Vindication

Sixty percent of voters want Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr. to succeed as president.

Many among the remaining 40 percent are waiting for the chance to tell the 60 percent, “We told you so.”

Yesterday, Bongbong Marcos reached out to the 40 percent even as he thanked the 31 million who voted for him, hammering on his campaign theme of “unity, unity, unity.”

It was better by a mile than the previous presidential mantra of kill, kill, kill.

President Marcos pushed mostly the right buttons in his inaugural speech, delivered with refreshing flair. He gave some assessment of his predecessor’s tenure (good infrastructure programs, but “shortcomings” in the COVID response) as he promised to “build back better” in post-pandemic recovery.

The new chief executive warned of rough months ahead, but urged Filipinos not to be afraid, reassuring the nation, “I’m ready for the task… you will not be disappointed.”

And he will get it done, he said, with or without the wide cooperation that’s needed, although he has not given up hope for reconciliation: “We will go farther together than against each other… we are here to repair a house divided. To make it whole and to stand strong again…”

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In keeping with his campaign tack, Marcos did not dwell on the sins imputed on his forebears: “I am here not to talk about the past, but about our future.” But he did give fulsome praise to his father (a “giant”).

And he skirted the biggest issues of his parents’ authoritarian past: human rights and large-scale corruption. It would have been awkward, given the presence of his mommie dearest, out on bail following her conviction for seven counts of corruption.

Good governance – not mentioned in the inaugural speech – will be a weak spot of the new administration. Not just because of the family’s history, but also because of BBM’s choices for the chief of the Commission on Audit as well as the chief legal counsel, who is out on bail for plunder. Martial law architect Juan Ponce Enrile, durable at 98, could not remember laws he signed when he was Senate president, and this was during our TV interview back in 2019. Now he’s back on taxpayers’ payroll. Really, if you’re fit enough to serve in government, you should be fit enough to be held in jail without bail for a capital offense.

But what the hey, the real chief legal counsel of this president anyway will likely be his private lawyer (and Supreme Court eminence grise) Estelito Mendoza, plus BBM’s closest adviser, first lady Liza, who has reportedly disengaged from her law firm.

BBM at least is expected to be a dramatic improvement from his father (and Rodrigo Duterte) in the human rights department. There was no mention of the illegal drug scourge in the inaugural speech, and the appointment of Clarita Carlos as national security adviser has been seen as a positive sign by rights advocates.

At this point, many of the 40 percent are giving President Marcos the benefit of the doubt, allowing him the chance to slip into his new job free from carping and nitpicking. Especially with the new president proffering his hand to “all Filipinos” in this fresh chapter in our history.

Already, BBM is earning brownie points among certain segments of the 40 percent for his statesmanlike demeanor befitting a president, in contrast to his predecessor. Vice President Sara Duterte has shown the same demeanor.

The new head of the opposition, reelected Sen. Risa Hontiveros, says a new president deserves to be given a chance, and space to show what he can do.

The coming days will show the sincerity of BBM’s inaugural vow “to seek, not scorn dialogue, listen carefully to contrary views, be open to suggestions coming from hard thinking and unsparing judgment…”

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A large mandate also means large expectations. Those expectations can be easily dashed, considering that the new administration must deal with crisis on top of crisis in the most basic sectors: the economy, public health, food security, energy and transport.

On the other hand, the 60 percent support gives the new president enormous political capital to make the country swallow bitter pills to promote recovery from the multiple crises, and to implement long overdue meaningful reforms.

BBM promised a more detailed road map of his governance in his first State of the Nation Address later this month. But yesterday he gave glimpses of his policies in his priority sectors.

He indicated brakes on food importation, noting how the Ukraine conflict has highlighted the vulnerability of this policy, and a renewed focus on food sufficiency. As for the fuel crisis, he hinted at intensified tapping of the country’s oil and gas reserves, and emphasis on renewables such as wind power.

On education, he wants Filipinos to recover facility in English, and to reteach “the basics” such as the sciences. But no revisionism, as critics fear – “I am not talking about history,” he stressed.

Having been among the first COVID patients in the country (“it was not a walk in the park”), BBM vows to fix the “shortcomings in the COVID response” including providing better pay for nurses.

He was conciliatory, he was inspiring, and he did not overpromise with another “aspiration” similar to the P20 per kilo rice.

With his inaugural speech, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is off to a promising start.

It is said that success – massive success – is the best revenge. An exemplary presidency would be the best vindication of the Marcos name.