ILOCOS Norte Governor Imee Marcos on Tuesday, August 21 told the public to “move on” amid the 35th anniversary of the assassination of Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr., one of the staunchest critics of her father, former President Ferdinand Marcos.
The governor said that the atrocities during Marcos’ regime should not be talked about by people “at [her] age” anymore.
“The millennials have moved on, and I think people at my age should also move on as well,” she said in a press conference during the League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP) Visayan Island Cluster at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Cebu City, as reported by the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
She also denied that she was “being an apologist” as she recalibrated the discourse into glorifying the accomplishments of her father.
“I’m not an apologist to my dad, and I think his work and his projects will have to speak for themselves,” she stated.
She said that August 21 for her family is the birthday of her sister-in-law and Bongbong Marcos’ wife, Liza Araneta-Marcos. She subtly refused to recognize August 21 as a day to remember the late Senator Ninoy Aquino.
In the same report, the governor also said that the issues and controversies regarding corruption, human rights violation and ill-gotten wealth against her family are now less significant.
“The conflict between the Marcoses and Aquinos happened a long time ago. We don’t need to keep hating people for a very long time,” she added.
Urging the public to let go of the past, Marcos added, “It’s not our way. We just need to go forward.”
Bam Aquino demands “closure” from Marcos family
Senator Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino responded to Marcos’ remark, stating that closure is necessary in order to move on.
“Mahirap maka get over ‘pag walang closure, lalo na ‘pag pinamumukha sa publiko na walang kasalanan ang salarin (It is hard to get over something when there is no closure, especially when they are telling the public that the culprit is blameless),” he said in a statement.
The opposition senator also criticized the governor for giving such a statement after all the country has been through during the Marcos administration.
“Sinaktan ka na’t ninakawan, sasabihan ka pang mag-move on (They hurt you and stole from you, then they tell you to move on),” the senator said.
The nephew of Ninoy Aquino also emphasized the offenses that the late Marcos patriarch had committed.
“Klaro naman sa kasaysayan kung sino ang nagnakaw, nag-torture at pumatay (History clearly shows who stole, tortured, and killed),” he said.
He also expressed sympathy for the martial law victims as he noted that their families would have the hardest struggle in getting over one of the country’s darkest times.
“Napakadaling sabihing mag move-on na lang, pero sa mga nasawi, napakahirap nito (It is easy to say just move on, but for the casualties, it is difficult),” Aquino stated.
