A controversial dictator's son running for the Philippine presidency campaigned in the bailiwick of his family's political rivals.

Presidential aspirant Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. arrived to a warm welcome in Paniqui municipality in Tarlac province on April 2 as supporters in red and green - the campaign colours of Marcos and his running mate Davao City Mayor Inday Sara Duterte-Carpio - crowded his caravan on the way to the Tarlac City Plazuela where they held an election rally.

Tarlac is the home province of the late Benigno 'Ninoy' Aquino Jr., a key opposition figure during the brutal 14-year reign of Ferdinand Marcos Sr. in which at least 3,240 were killed, 34,000 were tortured, and 70,000 were jailed, according to global human rights monitor Amnesty International.

Aquino himself was assassinated in 1983 after returning to the capital Manila from exile. His death would spark the people's uprising that removed Marcos Sr. from power in 1986, when his wife Corazon Aquino became president of the Philippines.

The younger Marcos is currently the frontrunner in election surveys, with a large 45 per cent lead over his rival incumbent Vice President Leni Robredo, pollster Pulse Asia said in a statement mid-March.

A probe by news agency AFP said that ‘false and misleading claims have flooded Facebook, YouTube, TikTok and Twitter in the lead-up to the May 9 polls, pounding Filipinos with a relentless barrage of propaganda on platforms’ in support of Ferdinand Marcos Junior, who uses the nickname ‘Bongbong’.

The Philippines will be holding its national elections on May 9 this year.