[WATCH] Part 2: Narvacan, Ilocos Sur mayor Chavit Singson believes it's now the time of ally Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr to be president. But some of Marcos' constituents in Ilocos Norte do not agree, calling him an absentee governor. Full story:
ILOCOS NORTE, Philippines – In front of the Immaculate Conception Church in Batac, Ilocos Norte, the birthplace of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, tricycle drivers greeted us with a chant: “BBM! BBM!”leading presidential aspirant
But Manuel Aurelio, the dean of Northwestern University’s College of Law in Laoag where Marcos Jr.’s wife Louise “Liza” Araneta Marcos used to teach, is not one to mince words about the former governor. It seemed too much too soon; even his father before him had served as congressman for three terms before shooting for the Senate in 1959 – and topping that race.
Marcos Jr. was, after all, in his 20s at the time – he partied, drove flashy cars, and had the time of his life as the only son of the country’s most powerful man. It was in January 1980, when Marcos Jr. was barely 23, when he first got elected as vice governor of Ilocos Norte in the first local elections held in the Philippines after his father’s declaration of Martial Law in 1972. Marcos’ party, the Kilusang Bagong Lipunan , naturally swept the races.
“Nasubukan na n’ya lahat, marami nang eleksiyon siyang nasubukan. Siguro bumalik ‘yung…parang dumating na ‘yung [panahong] sawa na ang tao sa pambubugbog sa tatay niya,” “Maybe he doesn’t even know there were such initiatives because he wasn’t visible anyway,” said Tan. “I’m not saying they did nothing that we can remember them by, but they could have done better during their time. Imelda, for instance loved, frivolities,” said Aurelio.Imelda as a first lady loved larger-than-life projects to display her penchant for all things bright and beautiful, like the Cultural Center of the Philippines.