Customs agents discovered 24 suitcases of gold bricks and diamond jewelry hidden in diaper bags and in addition, certificates for gold bullion valued in the billions of dollars were allegedly among the personal properties he, his family, his cronies and business partners surreptitiously took him them when the U.S. provided them safe passage to Hawaii. When the presidential mansion was seized, it was discovered that Imelda Marcos had over 2700 pairs of shoes in her closet.

DEATH • Marcos died in Honolulu on September 28, 1989, of kidney, heart and lung ailments. His remains are currently interred inside a refrigerated crypt in Ilocos Norte.

ACHIEVEMENTS • • • • • •

First president to win a second term Declared Martial Law on September 22, 1972 Increased the size of the Philippine military and armed forces By 1980 the Philippine GNP was four times greater than 1972 By 1986 the Philippines was one of the most indebted countries in Asia Built more schools, roads, bridges, hospitals, and other infrastructure than all former presidents combined

• The only president whose remains are interred inside a refrigerated crypt