Govt to probe Imee Marcos' offshore trust

By: Agence France-Presse

MANILA, Philippines -- The government said Thursday it planned to investigate an allegation that the eldest daughter of late dictator Ferdinand Marcos was the beneficiary of a secret offshore trust.

A report published by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism alleged Ilocos Norte Governor Imee Marcos, 57, had failed to declare the British Virgin Islands trust as legally required.

Andres Bautista, head of the Presidential Commission on Good Government, which is tasked to recover the billions of dollars the Marcos family stole from government coffers during the patriarch’s 20-year rule, told AFP his office would look into the allegations.

"We are duty bound to investigate and, depending upon informed preliminary findings, decide whether to pursue the matter," Bautista said.

A popular uprising topped Marcos in 1986 and he died in US exile three years later. His famously extravagant wife, Imelda, who is a congresswoman, has always denied she and her husband were corrupt.

The PCGG has recovered $4 billion in assets that the Marcos illegally acquired, including from Swiss bank accounts and US properties.

But Bautista told AFP in January that, with Imee, Imelda and Ferdinand Jr., a senator, having reestablished political influence in the Philippines, the commission was considering giving up on the chase for the billions more believed still hidden.

"It's been 26 years and people you are after are back in power. At some point, you just have to say, 'We've done our best', and that's that. It is really difficult," he said.

The PCIJ said the work looking into the Marcos trust was a collaboration with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, which includes major foreign media groups.

It said the research had uncovered "scores of documents" showing Imee Marcos was a financial advisor for, and beneficiary of the secret trust, although it was not known what assets it held.

Calls by AFP to Imee Marcos's office went unanswered on Thursday. The PCIJ said she had failed to respond to its requests for comment.

Imee Marcos is running unopposed in next month's mid-term elections for a second term as governor of Ilocos Norte province, which was her father's political stronghold.

Imelda Marcos is likely to retain her seat in Congress representing a district in the province. Ferdinand Jr. is widely expected to run for president in 2016.