HE was pilloried as weak and lazy. He was prejudged by his critics as going to be a mere reincarnation of his dictatorial father and his equally dictatorial predecessor. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. won with a lot of baggage, from his being a faker of diplomas, to his being an alleged drug user, to his being a tax evader and cheat.
His candidacy was marred by heavy traffic of trolling from his critics. The intelligentsia and the liberal elites were almost united against him. University facades donned colors that celebrated the opposition force that threw support behind his main rival. Even as he was able to mobilize his loyal base, he was also able to generate one of the most bitter hatreds that ended up in friends being unfriended, relatives being shunned and business establishments being canceled just because they supported him.
Continue reading with one of these options:
Ad-free access
P 80 per month
(billed annually at P 960)
- Unlimited ad-free access to website articles
- Limited offer: Subscribe today and get digital edition access for free (accessible with up to 3 devices)