I have had to cancel my golf games at the Manila Golf Club in Forbes Park because of the report of Danding [Eduardo] Cojuangco [Jr.] from Commander Melody [Benjamin Bie Jr.] that 15 men of a liquidation squad are in Manila some of them living in the Bel Air area. Of course the prime targets are the President, the Secretary of National Defense and the Central Luzon (specially Tarlac) like Congressman Cojuangco.
And Manila is preparing its own contingency plan of counter-action if there should be urban subversion.
Approved the organization of the International Trading Corporation to handle exports of difficult lines like construction materials to Indonesia.
Official Gazette for March 5, 1971: PRESIDENT MARCOS had an unexpected reunion with a former comrade-in-arms, Sgt. Gregorio Sampag, (ret.), who served with him in the 14th Infantry Regiment, USAFIP-NL, during the war.
Visiting in Manila with his family, the burly sergeant, now a farmer in Quezon province, took a chance in seeing the President by contacting Lt. Col. Venancio Duque, also a fellow guerilla and now the President’s appointments secretary. Duque, then arranged for the former sergeant to meet his unit commander, the President. It was a pleasant occasion for both.
Aside from his reunion with his former comrade-in-arms and a courtesy call given to him by 11 exchange students sponsored by Rotary International from Australia and the United States, the President had no other visitors on his schedule.
The youngsters, all girls, were Sue Fairly, 17, Julie Whitehead, 15, and Brian Kildea, 17, from Australia; Marcia Busto, 17, and Pel Roselle, 18, from New York; Debbie Grub, 17, from Oregon; Diana Sawyer, 17 from Illinois; Joanne Wagner, 17, from Pennsylvania; and Sharon Robinson, also 17, from Ohio.
Along toward noon, the President sat down for an interview with Mrs. Gloria Abaya, a representative of McGraw publications.
In the afternoon and through the evening, the President concentrated on his desk work, during which he signed the designation papers of Small Farmers Commission Chairman Raoul H. Beloso, as one of the action officers of the Presidential Action Committee for Land Reform.
Beloso took the place of former Undersecretary of Natural Resources Isosceles Pascual, who had retired, as action officer of the committee.
The committee was organized by virtue of Executive Order No. 251 dated July 31, 1970 to expedite and coordinate the investigation and resolution of land disputes, streamline and shorten administrative procedures, adopt bold and decisive measures m solve land problems, and/or recommend other solutions.
Also during the day, the President exhorted local officials to take on the burden of strengthening the effectiveness of government in solving problems and carrying out public services, pointing out that the government’s effectiveness is “increasingly being challenged.”
The President made the call in a speech read for him by Executive Secretary Alejandro Melchor Jr. at the opening of the Third Pangasinan Executive Development Seminar in Baguio City in which he said that in a time when the people’s impatience and demands are increasing, the “most ambitious actions of government have fallen short of the people’s expectations.”
The challenge to the government’s effectiveness, he added, is nowhere more evident than at the level of the local government, “which is the focal point of contact between the government and the people.”
I attach the report of [Sixto] Ting Roxas. He has become the most active of the businessmen in the private sector whom I meet weekly to give me advice. This afternoon we met at [Geronimo] Ronnie Velasco’s house.
I also signed the order creating the cooperative coordinating council under Dr. Sacay.
Released P11,700,000 for Bicolandia typhoon damage rehabilitation.
Passed by Imelda at Zita Feliciano’s house at 1167 Tamarind, Dasmariñas from Ronnie Velasco’s house at 7:00 PM before I rushed to the palace to meet Speaker [Jose B.] Laurel, [Roberto] Bert Sabido, [Rogaciano] Roning Mercado and Com. [Faustino] Sychangco.
Had lunch with [Juan] Johnny Ponce Enrile who reported that Ernesto Granada and his brother were at Cotabato agitating the Ilongos before the killings there.
We also talked of the security situation. He believes that the tension has died down but believes that the communists are up to something.
He quoted Ex-Sec. Rafael Salas as saying, “Why don’t you kill all the Maoists? They are the cause of trouble in all the countries that I have visited.”
Salas farther told him that “democracy does not fit the countries in our part of the world. Look to all the nations there. They are under authoritarian governments. Tell the bossman (that’s me) this.”
And Johnny Ponce Enrile quotes Gen. Fidel Ramos as saying, “There is only one way of governing the country because of the present crisis.”
The military and for that matter, according to Johnny, the people, are waiting for me to exercise my emergency powers and take over the government for a benevolent dictatorship.
But there must be massive destruction and sabotage before I do this. I keep repeating this to myself.