Sen. Imee Marcos (Albert Calvelo/Senate PRIB)
LAOAG CITY, Philippines — Senator Imee Marcos was nowhere to be seen when her hometown Ilocos Norte held its biggest cultural festival on Friday night.
The Tan-ok ni Ilocano Festival was spearheaded in 2011 when she was governor of her province but it was her brother, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos and her son Matthew Marcos Manotoc, the current Ilocos Norte governor, who attended the event after it resumed from a three-year hiatus.
The festival was even held in the newly refurbished Ferdinand E. Marcos Memorial Stadium here, which was named by the senator’s father.
Why did she not attend?
She said it was because the festival coincided with another event that she could not stomach celebrating.
“Ammotayo amin nga asideg unay ti FEM stadium iti pusok, nangnangruna ti Tan-ok festival-tayo, ngem nupay kasta kayariganna pinagay-ayamannatayo ti gasat gapu ta nairana ti selebrasion iti petsa a diakto pulos mairusok a rambakan,” Imee Marcos said in a statement on Saturday.
(We all know that FEM stadium is very close to my heart, especially our Tan-ok festival, but nevertheless it seems that fate played a game with us because the celebration coincided with a date that I will never be able to celebrate.)
The Tan-ok festival fell on the eve of the 37th anniversary of the Edsa People Power Revolution, which ousted Marcos Sr. from power, forcing the family to flee from Malacañang.
Imee said it has been a habit for her to visit the grave of her father on February 25, where she said she takes the time to “reflect” and “revisit” the past that changed the fate of her family and that of the country in 1986.
With this, Imee asked fellow Ilocanos for their understanding.
For his part, President Marcos offered a “hand of reconciliation” to those who hold different political views.
He said he joins the nation in remembering the peaceful Edsa uprising, which he described as “a time in our history that divided the Filipino people.”
During the annual festival, representatives from the 23 cities of the province showcased their culture and traditions through dance performances.