The Philippines Digging for Treasure

A week after Ferdinand Marcos touched down at Hickam Air Force Base in Hawaii, U.S. Customs officials were still examining his luggage. The deposed Philippine President and his 88-member entourage brought with them 22 boxes of freshly minted pesos and 278 crates of jewelry, artworks, gold and real estate deeds. That cache last week became the centerpiece in a tug-of-war between Marcos and the new government of Corazon Aquino, which claimed that the loot and other Marcos wealth abroad legally belonged to the Filipino people. The Reagan Administration found itself caught between its desire to help the fledgling Aquino government and its promise to provide Marcos with a dignified exile. "These are complicated questions," said State Department Spokesman Bernard Kalb of the treasure hunt. "We are sorting them out step by step."

Aquino's attempts to claim the Marcos millions topped a week in which the new President moved to consolidate her power. She freed prominent insurgents, including the founder of the outlawed Communist Party, took steps to replace local officials loyal to her predecessor and asked for the resignations of Marcos' judges. Aquino found that she could not please all of the people all of the time. The military opposed her decision to free the hard-core rebels, and leftists complained because she had not freed everyone earlier. Meanwhile, Marcos supporters accused her of acting arbitrarily in ousting local officials.

There was widespread support, however, for Aquino's efforts to reclaim the Marcos riches. Within days of the former President's arrival at Hickam, the Philippine Central Bank filed a motion in U.S. district court in Hawaii to obtain an accounting of the money Marcos took with him. By week's end the U.S. Customs Service, which retained custody of the bounty, reported that the 22 boxes contained approximately $1.4 million in pesos. An inventory of the remaining crates is expected this week.

The Administration seemed embarrassed at having provided U.S. cargo planes for Marcos' cash-and-carry exit. "Looking back, it was a stupid thing," said a Justice Department official. "But everything moved so fast." Indeed, in the confusion at Clark Air Base, north of Manila, where Marcos stopped before traveling to Guam and then to Hawaii, U.S. military personnel loaded the President's possessions after only a cursory inspection. Marcos claimed last week that he had originally intended to fly from Clark to his home province of Ilocos Norte. Only when the Aquino government refused to let him stay in the Philippines did he accept President Reagan's invitation to come to the U.S. The Aquino government last week acted to restrict Marcos' future travels. It revoked the passports of the former strongman and his entourage, making it difficult for them to leave the U.S. to avoid legal scrutiny.

The riches seized in Hawaii may be modest in comparison with the real estate, foreign bank accounts and other hidden wealth allegedly controlled by Marcos and his family. Jovito Salonga, 65, head of Aquino's Presidential Commission on Good Government, which has been charged with recouping the fortune, estimated Marcos' assets at between $5 billion and $10 billion. Even the lower figure greatly exceeds the Philippines' 1985 government budget of $3.1 billion. During his tenure as President, Marcos received an annual salary of $5,700.