THE MARCOS DYNASTY’S SHOCK ANTI-DYNASTY SWERVE: A DESPERATE PLAY FOR REHABILITATION OR THE FINAL BETRAYAL? 🐍👑

THE UNTHINKABLE ENDORSEMENT: A MARCOS AGAINST MARCOSES?

The announcement delivered from Malacañang on December 9 was so audacious, so contrary to the very DNA of the sitting administration, that it instantly shattered the political landscape: President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has made an anti-dynasty bill a priority measure for the 20th Congress.

The sheer hypocrisy of the announcement is a dagger aimed directly at the heart of the Marcos political fortress. Since the beginning of his term, President Marcos Jr.’s official delegation has been almost comically familial:

First Cousin Ferdinand Martin Romualdez served as the powerful House Speaker.

Son Ferdinand Alexander “Sandro” Marcos holds the influential post of Deputy Majority Floor Leader.

The ancestral provinces of Ilocos Norte and Leyte are still entirely governed by an intricate web of Marcos and Romualdez blood and marriage ties.

The Marcos political machine is not a dynasty; it is arguably the archetypal dynasty in Philippine history. His own 2022 campaign was built entirely on dynastic nostalgia for his dictator-father’s reign, sidestepping the uncomfortable truths of corruption and human rights abuses.

Now, at a time when his administration faces a deepening corruption crisis (the flood control controversy) and declining popularity, the President—who has not spoken on the matter himself—is suddenly attempting to champion the very legislation that would erase his family’s future power.

THE PALACE DEFLECTION: MERIT OVER MIDDLE NAMES

The explanation for this dizzying political U-turn was delivered through Palace press officer Undersecretary Claire Castro, whose language was crafted to sound like a champion of democratic reform:

“The political landscape is changing. We can see that there are abusive politicians who circumvent the law. The public demands a fairer system… The President wants the public to choose leadership based on merit and not just surnames.”

This is a masterclass in deflection. The administration, whose legitimacy is fundamentally rooted in a dynastic name and legacy, is now attempting to seize the moral high ground by positioning itself against “abusive politicians who circumvent the law.”

The unspoken implication is clear: Other dynasties are the problem, but the Marcos dynasty—having achieved the presidency through what they frame as merit—is now uniquely positioned to perform the necessary political surgery. This move attempts to re-fashion Marcos Jr. as a “champion of good governance”—a title previously unthinkable for the son of a dictator—precisely when his reputation is most threatened by new corruption allegations.

THE SISYPHEAN TASK: WILL SANDRO BE THE GATEKEEPER?

Advocates have been pushing for anti-dynasty legislation for decades, a Sisyphean task because both the Senate and the House are overflowing with dynastic legislators. The political class is being asked to vote for its own structural demise.

The ultimate irony of this presidential priority measure lies in the House of Representatives, where the bill’s fate rests squarely with the President’s own bloodline.

The First Test: The bill must pass through the legislative process, a pace that can be dictated by the powerful committee on rules. The individual presiding over this process? The President’s son, Ilocos Norte 1st District Representative Sandro Marcos.

Sandro Marcos, a beneficiary of the very “surname” the President now ostensibly wishes to legislate against, holds the legislative throttle. Will he accelerate the passage of a bill that threatens his own political future, or will he apply the institutional brakes, allowing the measure to die quietly, as dozens have before it?

THE DEFINITION TRAP: FAT OR THIN DYNASTIES?

Even if the bill manages to survive the House, the true battle will be waged over the definition of a political dynasty—a battle that the Palace has conveniently delegated to the very lawmakers who stand to lose the most.

The President’s only instruction, according to Castro, was to “study the proposed measure closely so a dynasty is correctly defined.” This vagueness opens the door to legislative sabotage by definition:

Fat Dynasties: Will the law only ban immediate relatives from occupying different elected posts at the same time? (The current, less intrusive proposal.)

Thin Dynasties: Will it cover the more corrosive practice of succession—the passing of a post from one family member to another across elections? (The true core of dynastic power.)

Degree of Relation: Up to what degree of consanguinity or affinity (cousins, in-laws) will the ban extend? A narrow definition could surgically protect the Marcos-Romualdez clan while eliminating smaller, rival dynasties.

This sudden anti-dynasty push is less about principle and more about political survival. As Marcos’ popularity wanes and the corruption crisis threatens to balloon, this initiative is a last-ditch attempt to seize a popular, moralistic banner. The public, watching with intense skepticism and bated breath, is waiting to see if the President will sacrifice his own family’s legislative power for the sake of his image, or if this will be the greatest political feint of his administration. The answer, most likely, lies in how quickly Sandro Marcos allows the bill to disappear.