Malacañang Palace
12:00 PM
[p.47] I have just talked to [Jose] Joe Maristela who is our informer in the [Eleuterio] Adevoso group planning a coup d’etat. He feels the plan, though fantastic, is serious. Their next meeting is at his house in Antipolo next Wednesday. And the political group backing them up may attend. He feels they have not yet talked or gotten the support of Gens. [Rafael] Ileto and [Felizardo] Tanabe but that Adevoso and Sanchez said “Kasama natin yan.”
He attends a breakfast with Gen. [Manuel] Yan at 7:30 AM. A Col. Navarro now in Vietnam who may be in the CIA and ex-Col. Francisco Jimenez, as well as Marcelo Castillo (Annapolis 1939) are with them.
He [Maristela] and Col. [Fabian] Ver have already planned the planting of some more officers and men in the Adevoso group.
Adevoso says that my erstwhile opponent and he went to see [Henry] Byroade after the elections. While Byroade was apparently non-committed he allowed Adevoso to talk to his staff who (Adevoso says) thought of the idea of a coup d’etat, Patterson DOD attaché suggesting that in order to cut off Malacañang from reinforcements, the three bridges, Quezon bridge, Nagtahan bridge and Ayala bridge be blown up.
Col. Francisco Jimenez’ car was in Commodore [Ramon] Alcaraz residence last Saturday in their last meeting, although he (Jimenez) was not there. Jimenez is one of the Valeriano boys. This is a new wrinkle.
[p.48] Joe and Col. Ver suggested that we meet force with force and that the conspirators be eliminated quietly before they prejudice our country and democratic institutions. I told them that instead we should obtain evidence to prosecute them in court.
For otherwise we may unleash a wave of violence we may not be able to control and do greater damage to our freedoms.
51 Official Gazette for January 23, 1970: President Marcos worked mostly on his State of the Nation speech. He also considered urgent state business brought to his attention, signed papers and studied reports. But for the most part, he was engaged by the speech he is set to deliver Monday, at the joint session of the two houses of Congress, which marks the opening of the regular session of the legislature. The President remained at his desk through the evening.
52 Col. Napoleon Diestro Valeriano, aide de camp to Ramon Magsaysay, decorated by the Philippines and the US for counter-insurgency efforts died in the U.S. 1975.