Quizzed on Picasso in Imelda's home, Marcos spox dares Bautista to fly home instead
MANILA, Philippines (Updated 4:50 p.m.) — The team of Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. — presumptive president-elect — on Friday chose to go on the offensive instead of explaining sightings of a missing Picasso painting at the house of clan matriarch Imelda Marcos.
In a tweet, former Presidential Commission on Good Government chair Andres Bautista tagged the current commission to "seize" the Picasso painting spotted in a TV Patrol video.
When asked by reporters whether the painting is the original Femme Couche VI (Reclining Woman VI) or an imitation, Rodriguez instead turned his ire on Bautista.
He said the Marcos camp will "not follow the narrative and the allegation of somebody who is thousands of miles away from his motherland."
Bautista resigned as Commission on Elections chair in 2017 after the House of Representatives impeached him over allegations of unexplained wealth made by his estranged wife. He has remained in the US since November of that year.
"I invite you Chairman Andy Bautista to come home if you're confident enough, make your allegations here in person so that to be fair to the Filipino people, we can also hold you accountable for the many misdeeds and the allegations as to the conduct of the 2016 elections," he continued.
Bautista appeared in an interview with “The Kingmaker” Director Lauren Greenfield. He said then that he was in Oklahoma.
The Marcos team has been insisting that there was cheating in the 2016 elections when Vice President Leni Robredo was elected. Marcos even challenged the results before the Presidential Electoral Tribunal, which upheld Robredo's win.
Raid
In 2014, Bautista as PCGG chair tapped the National Bureau of Investigation to raid the Marcos family museum in Ilocos Norte to search for paintings that the anti-graft Sandiganbayan had ordered seized.
Among the subjects of the seizure order is the Femme Couche VI (Reclining Woman VI) by Pablo Picasso, which was supposed to be at the museum. The painting was seized in a different raid in San Juan home.
Custody of the seized paintings was later transferred to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, but in a manifestation on October 23, 2014, the central bank sought the transfer of the 15 paintings. The BSP said then that "it does not vouch for the authenticity and genuineness of the 15 paintings or the other paintings."
In a Rappler report quoting Bautista, the former PCGG chair said it meant that the BSP is saying "the paintings are not real at baka sila ang sumabit (and they might get in trouble for it)."
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