Son of Philippine dictator appears to win election in a landslide
The namesake son of late Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos appeared to have been elected Philippine president by a landslide in an astonishing reversal of the 1986 “Folks Energy” pro-democracy revolt that ousted his father.
Marcos Jr. had greater than 30.8 million votes within the unofficial outcomes with greater than 97 per cent of the votes tabulated as of Tuesday afternoon. His nearest challenger, Vice-President Leni Robredo, a champion of human rights, had 14.7 million votes in Monday’s election, and boxing nice Manny Pacquiao appeared to have the third highest complete with 3.5 million.
His working mate, Sara Duterte, the daughter of the outgoing chief and mayor of southern Davao metropolis, had a formidable lead within the separate vice-presidential race.
The alliance of the scions of two authoritarian leaders mixed the voting energy of their households’ political strongholds within the north and south however compounded worries of human rights activists.
Activists enraged
Dozens of anti-Marcos protesters rallied on the Fee on Elections, blaming the company for the breakdown of vote-counting machines and different points that prevented folks from casting their votes. Elections officers stated the impression of the malfunctioning machines was minimal.
A gaggle of activists, who suffered underneath the dictatorship stated it was enraged by Marcos’s obvious victory and would oppose it.
“A doable win based mostly on a marketing campaign constructed on blatant lies, historic distortions and mass deception is tantamount to dishonest your method to victory,” stated the group Marketing campaign In opposition to the Return of the Marcoses and Martial Legislation, or CARMMA. “This isn’t acceptable.”
Etta Rosales, a former Fee on Human Rights chair, who was twice arrested and tortured underneath martial legislation within the Nineteen Seventies, stated Marcos Jr.’s obvious victory drove her to tears however wouldn’t cease her from persevering with efforts to carry the Marcoses to account.
“I am only one among the many many who had been tortured; others had been killed, I used to be raped. We suffered underneath the Marcos regime within the battle for justice and freedom and this occurs,” Rosales stated.
Marcos Jr. and Sara Duterte prevented risky points throughout their marketing campaign and steadfastly caught as a substitute to a battle cry of nationwide unity, though their fathers’ presidencies opened a few of the most turbulent divisions within the nation’s historical past.
‘We’ve a whole lot of issues to do’
Marcos Jr. has not claimed victory however thanked his supporters in a late-night “handle to the nation” video, the place he urged them to remain vigilant till the vote rely is accomplished.
“If we’ll be lucky, I am going to count on that your assist won’t wane, your belief won’t wane as a result of we’ve got a whole lot of issues to do within the instances forward,” he stated.
Robredo has not conceded defeat however acknowledged the large Marcos Jr. lead within the unofficial rely. She instructed her supporters the battle for reforms and democracy will not finish with the elections.
“The voice of the folks is getting clearer and clearer,” she stated. “Within the identify of the Philippines, which I do know you additionally love so dearly, we should always hear this voice as a result of ultimately, we solely have this one nation to share.”
She requested her supporters to proceed to face up: “Press for the reality. It took lengthy for the construction of lies to be erected. We’ve the time and alternative now to battle and dismantle this.”
The election winner will take workplace on June 30 for a single, six-year time period as chief of a Southeast Asian nation hit exhausting by two years of COVID-19 outbreaks and lockdowns and long-troubled by crushing poverty, gaping inequalities, Muslim and communist insurgencies and deep political divisions.
Marcos Jr., a 64-year-old former provincial governor, congressman and senator, has defended the legacy of his father and steadfastly refused to acknowledge and apologize for the large human rights violations and plunder underneath his father’s strongman rule.
After his ouster by the largely peaceable 1986 rebellion, the elder Marcos died in 1989 whereas in exile in Hawaii with out admitting any wrongdoing, together with accusations that he, his household and cronies amassed an estimated $5 billion to $10 billion whereas he was in energy. A Hawaii court docket later discovered him accountable for human rights violations and awarded $2 billion from his property to compensate greater than 9,000 Filipinos who filed a lawsuit towards him for torture, incarceration, extrajudicial killings and disappearances.
