Once upon a time, in a land not so far away, a man named Marcos, who fancied himself as the legendary Malakas built this monument for himself in the mountains of Tuba, Benguet.
He wanted a grand monument. It would be much much grander than Mt. Rushmore because he will have the mountain all to himself unlike Lincoln, and Washington, and that other President who had to share the limelight with the others. Co-starring lang sila habang si Marcos ay main and only feature.
But Marcos wasn’t contented to be the only dweller of the mountain, so he kicked out the Ibaloys who lived there since time immemorial.
And so the days passed. And the days turned to years. Then the century turned. Then this is what became of Marcos.
PHOTO CREDIT: Andy Zapata/Baguiocity.com
Since marcos is long gone, I wonder if the Ibaloys who used to live there have any legal recourse to reclaim their property on that mountain.
whoa, it doesn’t look anymore like the monument i once saw it to be. not knowing about the story of how that monument came about, i would have felt bad about how neglected it has become. now knowing the fate of the people who once inhabited the place, i wonder about the status of the land.
For a second I thought it will be replaced by GMA’s face. Well, with her kind of governance, I wouldn’t be surprised.
Hi Wil,
I think the court has ordered the return of the land to its original owners. I should do an update on what happened. Thanks.
Hi Arcibald,
According to some news reports I’ve read, the original owners won in court yata but I don’t know if its final. I’ll try to do an update later. Thanks.
Hi Lovelyn,
I agree with you. I actually wanted to tie the article to GMA but ran out of time to do it hehe. Thanks.