Manila (AsiaNews) - With its wealth of 22 million U.S. dollars, Imelda Marcos, widow of Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos is the country's second richest parliamentarian, after the boxer Manuel Paquiao. The news, which has emerged in recent days, has shocked the Filipinos, who fear the great influence of the former first lady and her family in Filipino politics more than 20 years after the death in exile of the dictator. AsiaNews sources explain that despite the "tabloid gossip" the question of the Marcos family shows the endemic problems of politics in the Philippines for decades in the hands of the same families.
"These families - they say - control the finance and base their power on
clientelist relations, using the money to buy votes during elections. The
system is consolidated and is difficult to change."
In these years, Imelda Marcos has always declared herself to be poor and
penniless, although there were rumors about the immense fruits of her husband's
crimes. Once elected deputy in 2010, she moved into a luxury apartment in one
of the most fashionable parts of Manila
and wears jewelry and designer clothing at parliamentary sessions, in sharp
contrast to her vaunted poverty. On April 30, by virtue of the transparency
policy promoted by President Aquino all MPs and Filipino senators have
published their financial situation. As a deputy Marcos was forced to declare
the list of assets.
According to sources, the continued success of Marcos was made possible through
culture that characterizes the country, still based on clans and not on
individuals. "Every Filipino - they explain - is tied to their land of
origin. Once elected, politicians do everything to offer as many privileges as
possible to their won people." This enabled Marcos to reappear on the
political scene after her return from exile in the '1990s. In fact, despite the
crimes of the dictator, the people of Llocos Norte (northern Philippines)
continue to elect members of the family. To date, as well as his widow, his son
Ferdinand Jr. is campaigning on the political scene, a former governor of North
Llocos elected to the Senate in 2010, and his daughter Imee, elected governor
in the same region where previously her brother had held power.
"Even Aquino - sources tell - is part of this system and, unfortunately,
no different from others. Despite the good name and the apparent modesty of the
President his relatives have huge estates and money invested in major
Philippine companies."
The immobility of the Philippine political system is also visible in the
parliamentary elections to be held May 13, 2013, for the renewal of the
Assembly and Senate. The sources stress that from the lists of candidates little
or nothing has changed, the names are always the same. Moreover, few people are
able to finance an election campaign to destroy the system of patronage,
especially in rural areas. To combat the problem, the Church began offering
training courses since 2010 for young people about the true meaning of politics.