I have scrapped the plan to release Operations Sea Hawk., the subversive activities and the new front in Calbiga, Swnar as these may prejudice the trip of Imelda to Peking.
But Sec. [Juan] Ponce Enrile will brief both the Supreme Court and the Cabinet as well as the U.S. Embassy and military on what is happening, including those in Mindanao.
I have ordered the resumption of the export of copra, coconut oil and coconut products provided the exporter certifies under oath that he purchased the raw copra (resicada) at P280 per 100 kilos. The guarantees the producer a reasonable price.
And ordered 20% of the entire copra and coconut production to be bought by the Philippine National Bank.
On board Ang Pangulo August 3, 1974[1]
I feel tired and tense. So I have left the family behind on a fishing and water skiing week-end.
The weather is perfect. Practically no wind. The coves especially Looc Cove are like polished glass. Never been as calm as now.
And we caught an unusual number of fish off Hormus Point, Lapulapu, two of which are 2½ feet long and about fifty pounds each. And many others.
Slept from 10 [AM]-12 AM [sic] on the way to Looc then skied all afternoon.
Imelda is down with some bug. I guess it is a viral infection. But tonight when I called up by long distance at about 10:00 PM she and the children were in the Araneta Coliseum attending the Cocoy Laurel concert.
[Richard] Nixon’s resignation was expected but his actual resignation marks the enthronement of a new tyranny in America—the dictatorship of the media.
For Nixon may have been guilty of cover-up and dishonesty like the sale of ambassadorships, but given the American politics requirements, this did not warrant his being hounded out of office. For that is exactly what happened.
And the impeachment process was a national exercise of hypocrisy—the attempt of the guilty to wash themselves clean.
And the scapegoat was Nixon.
On board Ang Pangulo August 4, 1974[2]
Spent the whole day skiing. Am sunburned and physically tired but mentally relaxed.
Imelda and the children were taking dinner at Suite I with the latter’s “cousinzes” when I arrived at the palace at about 9:45 PM.
She is still feeling below the weather. I had to force her to retire before 12:00 PM [sic].
Makati Medical Center August 5, 1974[3]
where I brought Imelda
at 7:30 PM because of viral
infection
Consulted Mr. ______ Zaada of the Trade ______ Bank of Switzerland on the world monetary and economic situation which is confused and in some areas critical.
Then convoked the Armed Forces General Staff, major services commanders, Service G-2’s and G-3’s and the Secretary of National Defense to reassess the military situation.
Took up the state of morale of the AFP [Armed Forces of the Philippines] with the AWOL [absence without leave] cases mounting, Col. Nanquhil and his brother (in Basilan) sharing 25% of the copra sales by the rebels and outlaws (Nanquil is being reassigned with his entire unit to Cotabato).
Directed the increase in pay of privates as that the P180 a month may be augmented by hazardous duty pay to increase it to P240 a month we give to former rebels (Balikbayans) fighting on the government side.
Increased the subsistence allowance of CHDF [Civilian Home Defense Force] from P2 to P4 daily.
We will set up a hospital in Zambounga and Cotabato and improve the V. Luna Hospital—on _______.[4]
Explained the plan to withdraw from the position of being vulnerable to intimidation and blackmail by the Arab countries because of our complete dependence on them for oil by our effort to procure oil from Red China, Russia and Indonesia.
2,000,000 barrels of crude will be procured by the First Lady on her trip to Peking.
Russia has been contracted.
Indonesia will offer us oil by 1976 according to Maj. Gen. [Ibnu] Sutowo.
Because I feel that the Mindanao Muslim will demand a federalized form of autonomy and elections supervised by a foreign power—which we cannot grant.
We will therefore push through our own reforms (today I also appointed BGen. [Pedro] Zafra as military supervision for the two Lanaos and directed Gov. Tarhata Alonto Lucman and her husband Raschid as well as Mayor Amir Balindong of Malabang, Lanao del Sur to support Gen. Zafra.
These reforms will not be acceptable to the Mindanao Muslims and their supporters like Libya which will continue to support the secessionists anyway, come what may. In fact in two years the Islamic Conference may support the entire secessionist movement.
The U.S. cannot or will not help us because of domestic problems and [Henry] Kissinger’s
European orientation.
So we have to depend on ourselves.
We give ourselves two years to upgmde our Armed Forces.
After that we may be fighting over Malaysia.
So our economic development becomes crucial and we have to maintain good relations with Red China (and possibly stop the shipment of arms from the mainland which is still being tried by the NPA [New People’s Army] as shown by Operations Sea Hawk), Russia so that the Chinese-Russian border stalemate may prevent predatory incursions into Southeast Asia and Japan because she help to balance China as well as Indonesia because she is our closest neighbor and a potential rival.
[1] Official Gazette for August 3, 1974: PROMOTIONS for 1,616 officers in the Armed Forces of the Philippines, ranking from full colonel down to first lieutenant, were approved by the President. These promotions were based on recommendations of various AFC promotions boards with favorable endorsements by the AFP chief of staff and the secretary of national defense. The President said that the qualifications and fitness of officers recommended by the boards for promotion but whose names are not included in the released list, are still being studied and evaluated. DEPARTMENT of Finance said that P57.4 million worth of Premyo savings bonds was sold by the Securities Servicing Department of the Central Bank during its first day of public offering held last August 1. The brisk sale of the bonds was mainly attributed to the enthusiastic response of the people on the new government savings program. The CB reported that the biggest buyers were the commercial banks which, in turn, will sell these bonds to their clients or individual buyers.
[2] Official Gazette for August 4, 1974: THE PRESIDENT required aliens seeking entry or permanent residence in the country under the provisions of the Immigration Act to pay higher fees. Signing Presidential Decree No. 524, the Chief Executive raised 33 specific fees collectible from such aliens. These lees, originally fixed in 1940 were last raised in 1950. Religious missionaries admitted into the country as aliens are exempt from payment of monthly extension fees payable by temporary visitors. Foreign government officials, their families, attendants, household helps and employes, and non-immigrants in transit to a destination outside the Philippines are also exempt from paying their passport visas. DEPARTMENT of Trade stressed that the long-term solution to the rapidly-spiralling of price of prime commodities is the expansion in production and increase in productivity. Secretary of Trade Troadio T. Quiazon Jr., who is concurrently Chairman of the Price Control Council, asserted this as he discussed the rationale behind the government pricing policy. The trade official explained that the price control being instituted by the government is only an interim measure to discourage price manipulation and speculation. He said that the real factors that would cushion the impact of prices are the intensification of food production, expansion of exports, and the development of alter native sources of energy, among others. MALACAÑANG, through Assistant Executive Secretary Ronaldo Zamora, ruled that apartment owners are prohibited from charging new or incoming lessees rentals higher than those paid by previous lessees during the effectivity of an existing presidential decree on rentals. The ruling was handed down by Secretary Zamora in reply to an inquiry sent to Public Information Secretary Francisco S. Tatad by an apartment dweller in Paco, Manila. The opinion was a clarification of Presidential Decree No. 20, freezing rentals for lower-income groups. In his opinion, Secretary Zamora said that all the unauthorized increases in rentals must be refunded or applied to future payments of the lessors. BUREAU of Standards has promulgated new standard code for food processing establishments and the processing and handling of frozen foods, the Department of Trade announced. The new standard code contains the guidelines for the production of quick frozen tools to maintain the latter’s quality particularly those for export. Specifically, the new code provides for the direct supervision and control of food processing establishments so that proper care in the environmental and personal hygiene requirements in these firms for the protection of the consumers are complied with strictly. DEPARTMENT of Labor prodded sugar cane planters to give plantation workers the benefits due them under an existing social amelioration fund. In a meeting with representatives of the sugar industry, Labor Secretary Blas F. Ople noted that reports from the department’s’ Bacolod City office indicated that “certain” planters had refused to distribute the amelioration fund to their workers. Under the amelioration fund planters would help the workers through cash bonuses and amelioration projects based on an assessment of P0.90 per picul of sugar determined by the Sugar Quota Administration. PHILIPPINES and West Germany signed an agreement to train Filipino military personnel in West Germany starting this year. Foreign Affairs Secretary Carlos P. Romulo and Defense Secretary Juan Ponce Enrile signed the agreement for the Philippines, while German Ambassador to the Philippines Baren von Buddenbrock signed for West Germany. The grantees will study in the German Army Command and General Staff College, which is equivalent to Fort Bonifacio’s Army College. The grantees will be provided with accommodation, food, clothing and personal needs in barracks. The requirement for grantees is to know German.
[3] Official Gazette for August 5, 1974: THE PRESIDENT directed barangay and barrio officials to help regular police agencies in the maintenance of peace and order in their respective communities. The President’s order was embodied in Presidential Decree No. 528 which declared as a matter of government policy that these local officials took a more active part in peace-keeping duties of the barangay and barrio officials. To give teeth to the decree, the President ordered that barrio leaders who, without justifiable cause, fail to furnish police agencies with the necessary assistance, be made liable for a six-month to one year imprisonment and perpetual disqualification from public office. SECURITIES and Exchange Commission disclosed that the total foreign investments pumped into the country last year amounted to P64 million. The figure is 185 percent higher than the P22 million combined paid-up capital of corporations organized during the preceding year. The SEC statistics also showed that a big chunk of the investments was siphoned into the various commercial activities. The next biggest investments were channelled to the manufacturing sector. BOARD of Investments said that 266 BOI-registered firms invested an aggregate amount of P5.9 billion as of September, 1973. The BOI said that these projects, registered under the Investment Incentives Act, have contributed to the country’s overall economic development efforts. Of these projects, 125 were agro-based; 48 were engaged in the manufacture of chemicals and chemical-based products; 24 in mining and mineral processing and 54 were in the engineering field. The BOI said that foreign equity participation in the BOI-registered firms totalled P322 million or 21.1 percent of the total subscribed capital. Among the foreign investors, the Americans appeared on top by contributing 61.1 percent of the total foreign equity participation.
[4] It is possible that a page of this entry is missing, because this sentence just cuts off.