Bloomberg Quicktake: Now published this video item, entitled “Philippines Election: Anti-Marcos Groups Stage ‘Black Friday’ Protest” – below is their description.
Anti-Marcos activist groups stage a “Black Friday” protest outside the Elections Commission canvassing center in Manila. President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. won the Philippines’ election with the largest share of the vote in 4 decades.
President Joe Biden congratulated Marcos Jr. on his election and looks forward to building a stronger alliance between the two nations, the White House said on Wednesday.
The president told the new leader that he “looks forward to expanding bilateral cooperation on a wide range of issues,” according to a statement. That includes the fight against Covid-19, addressing the climate crisis, promoting broad-based economic growth and respect for human rights.
The conversation provides an early indication of how the Biden administration plans to conduct ties with one of its most important Asian allies, soon to be led by the son of a former dictator.
While Marcos Jr. has said he would maintain the US alliance and tread carefully with Beijing over issues like the South China Sea territorial dispute, little is actually known about how he intends to run the country. Chinese President Xi Jinping has also reportedly offered his congratulations to the new leader.
The Philippines, as a former American colony, has had a mutual defense treaty with the US since the 1950s and sits on the doorstep to Taiwan, making it a crucial player in any potential conflict with China. The relationship faced challenges under President Rodrigo Duterte though as he repeatedly threatened to end the deal before deciding in 2021 to keep it.
Marcos Jr.’s spokesman, Vic Rodriguez, told ABS-CBN News Channel on Thursday “you can expect and look forward to a better relationship with our longtime partner and ally, the United States.” He also said the new administration’s foreign policy would be an inclusive one, though “national interest comes first and will never be compromised, especially on our territorial integrity.”
Marcos said in March that the alliance between the two nations is “a special relationship” and “advantageous to both countries.”
The president-elect, known as Bongbong, won Monday’s election with the largest share of the vote in four decades. It was a triumphant return to power for a family that abruptly fled the country in 1986 as protesters demanded the end of his dictator father’s two-decade rule.
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Black Friday Protest during ‘Friday the 13th’ is an abomination of the Christian church’s special solemnity in the time of devotion to the Passion of Jesus Christ. The leaders and participants of this are espousing extreme hatred and Anti- Christ values. Beware…ingat po tayong lahat.