Marcos Reported More Alert but Still Gravely Ill

Deposed Philippine President Ferdinand E. Marcos, gravely ill after suffering kidney, cardiac and pulmonary failure, was conscious and more alert Saturday but was still barely clinging to life, hospital officials said.

Marcos is now able to understand instructions and to communicate with doctors with hand signals, said Gene Tiwanak, assistant administrator at St. Francis Hospital. But because of Marcos’ extremely weakened condition, the prognosis is still poor, he added.

“This is not a sign of improvement,” Tiwanak added. “He is rallying. That’s a positive statement. But being in extremely critical condition, he could also go the other way.”

Marcos, 71, exiled here with his family since February, 1986, remains attached to a respirator and a dialysis machine, which cleanses the blood. He is being treated with heart medication and antibiotics for a fever and massive infection, doctors said.

The former president’s wife, Imelda, their son and other relatives as well as staff remained in or near the hospital most of the day.

Marcos, who ruled for 20 years before being ousted during a popular uprising amid charges of election fraud and plundering millions from the country’s coffers, has spent the last four months in the hospital, where he was admitted for pneumonia, bronchial asthma and congestive heart failure.

Since then, he has been on a “medical roller coaster” according to Dr. Azucena Ignacio, an internist at St. Francis and one of 12 doctors attending Marcos.

His condition took an extreme turn for the worse when he was rushed into surgery Thursday for kidney failure.

Marcos and his wife are charged with stealing $103 million from the Philippine treasury and fraudulently borrowing $265 million from New York banks to buy property and art. U.S. government prosecutors said last month that Marcos was too ill to stand trial on charges. His wife is free on $5-million bail.