NINOY AQUINO's memorable speech (3/9) in Los Angeles (2-15-1981)
Summary
TLDRThe transcript recounts the political maneuvers of Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, detailing his attempts to extend his term beyond the constitutional limit of eight years. It describes how Marcos called a Constitutional Convention in 1970 to change the government from a presidential to a parliamentary system, allowing him to become Prime Minister. The plan was thwarted by an expose of vote-buying, leading to the 'Rama Resolution' which barred incumbent presidents from seeking re-election. Marcos then declared martial law in 1972, arresting opposition leaders and implementing a new constitution without a public vote. The Supreme Court later questioned its validity but upheld it. Marcos continued to consolidate power, amending the constitution to make himself president for life and seeking public mandate for his rule.
Takeaways
- 📜 The Philippines has a constitutional term limit of eight years for any president, a rule that predates the United States' similar restriction.
- 🏛 In 1972, President Marcos was nearing the end of his term and sought to change the constitution to extend his presidency.
- 🗳️ The Constitutional Convention was called in 1970, leading to a shift in the government structure from a presidential to a parliamentary system, which Marcos hoped would allow him to stay in power.
- 💡 Eduardo Cojuangco exposed corruption within the Constitutional Convention, revealing vote-buying to support a parliamentary system that would benefit Marcos.
- 🚨 The expose led to public shock and subsequent actions by the National Bureau of Investigation, which attempted to discredit Cojuangco by finding money in his home.
- 📜 Napoleon Rama introduced a resolution that no incumbent president or spouse could seek office, effectively blocking Marcos from running again.
- 🛑 Marcos declared martial law on September 23, suspending civil liberties and arresting opposition leaders, including those from the Senate and Constitutional Convention.
- 📊 The new constitution was signed under duress, without a public referendum, leading to legal challenges and a Supreme Court decision that it was not validly ratified.
- 🏛️ Marcos continued to consolidate power, amending the constitution to allow himself to dissolve parliament and legislate independently, effectively creating a dual legislative system.
- 🎭 Despite lifting martial law, Marcos sought to change the constitution again to gain a direct mandate from the people for an eight-year term, which was not provided for in the constitution.
- 🌍 Marcos proposed a new governmental model, shifting from a British parliamentary system to a French model with a powerful president and an appointed prime minister.
Q & A
What is the significance of the eight-year term limit for the presidency in the Philippines as mentioned in the script?
-The eight-year term limit is significant because it is a constitutional law in the Philippines that prevents any president from staying in office for more than two consecutive terms, ensuring a democratic rotation of power and preventing the concentration of authority.
Why did President Marcos call for a Constitutional Convention in 1970?
-President Marcos called for a Constitutional Convention in 1970 to change the form of government from a presidential system to a parliamentary system, which would allow him to bypass the term limit and potentially stay in power indefinitely as Prime Minister.
What was the shocking revelation made by Eduardo Kino on January 2, 1972?
-Eduardo Kino, a retired ambassador, revealed that Marcos was bribing members of the Constitutional Convention with envelopes of money to vote for a parliamentary form of government, which would enable him to extend his term beyond the constitutional limit.
What was the outcome of the exposure of Marcos' bribery by Eduardo Kino?
-The exposure shocked the nation, and in response, a resolution was filed by Napoleon Ram that no incumbent president or their spouse could seek office, effectively preventing Marcos from running for a third term.
Why did Marcos declare martial law on September 23, 1972?
-Marcos declared martial law to consolidate power and suppress opposition after his plan to change the constitution and extend his term was thwarted by the resolution passed in the Constitutional Convention.
What was the Habana case, and what did the Supreme Court decide regarding the new constitution?
-The Habana case was a legal challenge brought before the Supreme Court by a gentleman named Habana, questioning the legality of the new constitution. The Supreme Court ruled that the constitution was not validly ratified according to the 1935 Constitution or even the new constitution's own provisions, but it added that there was nothing to stop its implementation.
What changes did Marcos make to the 1973 Constitution in 1976?
-In 1976, Marcos amended the 1973 Constitution to give himself more power, allowing him to dissolve parliament, legislate alongside it, and remain as president for life, effectively making him an all-powerful leader.
What was the proposed change to the form of government under Marcos' new plan after lifting martial law?
-After lifting martial law, Marcos proposed a change to a French model of government, where he would be an all-powerful president with a prime minister appointed by him, moving away from the British parliamentary system.
Why did Marcos want to amend the Constitution to increase the age requirement for the presidency?
-Marcos wanted to increase the age requirement for the presidency to 50 years old to prevent his potential opponents, including those who were previously eligible at 40, from running against him.
What was the significance of the statement 'I will take anybody including Aino' in the script?
-The statement 'I will take anybody including Aino' was a challenge by Marcos, indicating his confidence in facing any opposition, even from Aino, a known critic, and the mention of 'underage' was a reference to the increased age requirement for presidential candidates.
Outlines
🏛️ Constitutional Crisis and Martial Law in the Philippines
The first paragraph discusses the political turmoil in the Philippines during the presidency of Ferdinand Marcos. It highlights the constitutional limitation of an eight-year term for a president, which Marcos sought to extend by changing the form of government from a presidential system to a parliamentary one. The exposure of vote-buying to achieve this change shocked the nation. Despite the Supreme Court's ruling that the new constitution was not validly ratified, Marcos continued to consolidate power, eventually declaring martial law on September 23, 1972, which led to the arrest of opposition leaders and the suspension of democracy.
🗳️ Marcos' Political Maneuverings and Constitutional Amendments
The second paragraph delves into the further political manipulations by Marcos after declaring martial law. It describes how Marcos unilaterally amended the constitution to create a parliamentary form of government without a functioning parliament, effectively making himself both the Prime Minister and the President with life tenure. The narrative also touches on the Supreme Court's validation of the new constitution despite its questionable ratification process and Marcos' subsequent attempts to seek a mandate from the people for an additional eight years, all while amending the constitution to suit his needs.
📜 Constitutional Amendments and the Quest for Unrestricted Power
The third paragraph continues to detail Marcos' relentless pursuit of power through constitutional amendments. It reveals his plan to change the form of government again, this time adopting a French model where he would appoint the Prime Minister and hold all executive power. The paragraph also mentions the raising of the age requirement for presidency from 40 to 50 years old, presumably to prevent potential rivals from running against Marcos, and his willingness to amend the constitution further to accommodate any challenge.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Constitutional Convention
💡Parliamentary System
💡Martial Law
💡Election
💡Presidential System
💡Constitutional Amendment
💡Term Extension
💡Prime Minister
💡
💡Supreme Court
💡Democracy
💡Political Opposition
💡Constitutional Crisis
Highlights
Philippines law prohibits a president from serving more than eight consecutive years.
In 1972, Mr. Marcos was nearing the end of his term and sought to change the Constitution to extend his presidency.
Constitutional Convention was called in 1970 to potentially change the government system from presidential to parliamentary.
Eduardo Kino exposed alleged vote-buying by Marcos to support a parliamentary system.
Napoleon Ram filed a resolution preventing incumbent presidents from seeking office, effectively blocking Marcos.
Marcos declared martial law on September 23, citing the Constitution's provisions for cases of rebellion.
Democracy was effectively suspended with the declaration of martial law and the arrest of opposition leaders.
The new Constitution was signed under duress, without a public plebiscite as required by law.
Supreme Court ruled the new Constitution was not validly ratified but upheld it due to lack of legal remedy.
Marcos amended the Constitution to allow himself to dissolve Parliament while remaining in power.
Marcos sought public mandate for an eight-year term despite the absence of such a provision in the Constitution.
Constitutional amendments were proposed to change the form of government from British parliamentary to a French model.
Marcos suggested having a president with powers and a prime minister appointed by the president.
The speaker criticized the frequent changes in the form of government as an attempt to consolidate power.
Marcos indicated a willingness to amend the Constitution for political opponents if they returned to fight him.
The age requirement for the presidency was increased from 40 to 50, seemingly to exclude potential rivals.
The speaker expressed concern over the arbitrary changes to the Constitution and the undermining of democracy.
Transcripts
you very well know that we have a law in
the Philippines that says no president
may stay in the presidency for more than
eight consecutive
years that is a law that is a law even
ahead of the United States law no
president may stay for more than 8 years
in 1972 Mr Marcos was already 7 years in
office he had one year to go he was
going with the idea of building Elda but
Elda showed very poor in the polls so
what did Mr Marcos
do change the Constitution so he called
the Constitutional Convention in
1970 we were a few a handful of the
Senate who denounced this and I told the
Senate we should not allow an open
Constitutional Convention because it's
very dangerous even America I said has
never called the Constitutional
Convention since
1776 they have amended their
constitution peace meal but they never
opened it but we lost and a
constitutional convention was called
people were
elected and very quietly Mr Marcos
started maneuvering to change our form
of government from an American type
presidential system to a British type
parliamentary so that he can be elected
as a deputy from Mil Loos become Prime
Minister and then stay on forever that
was the
plan however on January 2
1972 most of you are already here in
America some of you you maybe were too
young to remember but on January 1972
almost 9 years ago today an old man a
retired ambassador from late his name is
Eduardo Kino who is now in San Francisco
stood up on the floor of the
constitution convention and shocked the
entire Filipino people with the expose
that Malak kanyang has been giving
envelopes to members of the
Constitutional Convention buying their
votes so that they will vote for a
parliamentary form of government to
allow Mr Marcos to extend his term
beyond the 8
years the nation was shocked immediately
the NBI swooped down into the house of
Kino and then they opened up an aparador
and they said 500,000 pesos in cash were
found in the aparador of quo the
implication was the opposition gave him
500,000 to make his expose but if there
were
500,000 to cut a long story short a
delegate from CBU his name is Napoleon
Ram stood up on the convention floor and
said let us not discuss who received or
who did not receive I am now filing a
resolution that will
provide if we approve this
Constitutional Convention this cons
Amendment this new constitution no
incumbent president or his
spouse May seek
office
maros because they will be accused if
they voted no that they received the
envelope everybody voted yes Mr
Marcos this Rama resolution was
overwhelmingly passed Mr Marcos Anda
Marcos are out of the running so what
will Mr Marcos
do35
constition the only reason left or the
only excuse and the only option left for
Mr Marcos is to declare martial law and
so what happened the students
demonstrated in the
streets more demonstra
Street finally bombings started in
Manila and did you know my friends the
Manila police captured one of the
bombers and one of these bombers in
Manila was identified as a surgent of
the firearms and explosive section of
the Philippine constabulary the
following day this man was snatched from
the Manila police and we never heard
from him
again and then on September
23
midnight Mr Marcos went on television
and said I Ferdinand Marcos acting as
commander-in-chief of the Armed Force of
the Philippines by virtue of the
provision of the Constitution which
states in case of invasion Insurrection
Rebellion or imminent danger thereof I
may declare martial law or suspend the
of Faus Corpus therefore I now declare
martial law and shall administer this
country
alone on that day democracy
died and so Mr Marcos arrested together
with us in the Senate most of the
leaders of the constitution convention
all of those opposing him went to jail
with us and then when they went to jail
with us all the other members of the con
convention were hered and they were
given a Constitution Day by Mr Marcos
and they were told to sign and everybody
signed except those in jail with
us and once this new Constitution was
signed by them he released the
delegates and then on January 17 1973 Mr
Marcos went on television and
said ladies and gentlemen and my
countrymen there is now a new
constitution but how can we have a new
constitution there was no pleite you
know that the law says before you can
have a new constitution you must present
it to the Filipino people and the
Filipino people must in a secret ballot
right yes or no what happened
C
assil and then in the middle of this
meeting my
friends this is not
fiction because in the now famous Habana
case Habana versus executive secretary a
gentlement by The Havana went to the
Supreme Court and
questioned the illegality of this
Constitution and what did the Supreme
Court say out of 10 justices six out of
10 said this constitution was not
validly
ratified according to the 1935
Constitution and according even to the
new constitution it was not validly
ratified but then the Supreme Court
added but there is nothing to stop
it so we had a
constitution and so my friends we
started with an American type
Constitution we moved to a British type
Constitution we had a parliamentary form
of government without a
parliament until 1978 we did that have a
parliament and yet we were supposed to
be a parliamentary form of
government and Mr maros said I declared
martial LA to save democracy but by
Saving democracy he killed
it and so my friend
it was not until 1978 that the batasan
was
convened now what do we
hear Mr Marcos once
again is up again to his new tricks he
said I lifted martial law but I think we
should now elect a president by direct
vote but there is no such thing under
the new constitution now the president
is purely
ceremonial purely ceremonial elected by
Parliament he's not elected by the
people the power of the government under
a parliamentary system rest on the Prime
Minister and the Prime Minister must be
elected by Parliament and this prime
minister may be removed from office if
there is a vote of no confidence that's
the British type so what did Mr Marcos
do in
1976 he amended the Constitution and
said I fent Marcos as Prime Minister
President May dissolve parliament but
Parliament cannot dissolve me
and then he said Parliament May
legislate but if I think they're not
doing their job I will also legislate so
now we have two parliaments Mr Marcos
and Parliament and it's costing us 300
million to have the tuta Parliament and
what's the use if Mr Marcos is doing all
the legislation why keep this 200 guys
so what do they do they change the name
of the street of the boria they they
change the name of a school but when it
comes to public decrease like public
order code 1737 only Mr Marcos signs
it and so we have a situation where we
have a man who can dissolve parliament
but Parliament cannot dissolve him and
under the amendment number six of the
1973 Constitution Mr Marcos is a
president for
life and now all of a sudden two weeks
ago I have lifted martial law but I now
want to go to the Filipino people and I
want their Mandate of 8 years I will
defend martial law anybody who oppos it
can oppose me I want to go to the people
and get their mandate but how can you
get a mandate there's no such thing in
the Constitution s Marcos let us amend
it so now we are going to amend again
the
Constitution and so we ask Mr Marcos but
what form of government will we
have I want a president with powers what
happened to the Parliamentary type
British forget it let us now go to
France let us have a French
model and so my friend
friends it is like the Odyssey of Jules
bur 80 Days around the world we started
with America we went to England now
we're going to
France under the new proposal of Mr
Marcos we will now have a president and
a prime minister but the Prime Minister
will be appointed by the
president and this president now will be
all powerful it will not be the American
type it will be the French type and I
suppose 2 years from now when he gets
tired of that he will go to the Russian
type what ever that
is and so he
announced I will take anybody including
aino and
so I was not inclined to oblige him but
then he
added
underage and so naturally I went to the
books I said how come I underage I
thought I was already 48 because the
rule before to become president of the
Philippines in 1935 all you had to do is
to be 40 years old
and so I looked at the
book they've increased the age to
50 of course Mr Marcos
said if he really wants to come home and
to fight me I will oblige him I will
also have the Constitution amended for
him
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