PCGG, DOF set to auction off Marcos jewelry

MANILA, Philippines - The Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) will meet with the Department of Finance and its Bureau of Customs (BOC) next week to coordinate efforts for the possible auction of jewelry confiscated from former First Lady Imelda Romualdez-Marcos.

Lawyer Ricardo Abcede, PCGG commissioner for asset management, said with the BOC having custody of the jewelry, especially of the valuable Roumeliotes collection, the bureau and its head agency will have to be consulted on efforts to dispose of the gems. There will also be representatives from the Office of the Solicitor General and the Department of Justice at the meeting, he said.

“We have to decide on certain things,” Abcede said. “Will Customs sell the Roumeliotes collection on their own or will we be involved? Because you know what, the Roumeliotes collection is fabulous. In fact auction houses are more interested in them than the other two collections,” Abcede said at a press briefing yesterday.

He said he is determined to sell the collection, valued at P15 billion in 1996,  and turn the money over to the Bureau of Treasury to support the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program(CARP).

The Imelda Marcos jewels is made up of three collections – the Malacanang, the Hawaii, and the Roumeliotes. The names are based on where they were confiscated.