Imelda Marcos: The best and worst life
Former
Philippine First Lady celebrated her 80th birthday in true
Imeldific fashion.
Larry Leviste - Sat, Jul 04, 2009 - Philippine Daily
Inquirer/Asia News Network
In true
Imeldific fashion, she glided down a red carpet, surrounded by
little girls in white dresses carrying bouquets of roses and trailed by
tuxedo-wearing violin and flute players who rendered her favorite love
song.In a frantic, fuchsia terno designed by Oliver Tolentino, former First Lady Imelda Marcos celebrated her 80th birthday on Thursday amid glittering confetti and fireworks at the Sofitel Philippine Plaza's Grand Ballroom.
In the midst of the extravagant celebration, Imelda asked family and some 1,000 well-wishers: 'Let us all observe a minute of silence and pray for the healing and restoration of the health of former President Cory Aquino.'
Every seat in the Grand Ballroom was taken. The guest of honor was Indonesian former First Lady Ratna Sari Dewi Sukarno, who wore an emerald pendant the size of a compact mirror with matching earrings the size of mahjong tiles.
You're not invited
What kept everyone buzzing before Imelda's grand entrance, was the story of Sukarno spending time in a US jail for slashing the face of Philippine socialite Minnie Osme'a with a broken goblet in Aspen, Colorado, a few decades ago. About the same time, Imelda was acquitted by US federal court in Manhattan.
Imelda and Sukarno reportedly celebrated their freedom at the penthouse of arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi. The invitation to the party read, 'If you're not indicted, you're not invited.' Leona Helmsley, the billionaire New York hotel owner convicted of federal income tax invasion and newly divorced Ivana Trump also attended that victory celebration.
Society standouts
Celebrating with Imelda were society standouts: Dr. Venia Javellana, dermatologist to the Old Guard, whose best client is Gretchen Oppen Cojuangco (wife of businessman Eduardo 'Danding' Cojuangco); Camille Villar (the only daughter of Sen. Manny Villar and Las Pi'as Rep. Cynthia Villar) who wore diamonds; Lulu Tinio who was in sapphires; Sonia Mathay in rubies; Fortune Ledesma in platinum jewelry; and Baby Arenas who came in blue pearls.
Forever Blue
Forever Blue Ladies and loyalists Ising Madrigal, Baby Cruz, Techie Cristobal and Lolita Mirpuri smiled and flirted with Sen. Richard 'Dick' Gordon, Deputy National Security Adviser Luis 'Chavit' Singson, Marcos information minister and former Sen. Francisco 'Kit' Tatad and former National Food Authority (NFA) Administrator Jess Tanchangco.
Presidential wannabes Bayani Fernando and Gordon admired actress Isabel Rivas and fashion magazine editor Carla Sibal. There were half-a-dozen former Supreme Court justices and two dozen Con-ass (constituent assembly) voting congressmen.
Showbiz, fashion, PR
Radio and TV personality German Moreno was there. So was senior couturier Pitoy Moreno, who extolled Imelda's love and devotion for wearing the butterfly-sleeved terno. 'It was the best thing for the country,' he said. 'It also put us in the radar of world politics.'
Public relations king Louie Cruz couldn't stop gushing about Imelda's entrance. 'Wow, she always knows how to make a grand entrance,' he said.
The Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Liu Jianchao gave a stirring speech: 'With Imelda's historic visit to Chairman Mao in the '70s, she broke through the 'bamboo curtain.' She built a hotel that still stands in Shanghai today. Philippine Airlines started to have direct daily flight from Manila to Beijing. Imelda sent a signal to the other world governments and economic heavyweights to start investing, trading and exporting to China. She started what China is today. '
Video presentation
This was followed with a video presentation of testimonies from her grandchildren. Prepared by Imelda's eldest child, Imee Marcos, the most touching words were from Simon, Sandro and Vincent, the three sons of Rep. Bonget Marcos and wife Liza Araneta Marcos.
Speaking with veddy British accents, they said: 'It was lola (grandmother) who taught us how to appreciate beauty in everything. Lola taught us how to pray and thank God every day. She instilled in us the importance of respect to our country's elders, traditions and cultures. Many people still think our grandmother is crazy or bad. If you only know how malambing (affectionate) and loving and generous she is to her whole family and our country.'
Imelda's second daughter, Irene Araneta, so pretty in a chartreuse pi'a outfit by Pepito Albert, was with sons Alfonso and Luis, a dead ringer for the young Ferdinand Marcos.
Applauding the video presentation were two of Imee's sons, Mike and Borgy Manotoc, who refused to be photographed.
Imelda's only son, Bonget, who spoke and joked just like his father, said: 'I think there's a mistake in the d'cor tonight. Look at my smiling Mommy'she doesn't look 80 at all. She is the glue of our family, who keeps us all in check. It is this mother's love that helped us survive and find happiness through laughter and sharing. And you know what' She might outlive us all.'
Nonstop singing, eating
It was a night of nonstop singing with performances from loyalists Victor Wood, Anthony Costelo, Dulce and even Imelda Papin, who sang via satellite from Las Vegas, USA.
There was also nonstop eating. From the Romblon Room to the seawall fronting Manila Bay, buffet tables groaned under the weight of calorific roasted calf, lamb, beef, turkey and chicken.
Cuisine from Japan, Greece, China, India, America and of course, Filipino, satiated every whim and appetite. Giant tuna, innumerable oysters, salads of every nation fed even the drivers, bodyguards and helpers of the mostly swellegant, octogenarian set. There were a dozen desserts and they were refilled every hour on the hour.
The French-owned Sofitel Hotel, which Imelda first built for an International Monetary Fund (IMF) confab in the '70s, sponsored the whole affair.
No booze
No booze was served. Freshly squeezed juices, soft drinks and agua con hielo (iced water) with lemon slices'which Don Ado Escudero and I had with Splenda'flowed like a colorful river till the last guest left at 3 a.m.
Of course, Imelda sang near midnight: a Chinese folk song, a Visayan lullaby and her swan song, 'Gaano Kita Kamahal.'
But it was Imelda's short speech that was the last word in truth and jest. 'I had the best, best, best life. I had the worst, worst, worst life,' she said.
Laughter, cheers and a standing ovation ushered in her birthday cake from family friend, Vic Magsaysay, who surprised her with a bag full of chocolate gold bars.
Marcos gold
Imelda blew out her many tiny candles and then breathlessly exclaimed: 'Tingnan ninyo (You see), here is the Marcos gold you are all looking for.'
It would seem she has a self-deprecating sense of humor, a smile from the heart and grace under pressure when meeting her every appointment with destiny.
Just like greeting life at 80.
Imelda Marcos sure she'll beat corruption charges
By Jim Gomez – 4th July 2009
She
glided down a red carpet with a bouquet of roses, trailed by
tuxedo-wearing violin and flute players who rendered her favorite love
song. She blew out the candles on her 80th birthday cake amid
glittering confetti and fireworks.Former Philippine first lady Imelda Marcos, notorious for her vast shoe collection and unabashed opulence in her days in power, used the celebration late Thursday to express confidence she would defeat the last remaining corruption cases against her. She and her late husband Ferdinand were accused of plundering the country's coffers during a two-decade rule that ended with his 1986 ouster.
"I'm now into the last of 910 cases," Marcos told nearly 1,000 guests, mostly from wealthy families.
"I can brag this to the whole world and say I have no mission that failed, I have no project that failed, I have no case that will lose," she said, to applause.
Newsweek magazine in April portrayed her as one of the world's greediest people, but it did not upset Marcos. She said she pleads guilty for being the "greediest for the good, true and beautiful."
When authorities looked into her closet, she said, "they only found shoes."
Her husband and his cronies allegedly amassed ill-gotten wealth estimated at $5 billion to $10 billion when Marcos was in power. The Presidential Commission on Good Government, created to recover the Marcos billions, says the government has only found cash and assets totaling $1.63 billion.
Despite some 900 civil and criminal cases she has faced in Philippine courts since 1991 — cases ranging from embezzlement and corruption to tax evasion — Marcos has emerged relatively unscathed and never served prison time. All but a handful of the cases have been dismissed for lack of evidence, and a few convictions were overturned on appeal.
Marcos will forever be remembered for the dazzling jewels and 1,220 pairs of shoes she left behind in the presidential palace after the "people power" revolt that toppled Marcos' authoritarian regime in 1986 and forced them into exile in Hawaii.
At the party, Bayani Fernando, former mayor of a shoe-making town near Manila, gave Marcos a pair of locally made pink stilettos, saying it was one more pair for her world-famous collection.
"Oh thank you, I have one more pair of shoes," a beaming Marcos said as she waved the gift for all to see. Amused friends around her dinner table erupted into applause.
She remains unashamed of her past, including the many lavish beautification and cultural projects she launched amid the Philippines' extreme poverty. One of them is the swank Manila seaside hotel where her birthday bash was held.
Marcos' party, which aides said was paid for by friends, was reminiscent of the extravagant gatherings she threw in her heyday. Opera singers and a pianist performed on a stage adorned with her portrait. Marcos-era friends showed up, including former Indonesian first lady Ratna Sari Dewi Sukarno, who flew in from Japan for the party.
Asked if the lavish party was too much amid the financially difficult times, Marcos acknowledged that she, too, was overwhelmed.
"It's a little too much," she said. "But there is no extravagance of beauty and love."
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