After several decades dedicated to restoring the image of his family, Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr, elected new president of the Philippines on Tuesday, completes the spectacular return to grace of his clan, which in less than a generation passed from total political disgrace to the supreme power.
In a social media campaign designed to portray the two decades of Marcos Senior’s dictatorship (1965-1986) as a time of peace and prosperity, Marcos Junior won with twice as many votes as his main rival, Leni Robredo.
His election will allow his family clan to move back into the presidential palace of Malacanang, Manila, 36 years after the popular uprising that led to the overthrow of his father’s dictatorship and the exile of the family to the States. -United.
“Bongbong” narrowly lost the vice-presidency in the 2016 election to Leni Robredo. At 64, he will now succeed authoritarian President Rodrigo Duterte, in power since 2016. The latter’s eldest daughter, Sara Duterte, supports him and seems well placed to become his vice-president.
Promising to unify the country, Marcos Junior intends to fight against unemployment and inflation, the Covid-19 pandemic having dealt a serious blow to the economy of the archipelago.
“(National) unity is my cause because I have the firm conviction that it is the first step towards a way out of the crisis”, declared Marcos Jr at the start of his electoral campaign in February.
Disinformation
As a child, he dreamed of being an astronaut. But he ended up following the same fate as his father and entering politics.
“Bongbong” was boarding in Britain when his father declared martial law in 1972.
He now defends the regime of Marcos Senior, whose “political genius” he praises, relying on the strong economic growth of the beginning and public spending under martial law, concealing the corruption and mismanagement that later impoverished the nation.
After the deposed dictator died in Hawaii (USA) in 1989, the Marcos returned home and began their remarkable renaissance, harnessing local allegiances to win a series of high offices.
Marcos Jr was thus twice vice-governor of the province of Ilocos Norte, the family stronghold, and was also elected to the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Mr. Marcos’ ties to his father, author of a bloody crackdown during the years of martial law, make him one of the most divisive politicians in the country.
But he was able to take advantage of social networks to carry out a vast disinformation campaign aimed at young people, who have experienced neither the oppression nor the large-scale corruption that marked the 20 years of his father’s reign.
He denied using an army of trolls.
The return to the political scene of the Marcos has benefited from the accusations of corruption that have targeted the governments that followed the years of dictatorship, and from the anger caused by the unequal distribution of wealth.
Wanting to avoid repeating his mistakes from the 2016 campaign, which saw him beset with questions about his family’s past, Marcos Jr shunned the debates and granted only rare interviews, in which he appeared quite badly comfortable.
His opponents have tried to have him disqualified from running for president, citing a previous conviction for failing to file taxes, accusing him of lying about his credentials and having nearly $4 billion in inheritance tax unpaid.
Although he called him “weak”, incumbent President Rodrigo Duterte supported his candidacy. Some saw it as an attempt by the incumbent president, who is under international investigation for his murderous war on drugs, to obtain guarantees that he will not be prosecuted after his term.