MALACAÑANG on Monday denied it had reached an agreement on the future of the disputed ill-gotten wealth accumulated during the 20-year rule of President Ferdinand Marcos, in exchange for dropping all cases against his family.
In a statement sent to reporters, Duterte’s chief legal counsel Salvador Panelo nevertheless confirmed his office received a draft compromise deal with the Marcoses from Oliver Lozano, who serves as lawyer for the late strongman’s family.
“The document was sent to the office by Atty. Oliver Lozano,” Panelo said.
“Our office as a matter of courtesy and policy acknowledges receipt of any letter coming from any citizen.”
But he denied he had taken action to proposals “to study the Compromise Agreement with the Marcos Family.”
Lozano, in a June 10, 2017 letter sent to President Rodrigo Duterte but coursed through Panelo, had proposed the creation of a legal team to discuss the return of the Marcos wealth.
Panelo did acknowledge receiving Lozano’s proposal in a July 31 letter—but only vowed to “further study” the suggestions made.
Duterte first made the disclosure about the supposed willingness of the Marcoses to return some of their wealth, including a few “gold bars” last Aug. 29″•to help the Duterte administration fund its priority programs.
Duterte said Ilocos Norte Governor Imee Marcos told him the former president took the wealth including gold bars to “protect the economy.” He said he accepted this explanation.
At that time, Duterte said he was considering a former chief justice and two others to take charge of negotiations with the Marcoses and “must not be associated with any partisan group.”
In a following Sept. 19 letter, Lozano proposed three ‘alternatives’ to the Marcos question:
First, a compromise without Congressional imprimatur or approval, on the basis of non-impairment of the contract clause of the Constitution;
Second, a compromise with optional Congressional imprimatur on the basis of inter-office comity; or
Third, an acceptance of donation from the Marcos family based on an April 9, 1973 letter “bequeathing his earthly goods to the Marcos foundation for the benefit of the people.”
Lozano’s compromise agreement, however, only covers a part of the wealth that was sequestered by the government, but “not judicially decided as ill-gotten” and the lifting of all Executive Orders on the sequestration of Marcos ill-gotten wealth.
The move, however, is in exchange for dropping all cases against the late strongman’s family cases pending before courts.
Using the wealth, the letter claimed, will give “unifying Social Justice for All through massive economic development and world-class rehabilitation as well as enable the government to settle the country’s foreign and local debts.”
Members of the Marcos family, including Ilocos Norte Rep. Imelda Marcos, Gov. Imee and former Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr., were told about the terms of the compromise agreement, including Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre, House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez and Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III.
In a statement, Palace spokesman Harry Roque said they would let Congress decide on the supposed House bill granting immunity on the Marcoses and allowing compromise on their sequestered assets.
“The Executive, as we all know, recognizes the separation of powers and independence of Congress. We leave the matter to the House of Representatives to discuss and deliberate,” he said.
The late President Marcos and his wife Imelda were accused of plundering about $10 billion from state coffers in 20 years in power.
A bloodless “People Power” uprising in 1986 chased the family into US exile.
No member of the Marcos family went to prison despite the government’s recovery of some of its fortune through litigation and out-of-court settlements and many of the case against Imelda had been dropped.
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LOOKING FOR GOOD LIFE. An unidentified couple walk between racks of merchandise Monday wearing their 2018 shirts Mr. Good and Mrs. Life in Manila’s Carriedo Street—their tee shirts shouting out their message for the new year. Ey Acasio