Bongbong on Marcos jewelry exhibit: Politics

Sen. Bongbong Marcos Jr. NESTOR CORRALES/INQUIRER.net FILE PHOTO

SEN. BONGBONG Marcos has attributed to politics the staging of an online exhibition of the Marcos jewelry collection that was seized by the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) in the aftermath of the People Power Revolution that brought down the rule of the senator’s father, the dictator Ferdinand Marcos.

The PCGG exhibit was clearly an attempt to put a dent on his vice presidential campaign, Marcos said at a campaign sortie in the Aquino stronghold of Tarlac on Monday.

“They are doing everything now.  They are politicizing everything,” Marcos said, referring to the administration of President Aquino.

The PCGG, to mark its 30th anniversary, has launched an online exhibit on its Facebook and Twitter accounts, posting selected jewelry items from the collection seized by the US Bureau of Customs when the Marcoses arrived in Hawaii after fleeing the Philippines in 1986.

The “Virtual Jewelry Exhibit, A Story of Excesses: What could have fuelled a nation’s development” began on March 16, “to show and remind the present generation of the excesses and extravagance of the Marcoses in their two-decade dictatorship.”

Aside from photos of the jewelry items uploaded regularly, there are postings explaining what they cost the country and what they could have funded in terms of health, education, infrastructure and poverty alleviation programs.

The late dictator and his flamboyant wife, Imelda, are accused of massively enriching themselves during their more than two decades in power while the country sank deeper into poverty.

Why now?

The young Marcos said the PCGG exhibit was obviously an attempt to somehow derail his campaign for Vice President.

“It is clear. Why are they (PCGG) doing this now, after 30 years? They are really doing this because of politics. That is very clear,” he said.

Despite a campaign by victims of the Marcos regime against his candidacy, surveys show Marcos is statistically tied for first place in the race for the vice presidency.

Imelda Marcos has previously said she hopes her son will eventually become President.

Marcos yesterday said he considers Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada’s endorsement a big boost to his candidacy.

“He [Estrada] can still bring in a lot of support,” the senator said, adding that he was deeply honored by the endorsement, describing the deposed President as the epitome of unity when he “overwhelmingly won the presidency in 1998.”

Estrada endorsed Marcos in his proclamation rally at the Liwasang Bonifacio on Monday night, which the senator attended with his wife and sons.

Marcos said he accepted Estrada’s invitation to his proclamation rally as a way of returning a favor. Estrada had attended his proclamation rally in Intramuros in October.

“The record will show that when he (Estrada) ran for President, he got one of the most, if not the most, number of votes in history.  He unified the country.  He is the best example of unity,” Marcos said.  With reports from AFP