President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. was weary of interviews during the elections, that information isn’t totally new but it’s scalding from the mouth of someone who supported him.
Pro-Duterte blogger Maharlika, who campaigned for and interviewed Marcos, opened up about her experience with the president and First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos in a series of Facebook live reposted by a netizen on Feb. 20.
While he was a candidate, Marcos notably skipped presidential interviews as well as debates hosted by Comelec, CNN Philippines, the Kapisanan ng mga Broadkaster ng Pilipinas, and Jessica Soho.
The now-president’s camp told GMA that he refused Soho’s interviews because the veteran journalist is “biased against the Marcoses.”
‘Nagbigay ako ng script’
Maharlika said that out of everybody she interviewed, Marcos was the only one to ask for the questions in advance. She also apologized for supporting Marcos and convincing others to vote for him.
“Gusto ko humingi ng tawad sa mga taong na-convert ko para botohin si BBM… Naging part ako nitong pagkapanalo niya na akala ko’y ito’y babangon,” she said.
“Huwag tayong maglokohan. I have all the lists ng mga Q&As sa notes ko sa telepono ko na ipinresent ko sa inyo. Pero kahit nasa kabila na, nabubulol pa rin si Bongbong.”
From all the presidential debates, Marcos was present in one hosted by the SMNI News, an outlet owned by Apollo Quiboloy who is wanted by the FBI for sex trafficking.
“Yung ‘Machiavellian, Machiavellian’ na ‘yun,” Maharlika chuckled, “Script na rin ‘yan. Alam ko kasi ako nagbigay ako ng script eh.”
Liza vs. Duterte?
The blogger also talked about how first lady Liza Araneta-Marcos was angry at former president Rodrigo Duterte because he didn’t appoint Marcos as agriculture secretary during his administration. Liza allegedly said this over a phone call in 2019.
“Ngayon ko lang napagtanto-tanto na kaya pala hindi inappoint ni Duterte si BBM dahil ‘yan ang gagawin niya sa agriculture, suportahan ang hoarders at mga smugglers. Diba Liza?” she remarked.
Since his inauguration, Marcos has not appointed an agriculture secretary and instead sits in the position. So far, the administration has faced shortages and rise in prices of produce that are staples in Filipino households such as sugar and onions.
“Ang gobyerno natin sa Pilipinas ay malaking sindikato,” Maharlika said, referring to the current state of the country. “Bakit? Mismo ang presidenteng Bongbong Marcos sinasabi niyang normal lang ang paghohoard ng negosyo ng mga negosyante. Tama ba yun? Pinoprotektahan pa ang mga hoarders.”
In January 2023, Marcos downplayed the fluctuating prices of sugar and onion. “Alam mo normal ‘yan eh sa negosyante. ‘Pag alam nilang magkaka-shortage, eh they will keep it hanggang tumaas ‘yung presyo. Maybe you can call that hoarding but it’s a business practice and that’s what we hope to avoid,” he said.
‘I know what you did last summer’
It looks like Maharlika isn’t the only former Marcos supporter calling out the president. The blogger brought up how Atty. Glenn Chong, who peddled fake news against former Vice President Leni Robredo and the 2016 electoral case against her, seemed to have hinted about cheating during the 2022 elections.
Chong shared a poster that read “I know what you did last summer” and captioned it “For Roger Piñate (President of Smartmatic).”
“Pero ikaw it’s your time to shine, binoto ka ng sambayanang Pilipino, diba 31 million o baka hindi talaga 31 million kasi may cryptic post si Glenn Chong na “I know what you did last summer” o baka nakipagsabwatan din kayo sa smartmatic para maipwesto ninyo yung sarili ninyong 31 million,” Maharlika said.
That being said, Maharlika isn’t without her fair share of issues. In February 2022, her youtube channel was sued by former senator Francis Pangilinan over libelous videos intended to damage his and his family’s reputation.
