Malacañang hands off SC decision on Imelda jewels

Malacañang said it respects the Supreme Court (SC) decision upholding the government forfeiture of the jewelry collection of former First Lady Imelda Marcos.

Presidential Spokesman Ernesto Abella however said he was not aware of any plans to sell the Marcos jewelry to shore up government finances.

“I don’t know if we’re going to sell it but we will abide by the decision that it belongs to the government,” Abella said in a Palace news conference.

The Supreme Court recently junked a petition filed by the Marcoses seeking to reverse a Sandiganbayan decision on the jewelry collection, saying the government forfeiture was justified.

The Marcoses reportedly failed to prove the properties were lawfully acquired.

The jewelry pieces, which form part of the Malacañang collection, reportedly cost between $110,000 to $153,000. These were reportedly left behind when the Marcoses fled the country in 1986.

The jewelry collection is kept in the vaults of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).