Protests break out as Marcos Jr elected new president of Philippines

Agencies | Manila

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

The Philippines woke to a new but familiar political landscape on Tuesday, after an election triumph by Ferdinand Marcos Jr. paved the way for a once unimaginable return to the country's highest office for its most notorious political dynasty.

Marcos, better known as "Bongbong", trounced bitter rival Leni Robredo to become the first candidate in recent history to win an outright majority in a Philippines presidential election, marking a stunning comeback by the son and namesake of an ousted dictator that has been decades in the making.

Marcos fled into exile in Hawaii with his family during a 1986 "people power" uprising that ended his father's autocratic 20-year rule, and has served in congress and the senate since his return to the Philippines in 1991 Marcos's runaway victory in Monday's election now looks certain with about 98% of the eligible ballots counted in an unofficial tally showing he has nearly 31 million votes, double that of Robredo.

An official result is expected around the end of the month. "There are thousands of you out there, volunteers, parallel groups, political leaders that have cast their lot with us because of our belief in our message of unity," Marcos said in a statement streamed on Facebook, while standing beside the Philippine flag.

Though Marcos, 64, campaigned on a platform of unity, political analysts say his presidency is unlikely to foster that, despite the margin of victory. Philippine stocks (.PSI) fell 3% on Tuesday before paring losses. The drop tracked weaker global equities, though analysts cited uncertainty over what policies Marcos might follow.

"Investors would like to see his economic team," said Jonathan Ravelas, chief market strategist at BDO Unibank in Manila. The peso currency , meanwhile, rose 0.4% against the dollar.

Many among the millions of Robredo voters are angered by what they see as a brazen attempt by the disgraced former first family to use its mastery of social media to reinvent historical narratives of its time in power.

Thousands of opponents of the senior Marcos suffered persecution during a brutal 1972-1981 era of martial law, and the family name became synonymous with plunder, cronyism and extravagant living, with billions of dollars of state wealth disappearing.