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<img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.kahimyang.com/resources-9/marcos-imee-now-sm.webp" alt="Senator Imee Marcos" />
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(Senator Imee Marcos)
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Since the family's return to power, though, which had only been less than a decade from her father's ouster from the presidency, Imee had run the gamut of various top political posts - from being governor of her home province, Ilocos Norte, to representing her district in the House of Representatives, and today, serving as a nationally-elected senator.


Just recently, Imee, in the old days known as the most rebellious and most progressive of the presidential children, gamely replied, if a bit avoiding direct hits occasionally, to the questions of hosts Dinah Sabal Ventura and Jojo Silvestre in TribuneNOW's Spotlight, the lifestyle television show of the Daily Tribune aired live every Thursday afternoon from the daily's Makati studios.


No, she would not mention who made her colorful printed blouse, but Imee, visibly fetching and relaxed on Zoom, would go as far as telling us that she had gotten it from an ukay-ukay outlet in Ilocos, adding that the choice of wardrobe is not a problem for her not only because "interviews and meetings nowadays are done online with only your face showing, and you could really wear anything comfortable below, but we from Ilocos have so much inabel, so beautifully designed, one could just take a pick from one's closet and you'd come out alright."

We asked her which of the positions she has held she enjoys the most, while reminding her that not too long ago, when she took her oath as a first-term governor, we asked her how she was taking to a local post, and she commented that legislative topics excited her more than local issues that ranged from marital disputes to neighbors fighting over property boundaries.


No, she no longer remembers saying those words and instead clarifies that, as she looks back now, "It's okay to be both at the end of the day. Maybe I said those words when I was still adjusting to provincial life since I had never lived that long in Ilocos. My dad was Congressman when I was born so we were always in Manila. But if you ask me now, I enjoy it more in the province. When we are in Manila, as soon as there's an opportunity, we all run back to Ilocos."


The rest of the interview follows:


Daily Tribune (DT): 

You are the Chair of the Cultural Communities Committee. How are the cultural communities today?


Imee Marcos (IM): The reality is our cultural communities are the poorest and the most marginalized because they live in the remotest areas. They really lack assistance. We reach out to them only when we hear there are troubles or issues in their areas. Or when they are attacked by insurgents.


Of course, there are basic issues connected to them like the looming water problem. And they're saying the solution is in Kaliwa Dam, but then there is an issue with the Dumagat living in Rizal and Quezon provinces. We hope the issue could be resolved so we can have additional supply of water. At the same time, we should make sure that the cultural communities should get a fair share of the development and we should consider their right to ancestral domain.


DT: Are they getting enough protection in this time of the pandemic?


IM: As a matter of fact, they are the most vulnerable. First of all, they are difficult to reach. But they are also the luckiest because they do not live in cramped quarters unlike here in the city. They have the top of the mountain all to themselves.


DT: Senator, let's go back to the time you were governor of Ilocos, which you love very much. What were some of your top accomplishments?


IM: We have managed to bring the poverty level down to a single digit. We reached a much lower level of unemployment and underemployment. We were lucky in our tourism promotion. We brought in some journalists to write about our tourist offerings and we were surprised with the results.


We were actually a little bit unprepared for the crowds who suddenly came to Ilocos Norte overnight. We don't have large resorts and five-star hotels so we could only offer grassroots tourism, which led to benefiting everyone, including people in the barangays who rented out their rooms. And right on the top of the mountain, we had glamping, which the millennials wanted. It's funny that they even found out about these places before many of us did. They did not mind having modern amenities and enjoyed roughing it up. We were very lucky in that all they asked for were clean rooms.


DT: It was your father who started the diplomatic relations with China. What can you say about Philippine-China relations today? What is your stand on the various issues pertinent to the relationship?


IM: Yes, it was my father who started it in the 1970s. The China of today is far different from the China of the 1970s. China is a completely different country and it is no doubt one of the superpowers, if not the superpower. I think that in a post-COVID scenario, there is a going to be a new balance of power. China has clearly recovered.


That's why I believe in President Duterte's independent Philippine policy and I think it's absolutely right we should be friends with everyone so that when the superpowers quarrel, we should step aside and get out of the way. Besides it's not really in our national character to quarrel or engage in a fight with anybody. It is better to remain friends and keep our close alliance especially with member countries of the ASEAN.


DT: You had many interesting accomplishments during your father's time, and these include your work with the Experimental Cinema of the Philippines, the Kabataang Barangay and the children's television shows Kaluskos Musmos and Kulit Bulilit. These were mostly youth-oriented. What made you come up with these projects?


IM: I think I was really young at that point. I was really a kid and I was looking for company. So these Filipino youth leaders and the village heads all became my friends and close associates. To this day, many of are still barkada or katropa and I saw a lot of them last year when I was campaigning for the Senate.


DT: How is it like being the daughter of Mrs. Marcos, the fabulous one?


IM: The artistic and creative side of me came from the Romualdezes, my mother's family. Her uncle, for example, was the Supreme Court Justice but closer to his heart, he was a musicologist and he was famous for his collection of Filipino folk songs from all regions of the country. So, that's the Romualdez side of me.


DT: How are you today? How are you coping with the pandemic?


IM: My children and I seldom saw one another in Manila before the pandemic. We had our respective commitments. But then, the pandemic came. So, it turned into a nice and long reunion. This was the first time in many years and it's only now that everyone's going back to where they work. But it has also been very difficult for us because Mom has to stay in her home, while Bongbong got sick and we couldn't visit him. Then, a nephew passed away and we also couldn't pay our last respects.

An interview with Imee Marcos: The most rebellious and most progressive of the presidential children