June 12, 1972

Monday

Imelda and I have been reminiscing in bed—the long tortuous road from Congress to the Presidency; the sacrifices, her tears, pain and hard work that went into our struggle for power.

She put purpose into my life—the life of a spoiled bachelor congressman who was also a successful trial lawyer and a hero of the last war who tended to be too carefree and frivolous.

In eleven years I jumped from congressman to president.

And I have just written the children through Rosy Lawrence. Bongbong is our principal worry. He is too carefree and lazy.

So I wrote him the fatal secret of the Marcos men—“they are brilliant but lazy.” And they tend to be so unless they buckle down to a dogged unrelenting resolve to fight off sloth or a traumatic experience turns them into bitterness that congeals into a determined resolve to achieve and be victorious.

I wrote him about me—how the political and financial reverses of father had made me bitter. It had come to a point where I had to get a scholarship to continue my studies. So I became a scholar—a senior scholar in law.

I discovered that I had a brain and a photographic memory. And I made the best of it.

I must write him about the Nalundasan case and how I vowed to top the bar after graduating Cum Laude.

For the boy must get character. I have told him that since we have enemies, he will have to fight the battles I fought in the past against myself and against circumstance. Although I told him that perhaps circumstances had been kinder to me because it had given me the motivation to work hard.

I must tell him of his ancestors, his great grandfather of the revolution, the direct line of brilliant and brave men whose saving grace was the character of their women—how many failed like Antonio Marcos who had exceeded the record of excellence in scholarship of Rizal—but had not done much of his life because of wine, woman and song. The boy must realize his weakness—the carefree wayward ways that may have been bred in him.

I am recovering from my illness. I should be able to walk around tomorrow.

The Vice President took my place in the ceremonies today.

12:30 PM June 13, 1972[1]

Tuesday

The Senate has rejected (at 10:30 PM) the Roxas appeal to the Senate of the Committee on Judiciary decision to suspend the investigation of the [Eduardo] Quintero raid by a 10-10 vote with Sen. Magnolia Antonio abstaining, [Alejandro] Almendras voting against (after I had talked to them, Magnolia with a little heat when she kept referring to her conscience and I ended by saying that I merely wanted her to know that I was asking a favor and [Genaro] Magsaysay being called to vote in favor at 6:30 PM violating his promise to be absent.

This strengthens our position to let the judiciary decide the issue of the legality of the issuance of the search warrant and its execution.

And strengthens the persuasive powers of the Presidency.

It also presents an image of unity among the Nacionalistas specially after Vice President [Fernando] Lopez read my speech yesterday on Independence Day.

The speech has been well received. The Americans, however, must be disturbed by it as I call the bases a limitation of our sovereignty.

It is necessary to adopt a forthright stand on the bases to remind the Americans that we are doing them a favor by granting it and they should acknowledge it with the extension of the Laurel-Langley agreement, the support of our self-reliant military plans and the exclusion of long range missiles and nuclear weapons from our country.

I am still weak as I found out when I tried to exercise but I remember how I received the Gold Cross (Anahaw Leaf) when I led the men in breaking out of an encirclement Panupdupan, Kiangan although I was in the infirmary burning with fever and chilling from pneumonia in 1945 at the start of the enemy attack.

So I have decided to personally lay the wreath at the Unknown Soldier’s Tomb tomorrow on Besang Pass or USAFIP, NL [United States Army Forces in the Philippines – Northern Luzon] Day.

How soft and flabby peace has made of us! I feel a little bit shamed by the recollection of my soldiering days!

I attach one of the letters of Charles Lindbergh who has been active on conservation. As well as J. G. Harrar, President of the Rockefeller Foundation.

12:00 PM June 14, 1972[2]

Wednesday

Libingan Ng Mga Bayani—Wreath laying on the Unknown Soldier’s Tomb after the mass for President [Carlos] Garcia. Bessang Pass Day.

Then breakfast at Fort Bonifacio and the inauguration of the Armed Forces Museum at the Supply Center at Fort Aguinaldo.

T.J.[S.] George (an Indian) interview for The Far Eastern [Economic] Review.

Delegate [Eduardo] Quintero appeared before the Concon [Constitutional Convention] Committee on Privileges up to 11:00 AM and identified envelopes where the money had been kept including one bearing the office of the Speaker and another of my office. The memorandum to the First Lady dated Feb. 10, 1971 was rejected by the Committee. This is the memorandum where he mentions his serious financial difficulties referred to in [h]is later letter to Delegate Gabriel Yñiguez of April 1, 1971.

After the breakfast I addressed the USAFIP, NL [United States Army Forces in the Philippines – Northern Luzon] veterans of whom I am still National Commander. I reminded them about how happy we were that we had lived through the war but I remembered many sad things too.

And l recounted how I last met the CO [Commanding Officer] of the 14th Inf. AUS [Army of the United States], Col. Romulo Manriquez in September of 1966. I was going down at the front door of the Blair House, the guest house of the United States, upon my arrival in Washington on my state visit, when through the driving rain I saw a bareheaded man being pushed away by the American Security from the State and Treasury Department. He had a fierce mustache and more unkempt clothes. So I did not immediately recognize him.

But when he came closer I did and asked the guards to let him through to me. The guards were obviously surprised at my hospitality for a bedraggled man and I told them he was one of the underground fighters of the war. And when they asked, “One of your soldiers, sir?” I answered, “No, I was one of his soldiers.”

I asked him inside and when I solicitously asked him what I could do for him, He proudly said, “I have come to ask you what I can do for you.”

The colonel had been a little queer after the war, had resigned his commission and gone to the United States where he had even worked as a waiter leaving his family behind.

I gave some money to his wife and children so that they could follow him.

During the guerrilla days the wife had been incarcerated by the Japanese but she had been resolute and firm as he had been.

“And so this happy day—Bessang Pass Day—has its blend of sad memories,” I said.

But we who survived and are in a position to help our comrades may have lost our compassion of the war when one did not think of going back under fire to pick up and carry an injured comrade.

“As there was patience then, so let there be resolution now; as there was courage then, let there be daring now.”

So I announced the formation of the Veterans Foundation to which I would grant 100,000 hectares logging concession. But I warned that there must be no selfishness in this enterprise. And the profits must all go to the veterans who are most in need—not to the highest ranking but to those most in need.

I called for brotherhood and unity.

T.J.[S.] George, who wrote a book on Krishna Menon, says he is sad that the First Lady is not running for President for he is all for her. He has nothing but admiration for her.

He favors my position that American influence, the most visible of which is the military bases, must be eradicated.

And he marched with the KMs [Kabataang Makabayan], SDKs [Samahan ng Demokratikong Kabataan] and the MDP [Movement for a Democratic Philippines] and MDKP [sic] [Malayang Pagkakaisa ng Kabataan Pilipino (MPKP)] from the south. And he was surprised at the discipline and talent and preparation as well as the eloquence of the few leaders. And the intensity of the feelings of the young, followers who were mostly students of 14 to 16 and who did not understand what they were marching for.

But he feels that such intensity of feeling (which is lacking in the paid demonstrators of Kerala, India) may break out into violence in a year or two.

I told him the subversives will probably wait for me to retire before they try a grab for the government.

But he must have suspected what I was thinking then because he asked me if there was a possibility I might declare martial law in the future.

I told him that I do not believe there will be any violence during the rest of my term.

He believes that the Concon is dead and can not write a constitution.