MLQ3: Marcoses lookin sweet today

Kuya Manuel offers these reasons:

The first is that the veterans of the Ferdinand Marcos administration, including the Marcoses themselves, have managed to preserve their political machinery better than anyone else. And that they continue to have the capability to mobilize a significant minority of the voters -- say, 25 percent -- who look back fondly to the New Society, or are personally loyal to the "Apo" and his kin, and by extension reject Edsa and People Power. I am not alone in thinking this. This undercurrent of rejection is politically powerful, and gets even stronger as post-Marcos administrations mismanage the country and prove themselves no better than the Marcos-era leadership.

The second is that the post-Marcos bunch of leaders remain more interested in undercutting each other (thus, making the constituencies of the various leaders politically inconsequential) than in getting their act together and standing up for what the majority continues to believe was a pretty good thing: that is, Edsa and People Power. Now they're dying off one by one, and there's no one young to replace them, or follow them. Collectively, theirs is a story of 20 years of defeat -- the only ones who tasted victory were members of the Ramos minority who decided to abandon all pretensions to Edsa. They are the new KBL, using the same tricks, and with the same objectives, but having perfected the technology for massaging the vote.

The Marcoses themselves have, in spades, something that many of their opponents lack: charm, vigor, celebrity status and even intelligence. They have today's general air of disillusionment working on their side. The Marcoses themselves can piously point out they have no haciendas; Cory Aquino's family clung to theirs.

Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is certainly no Chavit Singson: and even her worst critics admit Imee Marcos is sharp as a tack; everybody likes Irene; Imelda herself is unsinkable and remains one of the most famous Filipinos alive, regardless of the cause of her notoriety (as any actor proves, any publicity is good publicity). And as for robbing the public treasury and human rights, well, they can say they're in good post-Edsa company. The
thing is, for Filipinos of a certain age, you will hear, "at least the Marcoses got something done" (and still do: Bongbong's windmills are a genuine achievement). And for the young: What martial law?

But we would be mistaken to assume that the Marcoses have won the battle for history, though they may be poised, as many political observers tell me, to increase their political gains.

The Marcoses are looking good today because of Arroyo. And many of the people from edsa 1 and edsa 2 (the people who should know better) who helped overthrow two presidents because of their illegitimacy and corruption issues are now defending one of their very own for doing the same thing -- and looking extremely hypocritical in doing so.

Obviously, okay lang sa kinala ang corrupt at magnanakaw ng boto, as long as their names are not Marcos, Erap or Lacson.

So Arroyo and her defenders have a big hand in helping make the Marcos restoration come true.

Thanks a lot Connie and Bong. Thanks for nuthin, Winnie and Cathcath.