Ferdinand Marcos Jr visited Australia on Tuesday, days after securing the Philippine presidency.
HIs visit drew a small number of protesters to a house he was reportedly staying in.
“It is more of a private trip for a much-needed rest and vacation of president-elect Bongbong,” his spokesman Vic Rodriguez said, calling Mr Marcos by his nickname. he said he would return to Manila on Thursday.
While he was in Australia, Mr Marcos received a phone call from Prime Minister Scott Morrison to congratulate him on winning last week's election.
A small group of Filipino protesters gathered outside an address in central Melbourne carrying placards that read, “Tax evaders not welcome here” and “Tyrants not welcome here”.
Mr Rodriguez was critical of the group.
“It’s embarrassing for Filipinos. It’s not a Filipino trait to shame or embarrass his fellow Filipino in another country,” Mr Rodriguez said.
“I think the best authority or person to say whether he is welcome or not are the Australian government, and not fellow Filipinos who are there because they are full of hatred and have a very bitter heart.”
The president-elect is the son of dictator Ferdinand Marcos, who died in exile in Hawaii in 1989 after being ousted by a popular uprising. The family lived famously opulent lifestyles, but denies siphoning off billions of dollars of state wealth.
Mr Marcos Jr's electoral victory, which returns one of Asia's most notorious political dynasties to power, has divided the country.
Mr Marcos, 64, won the presidency with nearly 59 per cent of the votes last week and will be sworn into office next month.
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Ferdinand Marcos was president of the Philippines from December 1965 to February 1986. AFP -
Former US president Richard Nixon speaks with Marcos during his visit to the White House on April 1, 1969. Getty Images -
Marcos sits with his wife, Imelda, and their children, from left, Bongbong, Iren and Immee in Manila in November 1969. AP -
Marcos is interviewed on March 11, 1985, by Georges Biannic, Agence France Presse regional director for Asia and the Pacific, at Malacanang Palace in Manila. AFP -
Marcos salutes during the 84th anniversary of the foundation of the Philippine Constabulary in Manila on August 25, 1985. AFP -
Marcos and his wife, Imelda, appear before about 35,000 college students undergoing two-year compulsory military training in Manila on November 15, 1985. AFP -
Marcos speaks to journalists during his campaign in his home province of Ilocos Norte on December 17, 1985. Reuters -
Marcos takes the oath of office on February 24, 1986, in Manila while his wife looks on. AFP -
Marcos, Imelda and Ferdinand Marcos Jr, far right, stand on the balcony of Malacanang Palace on February 25, 1986, right after Marcos took the oath of office. AP -
Ferdinand Marcos Jr, also known as 'Bongbong', autographs a portrait of his father during a campaign rally in Manila on May 5, 1995. AFP
Challenge to election results
Human rights activists have asked the Philippine Supreme Court to block Congress from proclaiming Mr Marcos Jr as the next president, alleging that he lied when he said he had not been convicted of any crime.
The Commission on Election twice dismissed their petition and six other similar complaints to cancel Marcos Jr.’s candidacy papers ahead of the May 9 vote. The petitioners elevated the case to the highest court on Monday, saying Mr Marcos Jr was convicted in 1995 of tax evasion with a jail term, which should have permanently barred him from seeking public office.
A 1997 Court of Appeals ruling upheld Mr Marcos Jr’s conviction for failing to file income tax returns from 1982 to 1985 and ordered him to settle his unpaid taxes and fines, but did not mention any imprisonment.
Most of the petitioners are leaders of groups representing survivors of martial law in the 1970s under his father. They want the court to temporarily block the Senate and the House of Representatives from undertaking an official canvassing of votes starting next week that would eventually proclaim Marcos Jr. as the winner.
“Our petition notes that a candidate’s imminent victory cannot cure his ineligibility,” said Fides Lim, spokesperson of one of the human rights groups.
“If the Supreme Court were to allow such a brazen lie to trump the rule of law, all substantive eligibility requirements in all future elections can be circumvented by ineligible candidates who happen to secure a victory,” she said.
