DAR chief Mariano: Marcos family will not escape indignation

MANILA, Philippines – Agrarian Reform Secretary Rafael Mariano criticized on Sunday, November 20, the burial of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani, the latest Duterte Cabinet member to do so after Social Welfare Secretary Judy Taguiwalo.  

In a Facebook post, Mariano compared the rushed departure to Hawaii of the former president and his family in 1986 to the rushed and secretive burial at the Heroes’ Cemetery last Friday, November 18.

“Kailanman, hindi sila makakatakas sa malakas at nagkakaisang indignasyon at protesta ng mamamayan, lalo na ng mga biktima at survivor ng Martial Law tulad ko,” Mariano said.

(They will never escape the loud and collective indignation and protest of the masses, particularly the victims and survivors of Martial Law, like myself.)

Mariano was an activist in his youth, joining the Bisig ng Kabataan (Youth’s Forearm) when he was 20. Mariano served as the secretary-general of the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) when it was founded in 1985, during the waning years of the Marcos regime. He then became KMP president in 1993. (READ: Agrarian reform chief ‘Ka Paeng’: Hope for the farmers)

He also served as Anakpawis representative in the 13th, 14th, and 15th Congresses.

Despite the decision of President Rodrigo Duterte to allow the Marcos burial, other Cabinet members nominated by the National Democratic Front say they remain supportive of the President. 

Taguiwalo had also issued a statement on Sunday, saying that there are still “major compelling reasons” to remain in the Cabinet, among them the peace talks between the government and communist rebels. – Rappler.com