Marcos Jr. vows to strengthen PCGG if he's elected president

If elected president, former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. will not abolish the agency tasked to recover his family’s supposed ill-gotten wealth.

Interviewed on dzBB’s "Ikaw Na Ba? The Presidential Interviews" on Saturday,  Marcos Jr. said the role of the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) in anti-corruption will be strengthened instead.

“Siguro, ang anti-corruption mas patibayin pa natin ang PCGG” (I think in terms of anti-corruption measure, we need to strengthen the PCGG)," he said.

Former President Corazon Aquino, through Executive Order No. 1, series of 1986, created the PCGG with its primary task of recovering the alleged ill-gotten wealth accumulated by former President Ferdinand Marcos, his immediate family, relatives, subordinates, and close associates.

Over the years, the agency has recovered more than P170 billion worth of the alleged Marcos ill-gotten wealth, and it is still running after P125 billion more in assets.

“Kailangan natin pag-aralan kung ano ang magiging role nila sa anti-corruption drive” (We need to study what will be PCGG's role in the anti-corruption drive of the government), Marcos Jr. said.

SALN

Marcos Jr. reiterated that he is willing to release his statements of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN) if elected president.

“If you ask me, ako willing ako ilalabas ko kaagad ‘yung SALN ko,” he said.

However, SALN's release should be voluntary, or if cases are filed in courts, he added, noting that the SALN can be used as a political tool, citing what happened to late former Chief Justice Renato Corona.

On May 29, 2012, the Senate impeachment court, voting 20-3, found Corona guilty of violating Article II of the Articles of Impeachment for his failure to disclose certain assets in his SALN.

Marcos was one of the three senators then who voted against Corona's conviction. The other two were senators Joker Arroyo and Miriam Defensor Santiago.

“Ayaw kong maulit ‘yon sa ibang tao for whatever reason, for political reasons (I don't like that Corona's misfortune would befall other people)," he said.

Political dynasties

Pressed on his stand on political dynasties, Marcos Jr. said “election is the best form of the anti-dynasty process.”

“Ang problema kasi, ang nakikita ko sa political dynasty, paano mo ngayon sasabihin na ang isang tao ay hindi maaring tumakbo dahil sa pangalan niya? Binawasan mo ang pagpipilian ng tao,” he said.

(The problem with outlawing political dynasty is like saying that a person is barred from running for public office because of his name, thereby limiting voters' choice.)  

“Kung ayaw ng tao, matatanggal naman ang political dynasty kahit matagal na sila diyan,” he added.

(If the voters want to do away with political dynasty, it will be gone regardless of how long a political family has been lording over them.) 

Marcos was also asked if he felt alluded to President Rodrigo Duterte's claim that a presidential aspirant lacks competence and is a cocaine user.

In response, Marcos said, "Hindi. Madaling patunayan na hindi ako ang tinutukoy ni PRRD."

(Not at all. It's easy to prove that I'm not the person President Duterte was referring to.) 

Last November, Marcos Jr. took a cocaine test and submitted the negative result to law enforcement agencies. —LBG/KG/VBL, GMA News