Ferdinand

Marcos Sr.
I may have committed many sins
in my life, but stealing money
from the people from the
government is not one of them”

- PRES. FERDINAND MARCOS SR.

 Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr.
10th President of the Philippines (1965 – 1986)

Nationalist Party

Born: September 11, 1917 (Philippines) Died: September 28, 1989 (Aged 72) Honolulu, Hawaii

 was a Filipino politician, lawyer, dictator, and kleptocrat who was the 10th 

president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled under 
martial law from 1972 until 1981 and kept most of his martial law powers until he was 
deposed in 1986, branding his rule as "constitutional authoritarianism“ under his Kilusang
Bagong Lipunan (New Society Movement). One of the most controversial leaders of the 20th
century, Marcos's rule was infamous for its corruption, extravagance, and brutality.
8a. Japanese ODA Scandal
The Marcos Japanese ODA Scandal, referred to in Japan simply as
the Marukosu giwaku ( マ ル コ ス 疑 惑 ), or "Marcos scandal", refers to
incidents of alleged corruption linked to Japanese 
Official Development Assistance (ODA) to the Philippines during Philippine
president Ferdinand Marcos' administration.
The scandal so preoccupied the Japanese legislature in 1986 that the legislative
session of that year earned the nickname of the "Marcos Diet." The lessons
from the Marcos corruption scandals were among the reasons why Japan
created its 1992 ODA Charter.
Revelations
When the Marcoses were exiled to Hawaii in the United States in February
1986 after the People Power Revolution, the American authorities confiscated
papers that the Marcoses brought with them. The confiscated documents
revealed that since the 1970s, Marcos and his associates embezzled 10 to 15
percent of Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund loans through commissions
from about fifty Japanese contractors.
Background
When Ferdinand Marcos first became president in 1965, he appointed his 
Upsilon Sigma Phi fraternity brother and golfing buddy Roberto Benedicto as
the Philippines' ambassador to Japan. Benedicto's appointment as Japanese
ambassador allowed him to develop high-level contacts in Japan, and allowed
him to acquire over $550 million in World War II reparations, which he allegedly
used to forward his own private interests.[5][6]
Benedicto's ambassadorship also gave him insider knowledge regarding the
business interests of the Japanese, which allowed him to arrange lucrative joint-
venture operations between Japanese corporations and his own.
Background
In 1972, Ferdinand Marcos abolished the Philippine legislature under 
martial law, and took on its legislative powers as part of his authoritarian rule.
Benedicto and Marcos then ratified the Treaty of Amity, Commerce and
Navigation ten days prior to a visit of Japanese Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka,
giving Japan a “most-favored nation” status. Prior to this, the Philippine
legislature had refused to ratify the measure for 13 years after it was first
proposed. By 1975 three years later, Japan had displaced the United States as
the main source of investment in the country.
Aftermath
The Marcos ODA scandal and other incidents of corruption were issues that the
succeeding administrations of presidents Corazon Aquino and Fidel V. Ramos
 had to address. The Japanese government discreetly requested the Philippine
government to downplay the issue as it would affect the business sector and
bilateral relations.
The lessons from the Marcos scandals were among the reasons why Japan
created its 1992 ODA Charter.
8b. Mariano Nalundasan Murder
After the creation of the Commonwealth of the Philippines, the first elections for the
Philippine Assembly were called for on 17 September 1935. The post of Assemblyman for the
2nd District of Ilocos Norte was at stake. Incumbent Assemblyman Julio Nalundasan had
beaten Mariano Marcos in the previous elections. They resumed their political rivalry during
the 1935 elections. For the second time, Julio Nalundasan won over Mariano Marcos.

On the afternoon of 19 September 1935, numerous Nalundasan followers paraded through

the district in celebration of their victory. The parade carried a coffin marked “Mariano
Marcos” symbolic of his political demise. The Nalundasan followers passed and briefly
stopped in front of the house of the Marcoses in Batac. It was provocative and humiliating for
the Marcoses.
 The Crime and the Two
Investigations
Bad blood can turn into cold blood. On the night of September 20, Julio Nalundasan was shot and killed,
from a window in the rear of his house while he was brushing his teeth. The bullet went into his right side
injuring the internal vital organs which caused his instantaneous death.

Immediately, the Philippine Constabulary (today’s Philippine National Police) conducted an investigation.
A case was filed in the Court of First Instance of Ilocos Norte charging Nicasio Layaoen, a businessman of
Batac, Ilocos Norte, with murder.

A star witness, Gaspar Silvestre, identified Layaoen as the man who fired the fatal shot at Nalundasan.
Layaoen was seen with a revolver that night. The police found eighty-one rounds of ammunition of the .22
long Lubaloy Western rifle, the brand and class of bullet which killed Nalundasan, in a house immediately
adjoining Layaoen’s address. It was believed that the house was under the care and control of Layaoen’s
wife. The prosecution proposed the imposition of the extreme penalty of death upon Layaoen. However,
Layaoen was acquitted.
 The Crime and the Two
Investigations
But you know how a politically-related crime could be in this country. Another investigation and
detective work by the Division of Investigation of the Department of Justice (today’s National
Bureau of Investigation) went on.

On December 7, 1938, more than three years after the death of Nalundasan, Mariano Marcos, his
brother Pio Marcos, his son Ferdinand Marcos, and his brother-in-law Quirino Lizardo were
prosecuted for the crime of murder in the Court of First Instance of Ilocos Norte.

It was alleged that they conspired against the life of Julio Nalundasan. Ferdinand was selected as
the trigger man because of his sharpshooting skills. Also, if discovered and convicted, Ferdinand
would only be sent to Lolomboy reformatory school because of his age (he was 18 at the time of
the crime). Mariano Marcos would in the meantime be in Laoag, Ilocos Norte away from the crime
scene.
 The Crime and the Two
Investigations
About nine o’clock in the evening of 20 September 1935, Ferdinand Marcos, armed with an
automatic pistol, and Quirino Lizardo, armed with a revolver, left for Nalundasan’s yard. They
were accompanied by the star witness, Calixto Aguinaldo. Upon reaching the yard, they
posted themselves at a point where they could not be detected but where they could get a full
view of Nalundasan. Calixto Aguinaldo was asked to watch while his two companions,
Ferdinand and Lizardo, were to execute the act.

On 11 January 1940, the Court of First Instance of Laoag, Ilocos Norte handed down its
decision. Ferdinand E. Marcos and Quirino Lizardo were convicted of murder and sentenced
to imprisonment of 10 to 17 years. The sentence was handed down by Judge Roman Cruz,
Sr., an old political adversary of Mariano Marcos.
The Controversial Appeal
Marcos was allowed to finish his studies and take his bar examination while in prison. When
the 1939 Bar Examinations result came out, Marcos topped it with a record high score of
98.01%. It was the headline at the time.

With his law degree and new status as a lawyer, he filed an appeal to the Supreme Court.
Marcos wrote his own appeal brief, a total of 830 printed pages, and argued his own case
before the Supreme Court on 12 October 1940. He was 23 at that time.
The Controversial Appeal
Two weeks later, on 20 October 1940, Justice Jose P. Laurel overturned the conviction:

“The judgment of the lower court, herein appealed from, is accordingly reversed, and the
defendant-appellants Ferdinand E. Marcos and Quirino Lizardo acquitted of the charge of
murder and forthwith liberated from imprisonment and discharged from the custody of the
law.”

Justice Jose P. Laurel, 20 October 1940