The Marcos File: Was He a Philippine Hero or a Corrupt Tyrant?

The Marcos File by Charles C. McDougald, 1987

Who and what was Ferdinand Marcos? If he wasn't an authentic war hero, how did he get 33 medals to become "the most decorated soldier in the Philippines?" As president of the Phillippines, was he (according to his cronies) a statesman--or (according to his critics) a scoundrel? If he is worth a billion dollars, how did he get it? The world now knows that Marcos never was what he claimed to be. The soldier-statesman image was a myth. Certainly a master politician--he was intelligent, shrewd, and ruthless--but his weaknesses ultimately led to his undoing. His quest for money proved to be boundless, and his quest for immortality revealed yet another dimension to his personality--a sinister belief in the spirit world and the supernatural. And then, of course, there is the rags-to-riches saga of Imelda, a Phillippine Lady Macbeth who hated the unavoidable comparison with Evita Peron.
What the world does not know is how Marcos managed to seize control of a contry and to keep it for over 20 years--how he cunningly used the military as a police force, manipulated his country's laws, subsidized family and friends, and drained the country's resources. His ambition was almost a tangible force--and surely a merciless one. The Marcos file strips away the myths and presents the truth in a rare combination of scholarship, color, and excitement. The facts are all vividly presented here--documented, yet stranger than fiction.  (Source:  amazon.com)