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<img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.kahimyang.com/resources-9/marcos-mindnao-sm.webp" alt="President Ferdinand Marcos" />
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(President Ferdinand Marcos)
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A local bill designating September 11 as a non-working holiday in Ilocos Norte has been passed on third reading at the House of Representatives and is now at the Senate. Senate President Tito Sotto, in an interview, was quoted to have said: 
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"Since it's a local bill affecting only the province of Ilocos Norte, I'm sure the Senate will also pass it."
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A local bill, like changing a street name, or changing the name of a school by tradition is passed by Congress without any debate unlike a bill which affects national interest which is subjected to debate. A local bill affects only a local place!
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To most Ilocanos, especially in the province of Ilocos Norte, it is <i>"Marcos forever."</i> Marcos haters can never erase the fact he did Ilocanos a lot of favors when he was president-cemented roads, a national highway all the way from Manila to Ilocos Norte, the Marcos Highway from Rosario, La Union to Baguio City. These have helped businesses in the region.
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The great playwright William Shakespeare, in an epigrammatic tone when Marc Antony made his speech at the funeral of Julius Caesar, left us with these words: 
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"The evil that men do lives after them; the good is oft interred with their bones."
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Thus, it is typical of some people to have short memories of the others' perceived wrongdoing. Such is the case with Marcos.
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His perceived illegal acts have been incessantly repeated, marginalizing his landmark contributions, particularly in the political and legal system.
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I would like to quote Justice Manuel "Lolong" Lazaro in an introduction of a book on <i>"The Legacy of Marcos."</i> Lazaro recalled the words of the great surrealist painter Salvador Dali: 
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"The difference between false memories and true ones is the same as for jewels: it is always the false one that looks almost real, the most brilliant."
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The Ilocanos owe Marcos so much.
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Is Marcos a hero or a heel? It really depends since it's a matter of perspective. Marcos is a hero to those who are aware and appreciative of his performance and achievements. He is a heel to those who envy his ingenuity and foresight, and to those who seek revenge and hatred.
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In my many decades as a journalist, I have covered 10 presidents from President Elpidio Quirino. I have walked the corridors of power. I can say that no other President had/ has Marcos' vision and foresight. Specifically, many of the laws he issued and proclaimed during his time are still being used today.
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Marcos haters can never erase the fact Marcos did Ilocanos and the country a lot of favors