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Bongbong, Imee Marcos visit Cory Aquino's wake


Saying they were there only to sympathize, two of the children of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos came to the wake of former president Corazon Aquino, who had accused him of plotting the murder of her husband Ninoy in 1983. Ilocos Rep. Ferdinand “Bongbong" Marcos Jr. and his older sister Maria Imelda "Imee" Marcos stayed for less than 30 minutes and chatted cordially with Mrs. Aquino's eldest child Ballsy Aquino-Cruz, who greeted them beso-beso, and grandchildren Jiggy Cruz and Kiko Dee. Bongbong and Imee declined to be interviewed extensively by the media and said that they went there only to “sympathize" with the Aquinos. Accompanying them were Bongbong's wife Lisa and Louie Tutaan, former Kabataang Barangay executive director during the Marcos regime. "Wala, nakikiramay kami (We are only condoling with them)," Bongbong said when asked by reporters what their visit meant.


In an earlier statement, Bongbong said, “Our thoughts and prayers are with Mrs. Aquino and her family in this difficult moment. I know how her family feels because we also went through the same experience with my father. Former first lady Imelda Marcos had said soon after Mrs. Aquino's death that she wants the Aquinos and the Marcoses to reconcile. In response, Senator Benigno "Noynoy"Aquino III, Mrs. Aquino's only son, said that his family has always been open to the idea of reconciliation with the Marcoses. "Kami ay napapasalamat at siguro nga ho pwede maging isang daan yan na baka magkalapitan ng pananaw para sa ikabubuti ng ating bansa [We are thankful, and perhaps this can be a way for us to understand each other more for the sake of the country]," said Senator Aquino. But he has also been quoted elsewhere as saying reconciliation is not imminent as the Marcoses have not apologized for some of the events that happened during Ferdinand Marcos' rule. Apologize before reconciliation Two former political prisoners during the Marcos regime said there should be conditions before reconciliation. Bayan Muna Rep. Satur Ocampo - who was imprisoned during the Marcos regime with his wife Bobbie Malay - said he agrees with Senator Aquino about the need for an accounting of alleged crimes by the Marcoses. "Sinasabi naman ng Aquino family, wala naman nag-aapologize, wala namang pag-amin na ginawa yung mga Marcoses (The Aquinos did say that the Marcoses have not apologized nor owned up to their deeds)," Ocampo said in a phone interview with GMANews.TV. "Hindi lamang kasi sa Aquino sila makikipag-reconcile, maski sa Filipino people (They are supposed to reconcile not just with the Aquinos, but with the Filipino people)," he added. Ocampo said he and some fellow progressive party-list lawmakers were actually at the wake at the same time as the Marcoses. But he said he was not able to talk to any of the Marcoses, who were surrounded by the media. Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr., who was a cabinet member and senator during the Aquino administration, said in a text message that the Marcoses' visit was "a gesture, not more, not less." "[Reconciliation] should be based on remorse followed by justice. Who ordered Ninoy killed remains unanswered," he said. "Where is the hidden loot of government funds that belongs to the people?" the senator asked. Marcos-Aquino enmity The Marcoses and Aquinos have been at odds since the 70s. When then President Marcos placed the country under martial rule in 1972, the first person he was said to have ordered arrested was his arch-critic, then Senator Benigno “Ninoy" Aquino Jr., Corazon Aquino’s husband. A military tribunal charged Aquino with sedition and sentenced him to death, but the sentence was never carried out. Suffering from a heart ailment, Aquino made a deal in 1980 with the Marcoses to leave with his family for the United States and never to return. Three years later, however, as Aquino returned home, he was assassinated at the Manila International Airport (now named after him). His murder under heavy state security sparked a protest movement that eventually forced the Marcoses from power in 1986. Marcos died of natural causes in 1989. The rivalry between Ferdinand Marcos and Ninoy Aquino extended to their widows, with Cory Aquino and Imelda R. Marcos never seeing eye to eye long after Mrs. Aquino bowed out of power in 1992. But the animosity did not really extend to their children, said Makati Rep. Agapito "Butz" Aquino — the former president's brother-in-law and a staunch critic of former President Marcos — who was also at the wake at the time of the Marcos children's visit. "Matagal kong nakasama si Imee sa Kongreso. Kami pagdating sa anak ni Pangulong Marcos wala kaming away (I have been working with Rep. Imee Marcos in Congress. When it comes to the children of Marcos I have no fight with them)," Aquino said in an interview on dzBB radio. "Nais natin magkaisa ang mga Pilipino. ‘Di natin maalis may kanya-kanyang paniniwala at paninindigan (I have long wanted Filipinos to be united. We cannot avoid having differences in opinion)," he added. For her part, Mrs. Aquino's daughter Pinky said she felt the sincerity of the Marcoses and said the Aquino family was thankful they made the effort to go there. "We're thankful they made the effort to come... Sincere ang wishes nila, nakaka-touch (Their wishes were sincere, it was touching)," she said. "The least we can do is mag-thank you sa kanila (The least we can do is say thank you to them)," she added. - Kimberly Jane Tan, Aie Balagtas See, Johanna Camille Sisante and Amita Legaspi, GMANEWS.TV
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