Philippines’ former first lady Imelda Marcos in good condition in hospital

MANILA — Former Philippine first lady Imelda Marcos, mother of the incumbent president and widow of the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos, is in better condition in hospital, her daughter, Senator Imee Marcos, said on Wednesday.

The 94-year-old, renowned for amassing more than a thousand pairs of shoes and a vast collection of jewels during her husband’s 20-year autocratic rule, was put on antibiotics as she suffered from fever and slight pneumonia, her son had said.

“She is OK,” her daughter, Imee Marcos, told reporters. “No more fever but we are being careful because of her age.”

She added, “I think she’s all right,” but did not say when her mother would leave hospital.

On Tuesday, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said his mother, being treated in hospital for the fever and pneumonia, was in good spirits and had no difficulty breathing.

Imelda Marcos and her family have been accused of looting more than $10 billion from the impoverished Southeast Asian country in bank deposits, shares, jewelry, art and property before her husband was ousted by a popular uprising in 1986.

They fled to exile in Hawaii, where the elder Marcos died in 1989. Imelda Marcos and her children returned to the Philippines in 1991, retaining their influence with vast wealth and far-reaching connections, and wasted no time climbing back to power.

In the last three decades, the government has recovered about half of the wealth the family and its associates were accused of plundering.

Imelda Marcos was charged with civil and criminal crimes, but some cases were dismissed, and a 2018 graft conviction remains under appeal. — Reuters