WE SHOULD make sure that proceeds of the auction of the P704.8-million worth of jewelry seized from former first lady Imelda Marcos will truly benefit the Filipino people. While the Marcos family and the Duterte government cannot deny anymore that there are billions of pesos worth of ill-gotten wealth by the Marcos dictatorship, the question now is how do we make sure that this benefits the public. There should be direct beneficiaries to the funds raised after the jewelry auction, including the rights victims under Marcos martial law.
Even after the series of reparation and claims distribution for members of the Hawaii class suit and those who filed for recognition and reparation under Republic Act (RA) 10368, or the Human Rights Victims Reparation and Recognition Act of 2012, thousands of rights victims during Marcos martial have not received a single peso from the said reparation.
They come from the poor and underprivileged, from faraway provinces who do not have access to the reparation process for rights victims. They deserve to benefit from these funds. Not doing so defeats the purpose of recovering all ill-gotten wealth from the Marcoses.
It is also suggested that funds from the jewelry auction should be used to fund non-monetary compensation accorded to victims under RA 10368, like medical, educational and livelihood assistance that are facilitated by government agencies like the Department of Health, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Commission on Higher Education, and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority. At present, victims cannot fully access the non-monetary assistance provided for them because of alleged non-availability of government funds. Proceeds from the sale can be directed to this, and agencies involved should make sure that this will be accessed and availed of by the victims.
Still, there is a suggestion made by Bayan Muna that there should be a new body to manage the proceeds of the auction. There will certainly be individuals or parties who will prey upon these billions of pesos. Who knows that with this government’s alliance with the Marcoses, the ill-gotten wealth recovered will just go back to their hands?
In the blink of an eye, the Marcoses have returned to power. But we should never forget that they remain accountable for their crimes of plunder and rights violations.
