Aquino’s legacy clouded by Duterte win, support for a Marcos
The rise of Duterte is a reality check on the extent of public dissatisfaction and perceived failures during Aquino’s watch while a win for Marcos would mean a repudiation of the 1986 ‘people power’ revolution
Philippine leader Benigno Aquino III had called this week’s election a referendum on his “straight path” style of reformist governance, but his candidate lost by millions of votes to a shoot-from-the-lip mayor.
And if the vice-presidency goes to a son of dictator Ferdinand Marcos, who was ousted 30 years ago by a revolt led by Aquino’s mother, that will cloud the political legacy of a family that has been regarded as a bulwark against authoritarianism.
An unofficial tally of Monday’s votes shows Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jnr closely trailing Aquino-backed Representative Leni Robredo in a cliffhanger vice-presidential race.
Aquino campaigned against tough-talking Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, who has won the presidency by a wide margin based on the unofficial count, and Bongbong Marcos, warning both could be looming dictators. He said they could set back the country’s democracy and economic momentum achieved in his six-year term, which ends in June.
Aquino, who was constitutionally barred from seeking a second term, remains popular – indeed, his approval ratings are among the highest for a departing Philippine president in the post-Marcos dictatorship era. But the rise of Duterte, whose tough talk has reinforced perceptions that he could become a strongman, is a reality check on the extent of public dissatisfaction and perceived failures during the reformist Aquino’s watch.
This is not about the Aquinos versus the Marcoses. It is clear to me that this is about right versus wrong
The disaffection may have been felt mostly by the growing middle class, said Julio Teehankee, dean of a college dealing with political science and international relations at Manila’s De La Salle University.