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Despite harsh prospects under the Marcos Jr. administration, activists say the fight is not over.
“Marcos, Jr.’s return to Malacanang does not extinguish the crimes and abuses of the Marcos dictatorship. No amount of repetitive playing of Bagong Lipunan will change this bloody record. These will remain historical facts."
“Marcos, Jr. tells us he shares the same dream as the ordinary Filipino but he omits mention of his privileged position."
Marcos Jr. has yet to complete his list of cabinet members but several of those identified have been found to be from the family’s bailiwick, the Ilocos region, or linked to his father's appointees.
Progressive party-list groups vow to be voices of dissent in a chamber that will most likely be a rubber stamp of the incoming administration.
While a 2013 Supreme Court decision ruled that the party-list system is no longer exclusive to marginalized and underrepresented sectors, many party-lists still run under a platform of representing various marginalized sectors.
Instead of providing genuine representation for marginalized sectors, the party-list system has become a tool for political clans to remain in power.
Presumptive president Ferdinand Marcos Jr. appoints red-tagger former Cavite Rep. Jesus Crispin "Boying" Remulla as the next Justice Secretary.
The group released its interim report on May 19 noting that this year’s elections were “marred by a higher level of failure of the electronic voting system than ever before, along with rampant vote-buying, disturbing levels of state and military orchestrated red-tagging of candidates and parties including numerous incidents of deadly violence.”
“We assert that a convict, liar, and unrepentant son of an ousted dictator like Marcos Jr. should have never been allowed to run for public office, let alone the highest position in the land. The Supreme Court must uphold truth, justice, and democracy, and heed our calls to disqualify Marcos Jr. now."
“We thus ask the High Court to reverse and set aside the questionable Comelec ruling and to cancel and declare void from the start the certificate of candidacy of Marcos Jr. and in the process, declare him to have never been a candidate in the 2022 national elections."
The Marcoses’ return realized by Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s apparent presidential win based on unofficial count is not the only political family dynasty comeback the Philippines witnessed in the 2022 elections. Political dynasties that have been involved in many irregularities have successfully reclaimed seats in the local and national offices.
As technical anomalies surfaced during the national elections, Filipino voters bore the brunt of the Commission on Election’s inefficiencies.
The group said many teachers who served as members of the electoral board had to stay in the precincts until the next day, May 10, which is more than 24 hours since they began their duty, due to severe delays in resolving issues regarding the vote counting machines.
First-time voters were dismayed to find lack of coordination, long queues, malfunctioning vote-counting machines (VCMs), and other irregularities.
Anti-election fraud group Kontra Daya reported systematic red-tagging against the opposition and progressive candidates on election day, May 9.
Election-related violence and anomalies in several parts of the Bangsamoro Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) have been reported by poll watchdogs and local media organizations.
“We are demanding Comelec to provide an explanation as to why thousands of VCMs passed final testing and sealing—and suddenly all broke down today."
Malfunctioning vote-counting machines, long queues, and delayed polls are among the common issues faced here in Metro Manila as Filipinos cast their votes.
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