Monday, September 21, 2015

REMEMBERING MARCOS’ REGIME - Martial Law

This is the very first time I wrote a full article about former President Ferdinand E. Marcos’ dictatorship regime, just timed to coincide the declaration of Martial Law.  In the past I rather not to write categorically about the weaknesses of Marcos’ administration because either I am not a political writer or it is untimely – yet.  But with the coming out of paid ad and white propagandas that contradict to what revealed real stories, I feel I need to somehow express what’s on my mind and try to caution those who receive such propaganda who have no idea about martial law.  My worry is if everyone like me will keep passive, I may allow corrupting the young minds of today who have not given the chance to experience the Marcos regime while those elders will totally forget what have transpired in our life during those years.  I just pray those people known and friends to me who I may differ in politics will merely consider and respect this as personal view that will not take against me. Although hesitant at first but hoping the outcome of this writing may not cause someone’s reprisal in the future considering the dirty politics.

There is no doubt Marcos is so far, the greatest statesman that the Philippine politics ever had.  He has the brilliance to fill in the highest post in the land, an exemplary academic record that top notched his class, an experience that qualified him job, wisdom that heightened him to gracefully debate, ideology that made him respected, and authoritative personality that made him a leader.  But being the greatest doesn’t mean faultless, in fact Marcos regime had so many accountabilities and offences that he owed to the Filipino people from our generation to the next generations.  During his first regime, Philippines was the Tiger of Asia, second to powerful Japan.  But it has to remember that Marcos has just inherited the strong and robust economy of the Philippines from his predecessors.  From Magsaysay’s administration where Philippines was just liberated from America who enriched and blessed us up to Macapagal’s steadfast administration, the Philippines was practically rich just like America, making the peso almost equaled the dollar.  But when Marcos entered in his second term, this started the weakening of our economy, growing graft and corruption, rise of international debt, and increase of local unemployment that made the door open for overseas contract workers.  There was already rampant poverty that’s why Pope John Paul II warned Marcos regarding the obvious lavish lifestyle of the First Family and their cronies despite the happening poverty.  To cover the increasing poverty, Philippines loaned in IMF and World Bank to finance and to show various government projects such as CCP, Folk Arts Theater, Philippines Heart Centre, Kidney Centre, Lung Center, Manila International Airport, LRT, San Juanicho Bridge, etc. which should not be supposed the case if the country had dollar reserved skipping international debt.  From 2 pesos into 1 dollar, it ended in 30 pesos is to dollar just when he was exiled from the office.  Indeed, 20 years was remarkable with what goods he had done to our country except the martial law and abuse of power.

The proud claim of Marcos’ loyalist is the peace and order during its time which seemed to be true at first look but is actually in contrast because there were rampant crimes across the country that the existing martial law pre-empted them in the media controlled by government and ordinary people never able to know them.  There was nationwide censorship at its best, dictatorship at its finest, people only read the good news about the country but never the summary executions, political harassment, sequestration of wealth and properties, forced obedience, warrantless arrest, tortured, raped, genitals electrocution, life threat, and of course the known desaparecidos.  The terror wrapped the whole country in the iron fist that pointed to anyone who will object.  People were virtually afraid on the military because the military themselves were sowing terror.  The loyalist claim that there were no agitators, complaining and opposing may true because the military capture, abduct, or silence whoever attempted.  Peaceful if that what it call peaceful, but people has no choice but to follow and people are not disciplined but afraid. How can an ordinary citizen come out in open to complaint if he will be killed?  Human rights were clearly violated.  Most of these are undocumented and never sensationalized in headline because of the wide news blackout and censorship.  Merely the reasons why the leftish group (as NPA) has formed because of the corruption and tyranny of Marcos regime.  For twenty long years, Marcos ruled the country through several elections that guaranteed him to win as rigged.  His greatness makes him the best but the abuse of power makes his legacy a great failure.

In today’s power of social media, public relation and political advisers see it as potential tool to expose their version of story.  This is a free country anyway, what not written in the books, you can run to social media.  There are videos depicting the heroism of Ferdinand Marcos but can easily determine it’s from its camp when it is not merely not showing the greatness of the former president but it extremely reiterates and presents the imperfections, deformities and weaknesses of political opponents.  There is a video showing the long list of accomplishments of Marcos administration compare to the combined from his predecessors.  In theory, this should have not supposed the way it counted.  The total numbers of accomplishments against the number of years of Marcos regime is the average accomplishment to be compared to the next leaders, I believe this should be the count.  Twenty years under one leader is not possible but should be.  Imagine if each president after 1986 has same twenty years of terms, how much accomplishment could they have?  And then in another video is the claiming of zero massacres in the 20 years of dictatorship compare to each term of preceding presidents where each has accountabilities.  How can we expect to hear news about massacres during those 20 years while media is controlled by government?  And how can we compare these later massacres if they were not really schemed by the government unlike then?  While in other videos compare the killing of journalists in the succeeding administration, killing is not just limited to media men.  All in all, either way if tracked or not, there is no greater number of the combined massacres from the next administrations than massacring the whole nation by Marcos regime alone.

After Marcos regime, whoever takes the office will really take difficult time to put the anchor of the ship that Marcos held to suffering for a long time and left bankrupt.  This is how serious he’d done to our country.  There are just people who are charlatans saying life then is better than today, who severely taking advantage the freedom to criticize without fear, who are desperate to find peace and find the right man who can make our nation great once again which is used by the people behind these paid ad propagandas. If not for the democracy we restored, did they ever realize the freedom to criticize without fear they are enjoying today, that they will not able to do if there is still martial law today?  In our present time, call it mother of all poverties and corruptions that need to crush thru iron fist but not the way thru Martial law we used to have.  Martial law is good by the way but changed its connotation because of our history.   Having that dark era we had, never allow by all means all possible ways of coming back the same personalities into power again, never give the chance of the potential repeat of history by cutting off right away the possible root.  I have friends and colleague from Ilocos the bailiwick of former president.  I want to apologize if this may dismay and contradict to their faith.  I know how patriotic the Lakays are when it comes to Apo but I am sorry, this is my honest to goodness two-cents and I guess most of the Filipinos too.  I am not having say who is the best president but we will never like to go back again in that long, dark, fearful and dangerous years.

September 21, 2015

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

............) Hindi si Marcos ang nagpaunlad sa Pilipinas, way back 1950's developing country na tau. time yan nila Magsaysay, Macapagal. At sa panahon ni macapagal nag 1 is to 1 ang peso-dollar. Hindi marcos era ang glory days ng pilipinas. In fact nung time ni marcos nagsimulang magkaroon ng economic fall ang bansa. OO madami syang nagawa sa bansa pero tandaan natin 21 years syang naupo sa pwesto. at during that time stable pa ang economy natin. Kaya nadadaliang maapprove ung mga loans ntin sa mga International banks. Pero bago bumaba sya pwesto si Marcos bagsak na economy ng bansa noon. Nagkataon na nagpalit ng president kaya ang alam ng lahat dun nag occur ung downfall ntin. . Actually if you read history books eh 50s pa lang mayaman na tayo. Maganda ang start ng term ni Marcos which was '65- '69 pero noong 70s eh doon lang tayo nagstart bumagsak. Ang dami na nating utang that time and bumabagsak na economy natin especially noong 80s. Don't believe in propagandas in the internet.

Anonymous said...

---------)))))) FACT :Ang termino ni Ferdinand Marcos bilang presidente ay mula Disyembre 30, 1965 hanggang Pebrero 25, 1986.

Isa-isahin po natin ang pinagkakalat ng Brand X at Bobong mga Trolls na kabobohan.

Sabi ng mga putanginang troll: WAG KAYO DUMAAN SA EDSA

Ateng may EDSA na po bago maupo sa Marcos

Simula nang ginawa ang EDSA noong 1930's una itong tinawag bilang "North-South Circumferential Road", na ginawa sa loob ng panungkulan ni Presidente Manuel L. Quezon, na pinangunahan ng mga inhinyerong sina Florencio Moreno at Osmundo Monsod.

Sabi ng bungol na troll: WAG KAYO SUMAKAY SA NAIA

Ganito yun ateng:

1935= Ang original na airport sa Manila ay Grace Park Airfield na kilala sa Manila North sa Grace Park, Caloocan.

1937= Pinasinyaan ang Manila International Air Terminal na may 42 hectares (4,500,000 sq ft) Nielson Airport. At ang runway nito na nasa Ayala Avenue at Paseo de Roxas sa Makati.

1948= pagkatapos ng Philippine independence, nilipat ang airport sa katabi nitong Villamor Airbase, na kilala sa tawag na Nichols Field at ang USAF base runway (Runway 13/31). Ang original na structure na itinayo ay site ng Terminal 2.

1954= Itinatag ang international runway at associated taxiway ng airport

1956= sinimulang i-construct ang control tower at terminal building para sa i international passengers. At pinasinayaan ang bagong terminal noong September 22, 1961.

1972=Nasunog ang original na terminal at nagtayo ng mas maliit na terminal sa sunod na taon. Ang ikalawing terminal sa bansa ay itinatag noong 1981 na ngayon ay Terminal 1.

Noong August 17, 1987 sa bisa ng Republic Act No. 6639 ay ipinangalan kay Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino, Jr. ang Airport.
So sa madaling salita, nakatayo na ang airport dyan bago pa maupo si Marcos.nyahahaha

Sabi ng shungang troll: UMALIS KAYO SA MGA REGION NG PILIPINAS FROM REGION 1-12, UMALIS KAYO SA NCR

Nakakahiya naman ateng, kelan pa naging pagmamay-ari ni mga Marcos ang Region 1-12 at NCR?

Sabi ng tontang troll: WAG KAYO SUMAKAY SA MGA TRAIN , LRT, MRT AT PNR

Nakakaloka ka ateng, balik ka muna ng grade 1. May PNR na po bago maupo si Marcos. Mula MRCCo pinalitan ang pangalan ng PNR noong June 20, 1964. Hindi pa po pangulo nyan si Marcos.

June 20, 1964 – Republic Act No. 4156 is enacted. It changes the corporate name of MRRCo to Philippine National Railways (PNR)

Pakisampal ang link na ito para makita nyo ang time table :

Sabi ng ungas na troll: WAG KAYO GUMAMIT NG MERALCO

Ateng nahihiya na talaga ako sayo. May MERALCO na po bago maupo si Marcos as president

In 1961, Don Eugenio López, Sr. acquired Meralco and finally making it wholly Filipino-owned.

isaksak mo sa kokote mo itong link na to para malaman mo ang historical background ng MERALCO:

Sabi ng tangang troll: WAG KAYO GUMAMIT NG MWSS

Hay nakuh ateng, may MWSS na po bago maging pangulo si Marcos. Dating NAWASA ang tawag dyan na pinangalan nung 1955 at pinalitan lang na kilala na ngayon sa tawag na MWSS.

Basahin nyo nalang ang history ng MWSS kaloka!

Sabi ng Bobang trolls: WAG NYO TANGGAPIN ANG 13th MONTH PAY.

Alam nyo ba na ang 13th month pay ay ipinasa sa ilalim ng PD 851 ni Pres. Marcos noong December 16, 1975. Ngunit ang 13th month pay ay ibinibigay lamang sa mga empleyadong kumikita ng hindi lagpas ng isang libong piso.

Noong Agusto 13, 1986, sa ilalim ni Pangulong Cory Aquino sa pamamagitan ng Memorandum Order No. 28 ay tinanggal ang limit na isang libong piso. Nang dahil dito , ang lahat ng empleyado kahit anong rank at sweldo ay makakatanggap ng 13th month pay regardless sa monthly basic salary (maliban na lamang kung ang kanilang employer ay exempted sa aplikasyon ng PD 851).

Nang dahil sa sinusuka nyong kultong Dilawan na yan ay nagkaroon tuloy ng pagkakapantay pantay ng karapatan ang mga empleyado sa 13 month pay.

Isaksak nyo sa bituka nyo itong link source:

Teka, eh pera din ng bayan ang ginamit sa pagpapatayo ng mga proyekto nung panahon nya. Ano nalang ang ipagmamalaki niyo?