The son of the late Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos will end his campaign for Monday’s presidential elections this Saturday (7), in front of hundreds of thousands of supporters, with polls predicting a broad victory.
If predictions come true, Ferdinand Marcos Jr would culminate a decades-long campaign trying to rehabilitate the shadowy dictatorship of his father, ousted in a popular uprising in 1986 and fled into exile in the United States.
But the prospect of a return by the Marcos to the presidential palace in Manila alarms human rights activists, religious leaders and political analysts who fear an “unrestricted” mandate.
Ten candidates are vying for the succession of President Rodrigo Duterte, with a legacy that has also been criticized and the subject of an international investigation for his bloody war on drug trafficking.
In addition to Marcos Jr, candidates include current vice president and Duterte critic Leni Robredo, well-known actor and Manila mayor Francisco Domagoso, or boxer Manny Pacquiao.
But polls indicate that Marcos Jr will have more than half the votes, far ahead of Leni Robredo, becoming the first candidate since the fall of the dictatorship to win by an absolute majority.
“If you get so many votes, it could give you the confidence to change the Philippine political system more radically,” analyst Richard Heydarian told AFP, pointing to a possible constitutional change to bolster his power.
Robredo, 57, who defeated Marcos Jr in the 2016 vice-presidential race, has warned his followers that “the country’s future” is at stake.
Hundreds of thousands of supporters are expected in Manila to attend the Marcos Jr and Robredo rallies.
Unlike other presidential systems with two rounds, in the Philippines whoever gets the most votes wins, even if the difference is minimal.
The dictator’s son ran a contained campaign, with no televised debates and few interviews, and tried to present his wealthy family as normal people.
It also launched a strong disinformation campaign aimed especially at young people who don’t remember their father’s corrupt and violent regime, in order to rewrite their dynasty’s past.
The popularity of Marcos Jr, nicknamed “Bongbong”, was boosted by his alliance with Sara Duterte, the president’s daughter and top vice-presidential candidate, and the support of several rival dynasties.
Days before the election, human rights advocates and numerous Catholic priests launched a last-ditch effort to prevent Marcos Jr from returning to Palacio Malacañán, where he grew up amid the luxury and wealth gained from the family’s corrupt practices.
“There will be six more years of hell,” warned political comedian and activist Mae Paner, 58, who was part of the popular uprising that toppled the dictatorship.
The family fled to the United States, but after the dictator’s death in Hawaii in 1989, they later returned to the Philippines, where they used local loyalties to gain positions of power and try to wash away two decades of the regime.
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