‘This is a new era’: Bongbong Marcos will be a ‘unifying’ president, says sister Imee

Ferdinand Marcos Jr. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Senator Imee Marcos on Tuesday said that her brother, presidential aspirant Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. would be a “unifying” president if he wins the 2022 elections.

Speaking in an interview with ABS-CBN News Channel, the senator was asked if his brother planned to have a dialogue with critics to address the “open wounds” of critics of their late patriarch, as well as the victims of the martial law era, once he got elected president, but she once again referred to how much time have lapsed since their father, the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr. had declared martial law, a grim period in history deemed by critics as rife with human rights violations and killings, and widespread corruption.

“I can’t speak for my brother but the truth is, so much time has passed. At the end of the day, history will judge us and this is a new era,” Marcos said.

“And the only way to fight the pandemic, to fight climate change, and to finally see economic and social development in the Philippines is really to unify. So, as trite as that may sound, I think that’s what my brother’s answer would be,” the senator added.

Critics have hit Marcos Jr.’s presidential bid, stemming from his family’s refusal to acknowledge and apologize for human rights violations committed during his father’s regime.

Martial law victims and several groups have asked the Commission on Elections to disqualify Marcos Jr. from the presidential race, citing his criminal conviction in a tax case 26 years ago.

The Comelec Second Division, however, has denied one of the petitions seeking to declare Marcos Jr. a nuisance candidate.

EDV