As Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. stepped into office at noon yesterday as the 17th president of the Republic of the Philippines, he brought with him an entirely new chapter of still unwritten history. This is a new beginning in the strictest sense of the word, not only for himself and his family, for the politics in this country, but for every Filipino now living in the moment, and for generations to come.
Marcos carries with him an overwhelming mandate of more than 31 million, the highest ever in any Philippine election. That he is a Marcos makes the achievement even more earth-shaking. Clearly there is a message in that kind of mandate that, as it reverberated through all corners of the globe, sent every world leader of note into a congratulatory and supportive move.
From friends real or imagined to potential enemies --they all came or sent in their niceties. No cold shouldering or staring blankly into space, which was a real possibility for a Marcos had he won by no more than the skin of his teeth. But the mandate was a tidal wave of support from the Filipino people. In the community of nations, it is almost criminal not to acknowledge the collective voice of a people.
Even the Pope, who held out for as long as he can, given the acrimonious contempt with which some of his bishops, priests, and nuns regarded Marcos, did not want to be seen as apathetic to the man overwhelmingly voted into office by the third largest Catholic country in the world. So Pope Francis beat the clock by congratulating and vowing support for Marcos just days ago, the last world leader of significance to do so.
Marcos ran on a platform of unity, envisioning it as the only means of deliverance for a small country beset by big problems. He has assembled a power-packed team of the best and the brightest, including some identified with past political enemies. With such a huge mandate, global support that includes the Pope, and an A-Team for a Cabinet, one would think the only way Marcos can fail is if his government implodes.
That means any fatal wounds that might be sustained in the looming battles can only be self-inflicted. And that is most worrisome because from within is always the last place to look, especially by Marcos whose family has long endured a situation where almost everybody was the enemy. Now, almost everybody is on board, from Biden to Putin to Xi to the Pope. All in except from within.
A few days ago, RJ Nieto, famously known online as Thinking Pinoy and one of the few I truly admire in that media platform, was beside himself with indignation over a supposed appointment to a government position overseeing maritime ports in the country. An all-out Duterte and Marcos supporter, Nieto was livid over what he thought was an appointment cooked right under the nose of Marcos.
Without knowing the details of the subject of his harangue, I cannot but fully agree that such things can only sabotage the presidency of Marcos, especially that by such presidency, he and his family have been given what is perhaps his last and only chance at redemption. Fail now, fail in this presidency, and everything that has been said about them, true or not, will now seem true, whether true or not.
While Marcos must watch his enemies, he must watch his friends even closer. While he may want to set things aright, some in his inner circle may only want to set things right for their own selves. Marcos must remember, that while he owed a lot for his campaign, it is to the people who actually voted him into office, who gave him his last and only chance, to whom he owes not just the most, but his only real debt.