I write this at 9:00 AM
August 12th as we dock at
Iligan
Successful Proclamation-rally. Although it rained at about 11:00 PM and then at 1:00 AM when I spoke, the people stayed.
The Cotabato attack suspended. And I have asked peace negotiations to be started.
Have suffered from stomach upset (abdominal pains and diarrhea). And because of the rain which caught me in the middle of my speech, I have a slight cold and sore throat. Am weak from the diarrhea.
Official Gazette for August 11, 1971: President Marcos arrived in Tagbilaran City at 9:30 a.m. for the proclamation rally in the evening of the Nacionalista Party. He was joined by the First Lady, Imelda R. Marcos, who flew from Manila. On hand to welcome the President at the wharf were Gov. Lino Chato, Reps. Pablo Malasarte and Teodoro Galagar, City Mayor Venancio Inting and other East Visayan leaders who had converged in the city.
After full military honors at the wharf, the President and his party proceeded to the St. Joseph Cathedral for Te Deum. Then he held a conference with local officials who reported on the progress of improvement projects and advised him of the further needs of their constituents. The conference was held after the luncheon tendered by national, provincial and municipal officials at the Bohol Cultural Center.
The President urged the local officials to take the initiative in providing the necessary leadership in the implementation of the food production program of the administration. In a talk with newsmen later in the afternoon, the President announced he had ordered a ceasefire in Cotabato to last until all efforts to find a peaceful solution are exhausted. He said his order covers the area around Buldon, adding however that government troops have orders to secure their positions,
At the rally in the evening, the President issued a challenge to the Liberals on four points, based on the issues of graft and corruption, peace and order and communism, as he drew the battlelines for the election campaign. The President challenged the Liberals to:
1) Present a concrete, coherent and harmonious platform of government to electorate; 2) Authorize him to declassify intelligence and police records regarding politicians and candidates linked to subversive elements; 3) Agree to the opening to the public by the Bureau of Internal Revenue of all documents pertaining to the payment of income taxes, inheritance and investments of all candidates and political leaders, including himself; 4) Authorize all banks to disclose all accounts kept by candidates running for office.
The President said the NP stands squarely on the issue of nationalism, the reorganization of government to remove the corrupting influence of the rich, and the restructuring of society for public welfare. The President said the people must choose between control of private ownership as advocated by the Nacionalista Party and outright abolition of private ownership as advocated by the communists.