Imee Marcos calls Bongbong ‘vice president’ ahead of father’s birth centennial

Ilocos Norte Governor Imee Marcos on Sunday called her brother, ex-senator  Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr., "vice president" during a speech ahead of what would have been their father's 100th birthday.

"Huwag kayong mainip. Malapit na," Marcos added.

According to Rida Reyes' report on "24 Oras Weekend," the governor was hinting at a possible, near victory in the protest her brother filed questioning the results of the 2016 vice presidential elections.

Last week, the Presidential Electoral Tribunal junked Bongbong's first cause of action challenging the integrity of the polls.

The Marcos family also celebrated the National Historical Commission of the Philippines' recognition of the Marcos monument in Batac, Ilocos Norte.

"Sa wakas, kinilala rin ng ating kasaysayan na nagkaroon ng isang pangulong taga-Batac, Ilocos Norte," Marcos said.

"History is not done indeed with Ferdinand Marcos. Winter is not done with the Marcos legacy," she added.

A separate ceremony honoring what would have been the deposed dictator's 100th birthday will be held Monday before his grave in the Libingan ng mga Bayani.

President Rodrigo Duterte is among those invited to the private event.

Last Thursday, Duterte issued Proclamation No. 310, declaring Marcos' 100th birth anniversary a holiday in Ilocos Norte. He later defended the decision: "As far as Ilocanos are concerned, Marcos is a hero. Kaya to dwell on this thing for so long a time will just divide the nation," he said.

During his two-decade dictatorship, Marcos was accused of siphoning billions of dollars from the nation's coffers for himself and his cronies. Thousands of Filipinos were also imprisoned, tortured, disappeared or killed during his regime. — Margaret Claire Layug/BM, GMA News