The Never Ending Democratization of the Philippines 97 the economic elite, mostly regional dynasties, dominated politics (Caoili in Morada and Encarnacion Tadem 2006: 264-65). This phenomenon has been called “feckless pluralism” (Carothers 2002: 11). On September 21, 1972, nine months before the expiration of his second and last term as President, Marcos proclaimed Martial Law. This reversed our democratization and allowed Marcos to establish an authoritarian regime. Congress was abolished and the Supreme Court lent judicial legitimacy to his authoritarian government. For 14 long years, Marcos ruled the country by decree. The long dark night of authoritarianism was actually an “executive coup”, or as Marcos described his regime, a “constitutional authoritarianism”. He abolished Congress and turned the legislative building into the National Museum. He imprisoned his political enemies, notably Senators Jose W. Diokno and Benigno S. Aquino Jr. When Senator Aquino Jr. was found to be suffering from a heart ailment, Marcos allowed him to leave the country and seek medical attention in the United States. Marcos' firm grip on the levers of government power gradually loosened. The economic privileges of his cronies slowed the inflow of foreign direct investments. The consequent unemployment was addressed through the export of manpower. Foreign borrowings became an alternative source of revenues of the country whose tax collection base is among the lowest in the region. In the 1980s the Philippines joined Mexico in calling for a moratorium on foreign debt payment. At this juncture, Senator Aquino Jr. decided to return home from his political exile to unite the opposition. He was assassinated at the Manila International Airport on August 21, 1983 while under the custody of the Aviation Security Command. This triggered a nationwide outrage which galvanized the anti-Marcos opposition. The assassination of Senator Aquino Jr. intersected with the economic crisis. These were aggravated by the fractious military and created serious instability in the Marcos government. A faction in the military was disgusted by the perceived discrimination against them. They publicly articulated their grievances. But this made Marcos suspicious, who eventually ordered the arrest of the discontented soldiers. Their protest against discrimination, however, was seen as a mere symptom of the deadlier struggle for power between factions maneuvering to succeed Marcos. On February 25, 1986, Marcos was ousted and his authoritarian regime ended. The military mutiny from the faction called Reform the Armed Forces Movement (RAM) supported by civilian and religious groups ushered what is now called People Power Revolution. This followed the “snap elections”