Ferdinand Marcos: A Comparative Analysis to Niccolo Machiavelli’s The Prince

Our inevitable quest of exploring and understanding the human nature led us to scores of discovery, each with their own significance and application. What has become the most immensely studied entity in the society when one deals with human nature is the idea of leadership. By this, one who wishes to become the leader makes use of various strategies to win the position and in turn, direct, organize and secure his constituents, the government and everything in the realm. Case studies have notably discussed and demonstrated why we people through time delved into the idea of leadership so as to secure our survival.

Political leaders from the earlier periods up to the contemporary times significantly in one way or another posed and established their own identities, positively or negatively affecting their subjects. Governed by their precepts in accordance to the norms accepted by the society or influenced by prominent ideologies, they lead respective subordinates and the whole the social order in turn to achieve progress. The late President Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos, twice elected to the presidency before he declared martial law and seized dictatorial powers in 1972, contributed both promotional and ruinous impacts for the economy, the society, and the political institutions of Philippines.

Batas Militar, exposing each and every detail of Marcos’ reigning years, showed very profound manifestations of the political realism in a society by Niccolo Machiavelli. Exercising his sovereign power for almost twenty years, he has established the essence in practice of the so called prince according to Machiavelli. By all means, one can then deduce that what has governed Marcos’ authoritarian leadership during his term and what he has become too attested Machiavelli’s Political Realism. In this regard, politics are to be analyzed from the viewpoint of politics alone. To our concern, Marcos’ political activities classifying him as the local Machiavellian need to be examined purely the way it have been, limited by the political scope.

Ferdinand Marcos was born on 11th day of September, 1917 in Sarrat, Ilocos Norte. During the Second World War, he served as an officer in the Philippine armed forces, claiming afterwards that he had led a guerrilla unit, the Maharlikas, against the Japanese. Nevertheless, he has done a little or none at all to the anti-Japanese activities. He was elected as a representative for his province as a Liberal party candidate to the Philippine Parliament, considered as the youngest member of the House. After successive re-elections in the House, he shifted to the Senate, even achieving topmost of the votes in 1959. He switched his allegiance to the Nationalista Party after his nomination from the former party was not supported. Still, he won the presidency on 1965. Giving words of improving living conditions of most neglected Filipino groups and non-gentries, he was the first president of the Philippines to win a second term.

Nevertheless, a number of domestic dilemma rose which included increasing crime rates, violence, student oppositions and relative social unrests prevailed in the country. There has been an active widespread recruitment among the urban and rural poor for the Communist Party of the Philippines and other movements against the current administration. The New People’s Army, a CPP military wing, has started massive conscriptions even among the youth. Reasons for his pursuance of constitutional convention thus became evident to not abolish the two-term limit for the presidency so as not to leave the position after 1973. As Machiavelli asserted, the ruler’s respective virtues do not lie on the ideal assets and qualities but are rather related to the acquisition of power and in turn preservation of it. This is basically the real world concept and practice in the political field, that emphasis are being given on what the rulers actually do and not what they should do ideally.

Rulers, as described by Machiavelli, should be well-equipped of the intricate and irrational art of politics. Likewise, Marcos established his own force and effective deceiving skills in his struggle for power. Niccolo Machiavelli, whose wirings in the statecraft have led his name to association with cunning and imprudence, is known for being a political philosopher, statesman and historian. His work, The Prince, unlike any other documents of his time, deals with the realistic accounts for the governance’s success. While the rest in the classical period suggested good and ideal qualities for a leader, he (Machiavelli), proposed and developed concepts the other way around. A well-organized and established government according to him should possess cunning, dishonesty and deception. His idea, however, is inapplicable to the present setting as it would definitely subject the leader to his downfall.

Marcos made use of several tactics to cover up his plunder of the national wealth and resources. As political upheavals arise, he utilized strategies like unprecedented violence and clever propaganda to weaken the oppositions. Throughout his term, legally administered or not, Marcos practiced the necessity for corruption so as to preserve his stay in the office. As Machiavelli have indicated in his writings, the leader must do anything to keep his colleagues and most especially, his subjects in general to remain faithful to him by imposing the need of the state for his leadership.To hasten the economic development and mostly, to establish good image to the country, President Marcos implemented a number of economic programs. This started the role of deception for from at this point on, he gazed in awe at the trust and loyalty that the people gave him just so he could take advantage of them in return. When the people realized other side of the leader, he proclaimed the Martial Law, to which in accord to the constitution should be a system of rules imposed to overcome insurgencies to some extent and resolve national disturbances. This, however, led to injustice, in which only his family, relatives and cronies were protected by the said law, who were revealed to have plundered the economy. To keep them in wealth and unassailable power , arbitrary arrest, detention, salvaging and torture were the standard scenes in his later stay in the presidency. By force and fraud indeed, he was able to keep the position in his cruel grip.

He, just like the prince, was able to sustain his authority by preparing sustained armies by his side, literally holding true for his allied forces locally and internationally (US). In this regard, the very aim was to uphold prosperity in the country so as to control as well political upheavals against him. Furthermore, he best personified the characteristic feature of rulers in history like “the fox and the lion”. All endorsed policies in the platform of the contending party against him were uncovered and all opposing powers were unfolded in his unsparing hands to signify the fox. Similar to a lion, he straightforwardly executed various shrewd tactics as mentioned above. Many people either died or were imprisoned for their opposition thus. He was definitely ruthless to his enemies, mastering crafty skills to protect his allies, families and identity. Claiming that the proclamation of the said law was the prelude for the establishment of “Bagong Lipunan”, his family have only practiced corruption with their undeniably lavish lifestyle. Being generous to his colleagues and supporters, the system of “crony capitalism” became evident as they controlled monopolies in industries and the like, breaking the real essence of democracy in the Philippines. He for example gave the authority in handling express ways to Rodolfo Cuenca, banana plantations to Antonio Floirendo, Toyota to Ricardo Silverio, tobacco and food corps. to his mother and San Miguel Corp. to Eduardo Cojuangco.

Lastly, in any society one can think of, subjects would always favour leaders who by all means follow the good norms and custom people prefer the most. As Machiavelli have mentioned in his works, a ruler must show to his subordinates the ideal or should we say, sterling qualities even if it does not reflect the ruler in reality. This is only to entice his subjects, make them believe of his pure or unadulterated goals for the country’s improvement. Marcos appeared to be like this in his stay even more evident when he temporarily disclosed the law when the Pope has arrived.
Indeed, Marcos was the prototype of the cunning political ruler portrayed in The Prince, a local Machiavellian of the Philippines. This subtle analysis, therefore, provides an examination of the levers of power available to absolute rulers, to better understand the political economy of authoritarianism, especially one that had turned the country in despotism.

References:

Background Material for the Online Lecture on “Machiavelli and the Rise of Political Realism”.
Batas Militar (Documentary Film).
Michael Curtis (ed), Great Political Theories vol.1 (New York: Avon Books, 1981). pp. 215-17,
219-32.
Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
"Niccolò Machiavelli". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. 1913.
http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Catholic_Encyclopedia_(1913)/B2_Machiavelli.
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John Mark Katindig Torres