FROM THE PUBLISHER ’ S DESK
A ghost of the dark years
I remember that day — Feb . 25 , 1986 . My family stood outside the iron gates of Malacañang Palace amid a massive wave of people armed with yellow ribbons , flowers and rosaries . After a four-day uprising , we heard on the radio that the dictator Ferdinand Marcos and his family had fled the country .
Ramming through the gates of the now forlorn presidential palace , people found signs of a hurtled retreat . Hundreds of pairs of shoes , gowns and other evidence of the Marcoses ’ profligacy had been abandoned . Documents and bullets scattered on the floor . They ’ re gone !
People burst into song . The poignant “ Bayan Ko ” ( My Country )— the metaphor of a caged bird that yearns to be free — was the anthem of the EDSA revolution .
The Marcoses had been obliterated from our lives .
Or so we thought .
My generation — we were called “ The Martial Laws Babies ”— is beginning to realize now that only the glorious part of the Philippine history is being obliterated .
Ferdinand “ Bongbong ” Marcos Jr ., only son and namesake of the late dictator , is the frontrunner in the Philippines ’ upcoming presidential election in May . Consecutive polls in January and February show the junior Marcos winning with a staggering 60 percent of the national vote .
He was 29 when the family was ousted and sent in exile in Hawaii .
He had since returned to the Philippines , where he served as governor of Ilocos Norte , as congressman and senator . Now he is aiming to go back to his childhood playground — the Malacanang Palace .
His campaign has revived “ Bagong
4
Photo courtesy of Gzero Media
Lipunan ” ( The New Society ), the anthem of martial law . I shudder . It summoned the dark years .
Watching how North Koreans live now gives me a perspective of how we were brainwashed into subservience during the martial period when the media was controlled by the regime . Political opinions had no place in the public sphere .
My generation lived through different political eras . We grew up watching the spectacle of the Marcos family , who acted like royalty . Imelda Marcos paraded in her extravagant gowns and glittering jewelry , suffocating Filipinos with her absolute vanity . “ People say I ' m extravagant because I want to be surrounded by beauty . But tell me , who wants to be surrounded by garbage ?” she said .
“ Bagong Lipunan ” was played on the radio , on TV and in public places . Marcos created a fiction , depicting his purported greatness , that fueled his tyranny .
During the two decades of media control , the brainwashing propaganda concealed what the regime represented — world-class plunderers , murderers and torturers . None of the Marcoses or their cronies ever went to jail for their transgressions .
Marcos Jr . gave no apology , showed no remorse and offered no restitution . And why would he ? Maybe no one remembers after all . He has been rewarded many times , repeatedly elected to various positions . And now as president ?
Marcos Jr . gave no apology , showed no remorse and offered no restitution . And why would he ? Maybe no one remembers after all . He has been rewarded many times , repeatedly elected to various positions . And now as president ?
It ’ s perplexing . It ’ s appalling . And for people who were tortured and the families of those killed , it ’ s revolting .
Marcos Jr . appeals to a fresh generation that doesn ’ t hear the shuddering beat of “ Bagong Lipunan ” the way my generation does . The Philippines ’ median age is 25 . Their lack of personal link to the history of martial law perhaps explains their political oblivion .
But history is still being written . Pre-election polls are just polls . The May 9 ballot will decide a new chapter in history .
As Filipino journalist Sheila Coronel said , ‘ A Marcos return is inevitable only if we believe it to be .”
Publisher / Editor-in-Chief Mar-Vic Cagurangan publisher @ pacificislandtimes . com
Contributing Writers Vincent Akimoto Raquel Bagnol Donna Hope Blas Bea Cabrera Zaldy Dandan Jayne Flores Robert Klitzkie Aurora Kohn Kenneth Gofigan Kuper Theodore Lewis Jesse Lujan Joyce McClure Gabriel McCoard Diana Mendoza James C . Pearce Jay Shedd Robert Underwood CJ Urquico Aline Yamashita
Jan SN Furukawa jan @ pacificislandtimes . com
Account Executive Anna Marie Alegre sales @ pacificislandtimes . com
Administrative Assistant Jinky Villanueva
***
Pacific Independent News Service LLC Tumon Sands Plaza 1082 Pale San Vitores Rd . Tumon Guam 96931
Mailing address : P . O . Box 11647 Tamuning , Gu 96931 Telephone : ( 671 ) 929-4210 Email : PacificIslandTimes @ gmail . com Website : www . pacificislandtimes . com
The Pacific Island Times is published monthly and circulated in Guam and Palau by the Pacific Independent News Service LLC . Editorial and advertising submissions become property of the Pacific Island Times and cannot be lifted without consent of the publisher . Views and opinions from contributors do not necessarily represent the editorial position of the Pacific Island Times .