The Conjugal Dictatorship of Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos
Chapter VI The Other Villains The unerring judgment of history would easily condemn Ferdinand E. Marcos with having, at the discerning age of 55, pulled the trigger that snuffed out the life of democracy in the Philippines by his declaration of martial law on September 21, 1972. Whatever might be the attenuating circumstances, history will hold Marcos accountable for the dictatorship (circa: 1972-197?) that inexorably followed his proclamation of martial law. To be sure, Marcos is already compiling volumes addressed to historians to show that his decision of September 21,1972, was a “great and heroic” one for the Philippines. There is very little dispute indeed about the validity of an oft repeated statement that before the proclamation of martial law, the Philippines was a “sick society.” In his second book. Notes on the New Society, published on the occasion of the first anniversary of the martial regime, Marcos stated: “I am, to be sure, accountable to history for 21 September 1972 when I signed the proclamation placing the entire Philippines under martial law. And yet solely and completely responsible as I am for this decision, I cannot escape the sense that events, the thrusts of history, and even the will of the people, somehow guided my hand to the deed.” True, the Philippines was in such an awful mess that the common man despaired over the situation. It was a challenge to the country’s leadership to avail of the bargaining process so necessary in a democratic society to harness all the energy coming from the various sectors of the national fabric. Marcos did not see it fit to accept the challenge. He chose the path of authoritarianism, with an eye single to perpetuating himself in power. He preferred to use the boundless energy of his people as an excuse to declare martial law over the entire country. Indeed, there were many facets of Philippine life that “guided” Marcos’ hand to declare martial law. In their totality, however, they did not constitute a compelling reason for a man — and his No. 1 woman — to clamp down a dictatorial rule over the Filipino people. Long before Marcos declared martial law, distribution of wealth and income in the Philippines was lop-sided. It was and is still the central problem of the nation. Such was the situation even before Marcos became President of his country in 1965. However, no President before Marcos ever thought of callously exploiting this situation to justify a resort to martial law. While the concentration of wealth in the hands of a few became a favorite Marcos topic to rally the impoverished behind him and his plans to seize power, Marcos himself got frantically busy acquiring wealth from the advantageous perch of the presidency so he could belong to the nation’s grouping at the top of the pyramid controlling the bulk of wealth in the Philippines. In other areas of national life, there was much to be desired. The press was free but often irresponsible. The courts were slow, too technical and sometimes Primitivo Mijares
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