Imelda Marcos born on July 2, 1929 in Manila, Philippines was a powerful public figure and wielded substantial power during her husband President Ferdinand Marcos’s 20-year rule.
After her mother’s death Imelda’s family moved from Manila to Tacloban where she later won a local beauty contest and earned the title “Rose of Tacloban.”
In 1954 she married Ferdinand Marcos following a two-week courtship.
Imelda was instrumental in Ferdinand’s political success giving birth to three children and undertaking beautification projects in Manila.
She held the positions of governor of Metropolitan Manila and minister of human settlements and ecology.
Despite facing criticism and legal troubles including graft and embezzlement charges Imelda made a political comeback winning two congressional terms and influencing her children and grandson’s political careers.
I have curated a list of the most powerful quotes by Imelda Marcos.
Best Imelda Marcos Quotes
I have a different way of thinking. I think synergistically. I’m not linear in thinking, I’m not very logical. ~ Imelda Marcos.
I always say you can never be extravagant with beauty. Beauty is God made real. Beauty is life. ~ Imelda Marcos.
I do not have 3,000 pairs of shoes, I have 1,060. ~ Imelda Marcos.
If the shoe fits, buy it. ~ Imelda Marcos.
Win or lose, we go shopping after the election. ~ Imelda Marcos.
When I left the Philippines, people looked in my closets hoping to find skeletons, but all they founds were shoes. ~ Imelda Marcos.
I get so tired listening to one million dollars here, one million dollars there, it’s so petty. ~ Imelda Marcos.
The Reagans were dear friends for many years, even when he was governor of California. Nancy appreciated a lot of Philippine-made things. ~ Imelda Marcos.
When they see me holding fish, they can see that I am comfortable with kings as well as with paupers. ~ Imelda Marcos.
The Marcos era was the golden time for the Philippines. We had the lowest crime rate in the world in Manila and real development then. At last, people are starting to understand this. ~ Imelda Marcos.
It is shallow people who think beauty is frivolous or excessive. If you are bringing beauty and god, you are enriching the country. Rice feeds the body, books feed the mind, beauty feeds the soul. It is one thing I can really be proud of and stand tall in the world. ~ Imelda Marcos.
They went into my closets looking for skeletons, but thank God, all they found were shoes, beautiful shoes. ~ Imelda Marcos.
Filipinos don’t wallow in what is miserable and ugly. They recycle the bad into things of beauty. ~ Imelda Marcos.
Famous Imelda Marcos Quotes
The problem of the world today is the people talk on and on about democracy, freedom, justice. But I don’t give a damn about democracy if I am worried about survival. ~ Imelda Marcos.
I love everybody. One of the great things about me is that I have a very positive attitude. ~ Imelda Marcos.
Continuous persecution of widows and orphans is a crime. Even the Bible says there is a specific place in hell for those who oppress widows. ~ Imelda Marcos.
I get my fingers in all our pies. Before you know it, your little fingers including all your toes are in all the pies. ~ Imelda Marcos.
Why should people be afraid that we use a few small pellets of uranium at the nuclear power plant in Bataan? Don’t they know that we’re surrounded by uranium? We have the world’s fourth largest deposits of uranium. Yes, we’re all radioactive – must be the reason why we have so many faith healers! ~ Imelda Marcos.
I was no Marie Antoinette. I was not born to nobility, but I had a human right to nobility. ~ Imelda Marcos.
I have no weakness for shoes. I wear very simple shoes which are pump shoes. It is not one of my weaknesses. ~ Imelda Marcos.
Filipinos want beauty. I have to look beautiful so that the poor Filipinos will have a star to look at from their slums. ~ Imelda Marcos.
The only rich person is a person who is rich in spirit. I have no money deposit. I have only beauty deposit. ~ Imelda Marcos.
More than life, I value vindication. When you are at peace with the truth and you know that you are on the side of the right and God is on your side, you are not afraid of anything, including jail. ~ Imelda Marcos.
Top Imelda Marcos Quotes
What’s wrong with shoes? I collected them because it was like a symbol of thanksgiving and love? ~ Imelda Marcos.
They call me corrupt, frivolous. I am not at all privileged. Maybe the only privileged thing is my face. And corrupt? God! I would not look like this if I am corrupt. Some ugliness would settle down on my system. ~ Imelda Marcos.
Never dress down for the poor. They won’t respect you for it. They want their First Lady to look like a million dollars. ~ Imelda Marcos.
My grandchildren are growing up and they could not understand why the Marcoses are still being crucified although we keep on telling them that we did not steal from the Filipino people. ~ Imelda Marcos.
It is terribly important to do certain things, such as wear over-embroidered dresses. After all, the mass follows class. Class never follows mass. ~ Imelda Marcos.
Perception is real, truth is not. I’m not fighting for money and possessions. I’m fighting for something more precious. I pray that as we enter the cyber age – the Age of Transparency – the facts and the truth will out. ~ Imelda Marcos.
Life is not a matter of place, things or comfort; rather, it concerns the basic human rights of family, country, justice and human dignity. ~ Imelda Marcos.
I am First Lady by accident. I was not elected by the people but here I am. ~ Imelda Marcos.
I really had no great love for shoes. I was a working First Lady; I was always in canvas shoes. I did nurture the shoes industry of the Philippines, and so every time there was a shoe fair, I would receive a pair of shoes as a token of gratitude. ~ Imelda Marcos.
The Philippines is in a strategic position. It is both East and West, right and left, rich and poor. We are neither here nor there. ~ Imelda Marcos.
Popular Imelda Marcos Quotes
Life is not a matter of place, things or comfort; rather, it concerns the basic human rights of family, country, justice and human dignity. ~ Imelda Marcos.
I would have to ask the public to choose between a culture of hate or a culture of love. I am sure our poor will pick the latter. With the Marcos assets, we could regain this value of sharing love with one another. ~ Imelda Marcos.
If you know how much you’ve got, you probably haven’t got much. ~ Imelda Marcos.
It’s the rich you can terrorize. The poor have nothing to lose. ~ Imelda Marcos.
Doesn’t the fight for survival also justify swindle and theft? In self defence, anything goes. ~ Imelda Marcos.
Ferdinand was a gold trader. He was a lawyer for mining companies. When he entered politics in l949, he had tons and tons of gold. When Bill Gates was a college dropout, Ferdinand already possessed billions of dollars and tons of gold. It wasn’t stolen. ~ Imelda Marcos.
We practically own everything in the Philippines. ~ Imelda Marcos.
I hate ugliness. You know I’m allergic to ugliness. ~ Imelda Marcos.
My dreams were always small and puny. All I ever needed was a little house with a little picket fence by the sea. Little did I know that I would live in Malacanang Palace for 20 years and visit all the major palaces of mankind. And then also meet ordinary citizens and the leaders of superpowers. ~ Imelda Marcos.
My husband does not like me to give interviews because I say too much. No talk, no trouble. ~ Imelda Marcos.
I have never been a material girl. My father always told me never to love anything that cannot love you back. ~ Imelda Marcos.
You know, not even your British Queen is called just Elizabeth – she’s Elizabeth the Second. There’s only one Imelda. ~ Imelda Marcos.
The Philippines is where Asia wears a smile. Beautiful products can only be made by happy people. ~ Imelda Marcos.
If you know how rich you are, you are not rich. But me, I am not aware of the extent of my wealth. That’s how rich we are. ~ Imelda Marcos.
Great Imelda Marcos Quotes
In the material world, where everything is valued, when you commit yourself to God, beauty and love, it can be mistaken for extravagance. ~ Imelda Marcos.
I will not say sorry and be pardoned for doing a godly act. ~ Imelda Marcos.
I beg Osama to stop warring. He is a Muslim, and Islam means peace. Nobody wins in a war… I wish I were tapped in the problem about Iraq. I knew Saddam enough that I could have talked him into surrendering. But it’s too late. ~ Imelda Marcos.
My dreams have become puny with the reality my life has become. ~ Imelda Marcos.
I hardly can sleep. I feel that my target now is really to save Mother Earth for humanity. And it’s doable. ~ Imelda Marcos.
People say I’m extravagant because I want to be surrounded by beauty. But tell me, who wants to be surrounded by garbage? ~ Imelda Marcos.
The problems with First Ladies is that you have to set the standard. My role is to be both star and slave. ~ Imelda Marcos.
I will come up with a project that will wipe out poverty in the Philippines in two years. I want to remove the people from economic crisis by using the Marcos wealth. Long after I’m gone, people will remember me for building them homes and roads and hospitals and giving them food. ~ Imelda Marcos.
God is love. I have loved. Therefore, I will go to heaven. ~ Imelda Marcos.
The Philippines is a terrible name, coming from Spain. Phillip II was the father of the inquisition, who I believe died of syphilis. It is my great regret that we didn’t change the name of our country. ~ Imelda Marcos.
President Marcos was investing in precious metals long before he entered politics. ~ Imelda Marcos.
I did not have three thousand pairs of shoes, I had one thousand and sixty. ~ Imelda Marcos.
So these were the 63 top Imelda Marcos quotes and sayings.
If you like these quotes and sayings, then you can also read my other posts on Herodotus quotes and Isoroku Yamamoto quotes.
