Delusions of a Dictator: The Mind of Marcos As Revealed in His Secret Diaries - Hardcover

Rempel, William C.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0316740152 ISBN 13: 9780316740159

Publisher: Little Brown & Co, 1993

Synopsis

Drawing on entries from Ferdinand Marcos's secret daily journals, a journalist explores the mind of the dictator, from the height of his power in the late 1960s, through his growing unpopularity and intrigues, to his final collapse.

About this title

From Kirkus Reviews:

In the aftermath of his 1969 reelection as president of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos began keeping a secret diary. Rempel (who broke the story of this 2,500-page handwritten testament in The Los Angeles Times in 1988) now draws on entries from the manuscript (still classified in the Philippines) to offer intriguing perspectives on how a corrupt, messianic chief executive convinced himself over a three-year span that it was in his troubled country's interest to proclaim martial law and to govern by decree. By the daily journal's account, as well as by the author's focused narrative, Marcos was an arguably paranoid eminence for whom cognitive dissonance became a way of intellectual life. In the wake of student protests and media attacks precipitated by ill- advised economic initiatives and his involvement in a notably sleazy sex scandal, Marcos came to believe that the nation needed him more than the democratic principles to which his regime paid lip service. Leaving little to chance, he created a Red Menace out of whole cloth, taking calculated refuge in anti-Communist, pro- American politics designed to buy time in ongoing battles with political foes--and to pave the way for authoritarian rule. But when it became apparent that those drafting a new constitution could not be bribed or otherwise persuaded to remove bars to his serving more than eight years in office, Marcos started down the twisty road to despotism. With Manila beset by a series of civil disorders, he staged a well-planned coup and seized absolute power on September 23, 1972. It took Filipinos nearly 14 years to oust him and to regain their freedom. A revelatory record that confirms history's verdict on one of the Third World's least appealing strongmen. (Eight pages of photographs--not seen.) -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

From Publishers Weekly:

Written by a Los Angeles Times reporter who covered the story, this absorbing historical narrative chronicles the 1000-day period from the start of Philippine president Ferdinand Marcos's second term in 1969 to his declaration of martial law in 1972. Drawing on Marco's diary--which "offers illusion as fact, paranoia as genuine menace, personal ambition as the will of God"--Rempel recounts the turbulent events leading up to the "ambush" of Marcos's defense secretary during a time of civil unrest. It was a staged provocation that opened the way for the arrest of Benigno Aquino, Marcos's powerful political foe, and the imposition of martial law. The diary exposes Marcos's towering ego (he viewed himself as a conbination of Caesar and Napoleon), his fears of betrayal and his refusal to deal realistically with the escalating opposition to his rule. Rempel briefly relates the upshot: Aquino's assassination after his return from exile and the subsequent "People Power" movement that forced Marcos out of office to make way for the martyr's widow, Corazon Aquino. An enlightening account of the transformation of a democratically elected leader into a despot. Photos.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Little Brown & Co
• Publication date: 1993
• ISBN 10: 0316740152
• ISBN 13: 9780316740159
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 288