FILE PHOTO: Protesters gather on September 22, 2020, at the Bantayog ng mga Bayani to mark the 48th anniversary of the declaration of martial law and remember the atrocities during the country’s darkest days in history as well honor the victims of human rights abuses during the Marcos regime. INQUIRER/NIÑO JESUS ORBETA
MANILA, Philippines — Various groups have urged voters in the 2022 national elections, especially the youth, to stop the Marcoses from changing the country’s history in their favor by blocking their return to Malacañang.
At least five organizations already voiced their staunch opposition to the presidential candidacy of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos’ namesake and son, Bongbong, saying it would be an affront to the lives lost and the people who endured abuses during the martial law period.
Activist groups Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) and Bayan Muna said Tuesday that Bongbong’s presidential bid is the work of continuous efforts to revise history in the favor of his family.
“Bongbong Marcos’ bid for the presidency is the culmination of more than a decade of disinformation and historical revisionism, aided no less by President Duterte,” Bayan secretary-general Renato Reyes said.
“The presidential bid of former senator Bongbong Marcos is a monumental effort to whitewash their name and erase the people’s memory of martial law and dictatorship under his father’s regime,” Bayan Muna chairperson and senatorial candidate Neri Colmenares added in a separate statement.
According to Bayan, they would continue campaigning against the Marcoses’ possible return to Malacañang.
“This presidential bid is odious and is an insult to the victims of the Marcos dictatorship. When we say Never Again, we mean it in every possible way. We will campaign against this gross injustice. The year 2022 marks the 50th anniversary of Marcos’ martial law. Let us make sure that history will not be revised to favor the ambitions of those who benefited from dictatorship,” Reyes added.
Opposition coalition 1Sambayan, on the other hand, called on the people to be more vigilant and avoid being misled by lies coming from the Marcos family and their allies.
“We call on the youth of today, or those who were either too young to remember or weren’t even born yet, to resist this attempt to rewrite the pages of our storied past, especially the one where we fought hard to regain our democracy. Do not be deceived by paid internet trolls who peddle lies after lies, so that what happened during the Marcos era will not repeat itself at your time,” 1Sambayan noted.
Bongbong Marcos announced Tuesday via a Facebook live that he would be running for president in 2022, promising to bring a unifying form of leadership to the country.
He has yet to name a running mate.
READ: Bongbong Marcos announces bid to join presidential race in 2022
For the Campaign Against the Return of the Marcoses and Martial Law (Carmma), Bongbong cannot be separated from his family’s or his father’s sins, as he was not an innocent bystander during the martial law regime.
“Bongbong Marcos is not an innocent bystander during the Marcos dictatorship, directly benefiting while holding positions in crony corporations,” Carmma lead convener and former Social Welfare secretary Judy Taguiwalo said.
“His refusal to apologize to the victims of martial law, dismissing them as merely seeking monetary compensation and washing his hands of any involvement in the military rule that allowed the Marcos family to run roughshod over the Filipino people with abandon, completes Bongbong’s self-centered image and blind focus on restoring the stature of the Marcos family to their former glory,” she added.
For Bayan, it is also important to note that the opposition must unite for the 2022 polls in order to prevent another Marcos to rule over the country.
“A united opposition vs Duterte and Marcos is definitely important for the upcoming elections. Whether they run together or separately, they represent the worst of Philippine politics. Their win has far-reaching implications. We cannot have more of the same for the next 6 years, neither can we afford the total erasure of the crimes of the dictator,” Reyes explained.
“The people should weigh in on the demand for a united opposition vs Duterte and Marcos. The non-Duterte or opposition candidates should be encouraged to unite while there is still time,” he added.
The two-decade reign of Bongbong’s father was riddled with claims of wide-scale human rights abuses, attacks on political opponents, extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances, and massive plunder.
The Marcoses have consistently denied any wrongdoing, but there have been cases wherein family members were convicted, like in the case of his mother, former first lady Imelda Marcos, who was found guilty by Sandiganbayan for transferring funds to Swiss foundations while she occupied government posts in the 1970s.
READ: Imelda Marcos guilty of graft, ordered arrested
There were also other Sandiganbayan decisions where paintings and other investments by Marcos cronies were forfeited and labeled as part of the family’s ill-gotten wealth.
READ: Sandiganbayan declares over 800 Marcoses-owned artworks as ill-gotten
Despite this, Marcos still sought changes in the history books being used by schools after some cases against his family were dropped by Sandiganbayan.
READ: Bongbong Marcos wants textbooks revised: You’re teaching children lies