Salonga says that among the techniques by which the Marcoses acquired and safeguarded ill-gotten wealth were:
1. Creation of monopolies in certain vital industries and placing them under the control of Marcos cronies or associates.
2. Awarding of loans by government banking or financing institutions to favored individuals, with little or no collateral, at the behest of Marcos or Ms Marcos.
3. Takeover by Marcos relatives or associates of large public or private enterprises with nominal amounts as consideration.
4. Direct raid on the public treasury and government financing institutions. For instance, intelligence funds were disbursed for the trips of Ms Marcos.
5. Issuance of presidential decrees and orders to favor certain individuals and enterprises to enable them to amass wealth for the joint benefit of these individuals and the Marcoses.
6. Kickbacks and commissions from firms or enterprises doing business in the Philippines.
7. Use of shell corporations and dummy companies to launder money and invest in real estate in such places as New York, California and Hawaii.
8. Skimming of foreign aid and other forms of international assistance.
Days before her birthday celebration, Imelda Marcos appeared in public without her glittering jewels and cried that she was practically penniless. This, from a woman who said in December 1998, “We own practically everything in the Philippines.”
We have seen, from the way people gushed over Imelda at her recent birthday celebration, that many of them have forgotten what happened during the Conjugal Dictatorship. When shall we end our state of denial? When shall we stop idolizing those who have wronged and betrayed us and regain our sense of right and wrong and exact justice from those who have committed crimes against the nation?
http://opinion.inquirer.net/inquirer...tate-of-denial