Marcoses offer to return wealth, gold bars – Rody

MANILA, Philippines - The Marcoses have agreed to return their vast unexplained wealth, including a “few gold bars,” to the government, President Duterte said yesterday.

Duterte said a spokesman for the Marcoses told him that the family was willing to “open everything” and to return wealth accumulated during the 20-year rule of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos. 

“I will not name the spokesman. They said they’ll open everything and probably return the ones that were discovered. They said, ‘You have a big deficit… Maybe this year, the projected deficit spending would be big. It might help. … it’s not that big… but we are ready to open and bring back… even a few gold bars,” the President said during the oath taking of new appointees at Malacañang.

Asked for comment last night, Ilocos Norte Gov. Imee Marcos, eldest daughter of the strongman, texted The STAR that their family would discuss the issue first: “Will meet family muna.”

Duterte said yesterday that the amount of gold bars “wasn’t that big. It’s not a Fort Knox, it’s just a few. But they said they would return it.”

Fort Knox is a vault that stores US gold reserves.

Citing the unnamed spokesman, Duterte said Marcos thought about regaining the presidency and decided to accumulate the wealth “to protect the economy.” 

“He thought of regaining Malacañang and that is why it came out this way. It seemed that he hid it,” the President said.  “I will accept the explanation, whether or not it is true… And they are ready to return (the wealth).”

Duterte could not say how much would be returned to the government. He said he would create a team that would negotiate with the political family to facilitate the turnover of the wealth.

He also revealed that back channel talks between the government and the Marcoses are ongoing. 

“(I’m) trying to look for a guy not identified with anybody to handle the negotiation if they want,” Duterte said. 

“I’m looking at a former chief justice. I’ll leave the talking to them, then another (certified public accountant) and maybe a representative of all that is accepted also by all,” he added. 

Marcos had been accused of amassing billions in ill-gotten wealth during his presidency, which was ended by the historic 1986 EDSA People Power revolution.   

In the same year, Marcos’ successor, Corazon Aquino, formed the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) to recover the ill-gotten wealth of the Marcoses and their cronies. The commission was able to recover P170.4 billion of ill-gotten wealth as of last year.

Duterte said he would have wanted to abolish the PCGG but decided not to do so as it would create speculations.  

“PCGG is focused on the Marcos wealth. I wanted to abolish it but people might say I abolished it as it was on the verge of discovering something,” the President said. Duterte’s father Vicente served as a cabinet member of Marcos. Ilocos Norte Gov. Imee Marcos, daughter of the late strongman, backed Duterte’s presidential bid.

Duterte also allowed a hero’s burial for Marcos last November despite strong opposition from martial law victims and human rights advocates. 

The Chief Executive said he would just create a new office that would deal with graft and corruption in the government. 

“I (will) just name it good government but there is already an existing one. Maybe an anti-graft (agency) and I am looking for somebody to handle,” he said.  

“I’m really looking for somebody. I want to hire someone but I don’t think that person will accept the offer, a justice. One or two or three. And maybe a lady not identified with me nor identified with the other group,” he added. 

The Duterte administration floated the idea of abolishing the PCGG last month.  

Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno has said the PCGG may be scrapped to streamline the bureaucracy and to cut costs.  

Officials claimed that the proposal had nothing to do with Duterte’s political leanings. 

In 2001, then president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo formed the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission to probe complaints against government officials. The office was abolished by former president Benigno Aquino III in 2010. – With AFP