Tatler speaks to the wife of the 17th President of the Philippines about her family, advocacies, role, and dreams for the country
Let’s be honest: when it comes to public figures, we like to feel like we’re in the know, parsing what little tidbits or gossip we hear from so-called reliable sources, and feeling like we have some control over the narrative. When we weigh in on the partners of these luminaries, the fact that there’s less to go on makes our ‘learned’ views take on an even more sotto voce aspect!
Pundits have long commented on political leaders as part of their beat; and just reflect on the media coverage of their partners such as Michelle Obama, Melania Trump and Brigitte Macron. Marie Louise “Liza” Araneta-Marcos can now count herself among their numbers, as she’s inescapably visible alongside President Bong Bong Marcos during his official functions and state visits. Since assuming the role of first lady in June of 2022, she’s kept relatively quiet. Yet, depending on one’s political persuasion, there’s a maelstrom of contradicting impressions and opinions about what makes her tick. Ironically, this includes how outspoken she is, and her purported shadow role in the current administration. And that’s just the tip of the chatter iceberg when it comes to Liza.
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Full disclosure: I’ve been a friend of our president since the early Seventies; some of my years in England doing my A Levels and studying at university, intersected with his stay there. In the early Eighties, I enrolled at the Ateneo Law School, and Liza was among my classmates. I recall how she was super-friendly and engaging, became the crush of several classmates, and a darling of the faculty. (So yes, it’s likely that I had made Liza’s acquaintance before Bong even knew she existed.)
I’ve followed her career as a practising lawyer and teacher of law in various academic institutions. I don’t think she’ll mind my saying that she’s obsessive-compulsive—a stickler for detail, the dotting of every “i” and the crossing of every “t”. She has extraordinary organisational skills and is a queen of logistics. As befits a lawyer, she’s logical and argumentative—sometimes to a fault.
Araneta-Marcos is not an avid follower of fashion, and if not for the demands of the office and having now to be a patron of Philippine design and artisanal skills, she would pick dressing down over dressing to the nines any day of the week. She was not born for social media, which usually requires the carefully constructed and cultivated rendering of supposed everyday reality. It’s the light, no make-up make-up look, artfully tousled hair, and rearranging the bed sheets, with the lighting just so, and then typing in “Woke up, hello new day”—and not the genuine bleary-eyed moment when we first awaken.
She has had to learn to be patient with this kind of made-authentic artifice. She’s New York brash, with a Do-it-or-I’ll-kick-your-butt attitude; impatient and quick to call you out when needed, and absolutely herself at all times. Sticking out your tongue during the inauguration of the president may not be what you’d expect of a first lady, but that was pure, unadulterated Liza. While some berated her for being “undignified”, I loved how, in response to someone greeting or teasing her, we saw her genuine, knee-jerk reaction.
I mention all this because, before I conducted the interview, I clarified that this wouldn’t be some sugarcoated PR fluff piece. But neither was it going to be a hatchet job. I had prepared a set of questions, and I wanted to address several things that continue to be said about her—and for readers to read her replies and draw their own conclusions.
I love that her response to being informed of all this was “Game!”
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