Generation Next - Lopez Holdings

July 2009
Celebrating the Filipino child, two foundations
2010
ABS-CBN Foundation at
Knowledge Channel Foundation at
Available online at www.Lopezlink.ph
and
See page 8
Generation next
By Raul Rodrigo
FPHC receives gold
award...p.2
EUGENIO H. Lopez had 22 grandchildren—13 of whom
now work for the Lopez Group and in time will run it. His
grandchildren say that their work today gives them a new way to
connect with their grandfather and his values. Don Eugenio has
been gone for 34 years, but something of his spirit still remains
in the institutions he left behind.
For instance, Cedie Lopez Vargas sees that spirit in the Lopez Museum that she runs today. Cedie said: “My years at the
museum have given me more insight into my Lolo, what he was
really like—how he was such a nationalist, proud to be Filipino. I
think he wanted the museum to tell our people something about
the Filipino soul, through our art and our history.”
Piki Lopez said: “I’m very proud that [at First Gen] we’re
building up a Filipino team that can match any of the foreign
power companies. We can do this job just as well as they. That’s
what is satisfying—when you build a company that will be world
class. I think this is what Lolo used to feel when he ran Meralco;
I think this is part of the satisfaction he derived.”
Gina Lopez said: “The Lopez family has a culture of honor, integrity and service. That’s why I love my family. It’s good to know
that you are within a family tradition which supports what you
want to do. Other families might
not support what I do. But here,
it’s encouraged…. We have to
carry on the family tradition. I
get a big kick out of it—out of
seeing that you are part of a tradition and you are continuing to
make it bloom.”
Turn to page 6
Guess who’s joining
‘Maruja’! ...page 5
Rainy day
rewards from
Power Plant Mall
…page 12
Third-generation Lopezes carry on the values of their grandfather, group founder Eugenio H. Lopez Sr.
Lopezlink July 2009
Lopezlink July 2009
FPHC receives gold award for corporate governance
FPHC chairman and CEO Oscar M. Lopez (3rd from left) and president and COO Elpidio L. Ibañez (extreme right) receive the Gold Award during the ICD Annual Dinner in Makati City. Others in photo are (from
left) ICD chairman for the Chairpersons’ Circle and Philamlife chairman Jose Cuisia, SEC chairperson Atty. Fe
Barin, ICD chairman Dr. Jesus Estanislao and PSE president Atty. Francis Ed Lim.
FIRST Philippine Holdings
Corporation (FPHC) was
among eight companies that
received a gold award (a rating
between 95 to 99%) for garnering the highest ratings, among
169 publicly listed companies, in
the 2008 Corporate Governance
Scorecard Project (CG-Sc), conducted by the Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD), Philippine
Stock Exchange and Securities
and Exchange Commission.
FPHC president and COO
Elpidio L. Ibañez stated, “This
award validates our group’s ad-
vocacy to espouse integrity,
transparency, and fairness in all
our business practices. We are
indeed very honored and would
like to thank the ICD for this
award.”
The companies reviewed
under the CG-Sc Project
were graded based on rights of
shareholders; equitable treatment of shareholders; role of
stakeholders; disclosure and
transparency; and board responsibilities. Average rating
of the publicly listed companies was 72%.
ICD was formally established
in 2004 and is chiefly made up
of individual corporate directors
and reputational agents committed to the professional practice of corporate directorship
in the Philippines in line with
global principles of modern corporate governance. It has been
at the forefront of promoting
corporate governance reforms
in the country. The CG-Sc is
one of the initiatives ICD has
taken towards setting higher
standards of corporate governance. (Benjamin Lopez)
EL3, GL named
First Gen adopts anti- Outstanding Manilans
H1N1 measures
FIRST Gen Corporation
has adopted a comprehensive
Influenza A(H1N1) virus response program to help protect
employees from the virus and
assure the continuity of the
company’s operations, including those of its vital power
plant installations.
Along with Benpres and
ABS-CBN, First Gen is one
of the first among local companies to draw such a response
program. The plan aims to
maintain mission-critical operations and services; minimize social disruptions and
the economic impact of a
pandemic; maintain the safety
and health of employees; and
reduce transmission of the
pandemic virus strain among
stakeholders.
Under the plan, First Gen
has organized two layers of
teams tasked to assume management oversight of the situation.
The executive management
team (EMT), led by president
and CEO Federico R. Lopez,
hands down high-level decisions while holding the responsibility to manage the flu
virus concern on a corporate
scale. Under the EMT are asset management teams, which
decide individually matters
concerning the flu virus issue
within their respective plants
or office locations.
The company has also developed five alert levels in
case of a pandemic: Level 1,
normal operations, no case in
the Philippines; Level 2, some
cases in the Philippines, none
in First Gen; Level 3, more
cases in the Philippines, exists
in locality, none in First Gen;
Level 4, increasing cases in the
Philippines, confirmed cases
in locality, at least one case in
First Gen; and Level 5, full
outbreak, increase of cases in
locality, more than two confirmed cases in First Gen.
First Gen raised its Level 3
alert on June 1 after the number
of confirmed H1N1 cases in the
country reached 14. As of press
time, the number of local cases
has breached the 700 mark, but
no case has so far been detected
in First Gen. Daily tracking of
employees who are sick is also
reported to management as basis for declaring Alert Level 4.
(Joel Gaborni)
ABS-CBN chairman and
CEO Eugenio “EL3” Lopez
III and ABS-CBN Foundation Inc. (AFI) managing director Gina “GL” Lopez were
proclaimed Outstanding Manilans by Mayor Alfredo Lim
in an awarding ceremony held
at the Manila Hotel.
EL3 was named Outstanding Manilan for Telecommunications and Broadcasting for
dynamic leadership of ABSCBN. Through ABS-CBN, he
was cited for having provided
Filipino professionals and
workers meaningful livelihood
and promoted public welfare
through imparting objective
news and information.
GL was recognized as Outstanding Manilan for Environmental Advocacy for her
efforts to better the environment, such as the Pasig River
cleanup campaign Kapit Bisig
Para sa Ilog Pasig and her ini-
Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim hands the Outstanding Manilan 2009
award to Gina Lopez, managing director of ABS-CBN Foundation Inc.
Also in photo is former Tourism Sec. Gemma Cruz Araneta. Photo by
Ryan Ramos
tiatives for waste management
and environment conservation.
She was also cited for “her
sincere love and concern for underprivileged Filipino youth”
with the establishment of the
ABS-CBN focuses on cutting costs
ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp.
has maintained a conservative
stance amid the bleak economic environment as it focuses on
reducing costs and improving
profitability this year.
According to ABS-CBN
chief financial officer Rolando
Valdueza, the company targets
to book P1 billion in savings
from cost-efficiency measures
by 2010.
“We are rationalizing our
cost structure. We have generated close to P500 million last
year in savings in cost and expenses. Our target is close to
P1B for the next three years,
starting 2008,” Valdueza said.
ABS-CBN president and
chief operating officer Charo
Santos-Concio said the company is also planning to improve the performance of its
subsidiaries this year, particularly Star Records, ABS-CBN
Interactive Inc. and ABSCBN Global.
“We’ll do a business review
of our subsidiaries. We want
the efficiency and productiv-
ity of the parent company to
be pushed to its subsidiaries,”
Santos-Concio said.
ABS-CBN chairman and
chief executive officer Eugenio
“EL3” Lopez III, for his part,
said they want to improve the
profitability of the company’s
businesses to reduce its dependence on advertising revenues.
“A significant part of our
business is related to direct
sales, which continue to be
robust. So we are less and less
dependent on advertising to
continue growing our profitability, and that is really the
strategic direction of the company,” he said.
ABS-CBN has reported
P5.29B in consolidated revenues for the first three months
of the year, driven by robust
direct sales, which surged 76%
to P2.52B.
Direct sales consist of cable
and internet subscription fees,
and earnings from the sale of
products such as magazines,
music and video materials.
Earlier, ABS-CBN projected a flat growth in net income
this year. The company has
maintained this forecast despite its record monthly revenues of P1.4B in May 2009.
“We’ll continue to manage
our business as if our income
is going to be f lat,” EL3
said.
He stressed that ABSCBN’s performance can be
more clearly reflected through
its EBITDA (earnings before
interest, taxes, depreciation,
and amortization) rather than
its net income.
“We manage our finances
very differently from competitors. Our net income is not
reflecting our business [as] we
want to expense our expenses
immediately,” he explained,
saying
that
ABS-CBN’s
EBITDA has grown 20% in
the first five months at P2.6B.
(ABS-CBN News)
Children’s Village and her
active participation in AFI’s
projects like Bantay Kalikasan,
Bantay Bata 163 and Bayan
Foundation.
Other honorees are former
Pres. Cory Aquino for Civic
Leadership; Marixi Rufino Prieto for Print Media Advocacy;
Dr. Teresita Uytiepo-Quirino
for Education; Henry Sy for
Business Development; George
Ty for Corporate Social Responsibility; Jaime Augusto
Zobel de Ayala for Entrepreneurial Leadership; Sen. Manny
Villar for Public Service; Mike
Enriquez for Public Service in
Tri-Media; and Jun Lozada for
Advocacy for Truth.
The awards are given annually to recognize men and
women who have contributed
to the development of Manila
and whose achievements have
boosted the prestige of the
country’s capital.
The awarding was part of the
celebration of the city’s 438th
anniversary. (Kane Choa)
EDC takes over Mindanao power plants
EDC president and CEO Paul Aquino (seated, right) and MESC president Ryukichi Kawaguchi sign the transfer agreement with EDC chair
Oscar M. Lopez, EDC directors Federico R. Lopez and Vince Perez, and
Team Energy president Federico Puno as witnesses.
PROMOS & OFFERS
ENERGY Development Corporation (EDC) boosts its current portfolio of power generation assets as it assumes full
ownership of the 52-megawatt
Mindanao 1 and 54-MW
Mindanao 2 geothermal power plants.
The company is taking over
operations of the two geothermal power plants, located in
Kidapawan City, North Cotabato, from the Mindanao
1 Geothermal Partnership
(M1GP), a consortium between Oxbow Power Corpo-
ration and Marubeni Corporation.
“The turnover of the Mindanao power plants will fully
integrate the value chain of
the geothermal business from
steam production to power
generation, like our Leyte
projects. We will be well-positioned to address and benefit from the robust growth in
peak electricity demand in the
Mindanao grid as we offer a
cheaper and cleaner source of
energy,” EDC president and
CEO Paul Aquino said.
“The operation of the Mindanao power plants will continue to be efficient with the
turnover and fusion of expertise of EDC and Marubeni
geoscientists and engineers,”
he added.
The Mindanao plants are
the last of the build-operatetransfer plants turned over
to EDC. In 2006 and 2007,
it assumed operations of the
Unified Leyte plants, consisting of the 132-MW Upper
Mahiao, 232.5-MW Malitbog, 180-MW Mahanag-
dong, and 51-MW Optimization geothermal power plants,
from California Energy and
Ormat.
EDC is the country’s leading producer of geothermal
energy, accounting for 62%
or 1,199 MW of the 1,980MW total installed capacity.
It is positioning itself as the
country’s premier pure renewable energy player with its
acquisition of a 60% equity
in the Pantabangan-Masiway
hydroelectric project. (Toni
Nieva)
Select: Choose your
channels, fees
KEITECH grooms Leyte youth for employment
Bayan strengthens family ties
Meralco charges
drop for 2nd month
Choose your own channel lineup and monthly fee with SkyCable Select! For P280 monthly, its basic Select Starter gives
you more than 20 kids’, news, music and lifestyle channels, including the Disney Channel, CNN, Lifestyle Network, Star
World, AXN, BTV and Cinema One. Customize your lineup
with premium channels that start at P20 each monthly; select
from Playhouse Disney, Discovery Travel and Living, ANC,
Discovery Channel and History Channel, among others. For
more info, call the 24-hour customer service hotline at 6310000 or text 0917-6310000 and 0918-8631000. (Arlene Torres)
Bayan’s
Hong
Kong Family Ties
service
allows
Filipinos in Hong
Kong and their
families in the
Philippines
to
catch up any time
of the day for a low
fixed monthly fee.
Just dial a local
number in Hong
Kong and immediately get connected to a Bayan phone in the Philippines. On
top of that, the Philippine beneficiary gets a Bayan phone that
can also be used for placing and receiving local calls in the Philippines. For more info, call 412-1212, or 171 from any bayanPHONE or bayanWIRELESS landline. (Freya Santos)
ENERGY Development Corporation (EDC) executives led
by chairman Oscar M. Lopez
and president and CEO Paul
Aquino recently inaugurated
the Kananga-EDC Institute
of Technology (KEITECH)
in Kananga, Leyte.
KEITECH aims to provide Kananga’s high school
graduates with the skills that
MERALCO customers experienced a reduction in their
power bills following a 16.52centavo drop in the generation
charge from P4.4235/kWh
in May to P4.2583/kWh in
June.
This is the second straight
month that Meralco’s generation charge registered a significant drop. There was also a reduction of almost 60 centavos
in Meralco’s generation charge
in May.
“The reduction in June was
due to a P2.6115/kWh decrease in WESM prices. One
of Meralco’s suppliers, First
Gas, also reflected reductions
will prepare them not only
for local and foreign employment, but also enable them to
become entrepreneurs. The
school offers three courses:
construction; metals and
engineering; and tourism,
health and social services.
The training will run for 10
months, after which the students will receive national
in its generation cost mainly as
a result of lower fuel cost. San
Lorenzo reflected a reduction
of 12.58 centavos while Sta.
Rita registered a drop of 2.42
centavos,” said Meralco external communications manager
Joe Zaldarriaga.
He added that the June 2009
generation charge is the lowest
since March last year.
“We have always maintained
that whatever savings we incur
from the cost of power we obtain from our suppliers would
be passed on to our customers
in the form of lower electricity bills,” Zaldarriaga said.
(Meralco Corporate Marketing)
certifications.
KEITECH
initially accommodated 120
scholars this school year.
KEITECH is a tripartite
undertaking between EDC,
Kananga Mayor Elmer Codilla and the Technical Education and Skills Development
Authority (Tesda). Kananga
is one of the host communities
of EDC’s Leyte Geothermal
Production Field (LGPF).
EDC provided the threehectare site for the campus
and shouldered the cost of the
roads and physical infrastructures, including the water supply and electrical installations.
Aside from a multipurpose
building, there are buildings
for administration, classroom
instruction, dormitories, computer laboratory and household
services, and separate workshop buildings for carpentry,
welding, plumbing, masonry
and electrical wiring installation. (T. Nieva)
MAC in DMCI model units Meralco recently participated
in DMCI’s sales event dubbed “A summer end serenade: Tivoli Garden
Residences open house” on Coronado St., Mandaluyong City. This is a part
of Meralco’s partnership with DMCI Homes in promoting energy efficient
homes by putting a MAC (Meralco appliance calculator) kiosk as an energy
management tool and displaying energy efficiency messages/collaterals in
the model units. (Meralco Corporate Marketing)
Bayan lets Filipino voice be heard
Yes, you can call me The men behind Bayan and Pacific Telecom Inc. (PTI) show how subscribers can keep in touch with their loved
ones through their inter-carrier roamer services agreement. Staying true to
its thrust of letting the Filipino voice be heard, Bayan teams up with PTI
to boost its international roaming service. Celebrating the new partnership are Bayan chief executive consultant Tunde Fafunwa (4th from left)
and Bayan heads Bong Molina (global markets), Dave Rogers (network),
Joevel Rivera (product development and management), and Jojo de Jesus
(marketing) with IT&E chairman Ricardo Delgado, regional executive
director Joey Mendoza, and Broadband Everywhere Corp. president Mario Mananghaya. (F. Santos)
IN line with its thrust of letting the Filipino voice be
heard, Bayan partners with
ABS-CBN for the “Boto Mo,
I-Patrol Mo” (BMPM) responsible citizenship campaign.
“This campaign started a
year early because the voice
of every Filipino needs to be
heard now,” said Tunde Fafunwa, Bayan chief executive con-
sultant. “Aside from sharing
Bayan’s voice technology in
this campaign, our employees
also pledged to be ‘Boto patrollers.’”
Boto patrollers are active
volunteers who will watch over
their districts, towns and municipalities.
“They can leave reports
through Bayan Voice Box and
ABS-CBN will sift through
them before broadcast,” explained Fafunwa.
The reports may also be
used for news stories that
will come out on newscasts
over ABS-CBN Channel 2,
ABS-CBN News Channel
(ANC), Studio 23, DZMM
TeleRadyo and ABS-CBN’s
regional and global stations,
as well as posted online at
www.abs-cbnnews.com and
Did you miss an issue of LopezLink? Access our archives at www.Lopezlink.ph
printed in broadsheet partners The Philippine Star and
BusinessWorld.
ABS-CBN’s Maria Ressa
shared, “We are happy that
Bayan shares our belief that
each Filipino is powerful and
can make a difference together.” She added that the goal
of BMPM is for all Filipinos
to unite and push for social
change. (F. Santos)
Lopezlink July 2009
HRCOUNCIL
couch potato
15 feted in 48th
‘Gabi ng Parangal’
SERVICE awards were conferred on 15 employees from Lopez Inc., Eugenio Lopez Foundation
Inc., Benpres Holdings Corporation and First
Philippine Holdings Corporation (FPHC) during the 48th Gabi ng Parangal held at the Rockwell Tent on July 1.
This year’s awardees are Lopez Inc.: Noe
Neones (25 years); Eugenio Lopez Foundation:
Rodrigo Enano (20 years); Benpres: Milani
Caimol, Carla Paras-Sison (10 years), and Ea
Theresa Alarcio, 15 years; FPHC: Anne Nicole Palanca (five years); Danilo Lachica, Rene
Mayol (10 years); Benjamin R. Lopez, Ramon
Pagdagdagan, Angelo Macabuhay (15 years);
Federico R. Lopez (20 years); Anthony Mabasa
(25 years); and Elpidio L. Ibañez and Elizabeth
Parulan (30 years).
Former Sen. Vicente Paterno, who once
served as a board member of both FPHC and
Benpres, was also honored during the event.
PR CHALLENGE
MESALA UPDATE
Own your own car now!
MESALA has made it easier for its members to own their own car by
implementing changes in its car loan policy.
The interest rates for brand-new and secondhand vehicles are now
the same, Mesala said.
The nominal rate—the rate used by commercial banks in their loan
computation—is the cumulative interest rate for the applicable term
of the loan, while its equivalent effective rate is on an annual basis.
Mesala is also no longer collecting the filing fee of 1%.
For more info, call 632-8376 or 1622-6079, or email loans@mesala.
com.ph. (Yiessa Borbon)
Term
FROM TO
(mos.)
Brand-new Secondhand
Nominal Effective Nominal Effective Nominal Effective
125.89%10.60%6.62%12.00% 5.61% 10.20%
188.85%10.90%9.77%12.00% 8.35%10.30%
2412.70%11.75%12.98%12.00% 11.19%10.40%
3619.90%12.15%21.30%13.00% 17.18%10.60%
4827.08%12.26%28.77% 13.00% 23.59%10.80%
6035.57%12.69%39.61%14.00% 30.45% 11.00%
The new communicator
By Carla Paras-Sison
ATTRIBUTES of the so-called
“new communicator” took center stage at the June 2009 World
Conference of the International
Association of Business Communicators (IABC) held in San
Francisco, California.
In her keynote address, Cisco
senior vice president of corporate
communications Blair Christie
lauded the presence of over a thousand delegates amid a global recession that has led to budget cuts for
training, thereby “affirming the
relevance of communication in a
constantly changing world.”
According to Christie, the new
communicator “recognizes that the
audience is changing every day, and
that collaborating with a generally
diverse global audience consisting
of analysts, employees, investors,
customers, media, various influencers, and your organization’s own
executive team is the biggest challenge for communication today.”
Enabling collaboration
Hence, the new communicator develops processes, engages
cultures and chooses technologies
that enable collaboration. The
emergence of new media, with
95% of the top 100 newspapers
having their own blogs, allows
communicators to conduct multiway, targeted or customized communication that will impact each
target segment differently.
“This is a time of change. Join
the conversation in the world
outside your companies. Know
what people are talking about.
Evidence-based communication
is a powerful tool because it allows
you to analyze and prioritize the
conversations you want to shape,”
said Christie.
While adept in the usage of
innovative technologies, the new
communicator must rely on timeless communication essentials such
as relationship-building on a much
bigger scale, honesty and creativity. These will help him navigate
the risky world of social media
where everyone is a spokesperson
presenting opportunities and dangers for targeted corporations.
Espousing the principle that
organizations must embrace feedback that comes in various forms,
Christie encouraged “transparent
communication” that is founded on
the age-old values of “simplicity, authenticity, directness and collaboration that supports a call to action.”
Multiple stresses
In the second plenary, The Energy Project president and founder
Tony Schwartz focused on how
leaders can “thrive in a storm” in
view of multiple stresses, including
the current economic downturn.
Defining energy as the capacity
to do work, Schwartz introduced
participants to the concept of increasing capacity by “moving rhythmically between the renewal and
expenditure of energy—physical,
emotional, mental and spiritual.”
Failure to switch between high
performance and recovery, both
characterized by positive energy,
may lead to survival performance
and burnout, both characterized
by negative energy. This is one
reason Schwartz advocated power
naps of 15-20 minutes as a means
to radically improve performance
at midday. “Sleep is more fundamental than eating,” he said.
He further recommended
establishing a ritual of building
“renewal breaks” into the day, such
as eating five to six meals, working
out, taking naps and sleeping at
designated times.
Epitome of new communicator
Finally, in the plenary on sustainable leadership, IABC members met the epitome of the new
communicator, Robert Swan, OBE
(Order of the British Empire).
A polar explorer, environmental leader and special envoy to the
director of Unesco (United Nations Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organization), Swan is
the first man to walk across both
the North and South Poles, witnessing firsthand the damage to
the Arctic and Antarctic.
He shared his amazing journeys
since 1985 and told of key learnings such as the need to inspire
trust, practice patience, checking
oneself for one’s relevance as a
leader and, most of all, remembering one’s dreams.
In the end, the new communicator is pictured as skilled in creatively
using emerging technologies for
collaboration; capable of expanding
and renewing energy for attaining a
healthy work-life balance; and credible in providing sustainable inspiration to his desired audiences.
SSD interest rates lower
MERALCO Employees Savings & Loan Association Inc. (Mesala)
has approved a reduction of 0.25 percentage points on its special savings deposit (SSD) interest rates, general manager Noel Valeza announced.
This follows as the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reduced
its key interest rate by another 25 basis points in April, bringing the cumulative reduction to 150 basis points since December
2008.
Term/Amount
From To
The rates of
90 days
deposits to be
3.50% 3.25%
P100,000-P990,000
placed starting
P1,000,000-P4,990,000 3.75% 3.50%
May 5 are indicated in the table
P5,000,000 and up 4.00% 3.75%
at right.
180 days
Valeza assured
P100,000-P990,000 3.75% 3.50%
depositors that
P1,000,000-P4,990,000 4.00% 3.75%
Mesala’s
SSD
P5,000,000 and up 4.25% 4.00%
interest rates “are
1 year
far better than
P100,000-P990,000 4.00% 3.75%
bank rates conP1,000,000-P4,990,000
4.25% 4.00%
sidering their tax
P5,000,000
and
up
4.50% 4.25%
exempt feature.”
treats
Anne is getting married!
Anne Curtis returns to
ABS-CBN’s Primetime
Bida via “The Wedding.”
She plays Candice
de Menes, who
attempts to save
her parents’ marriage by getting
engaged
to
Marlon (Zanjoe Marudo),
her father’s employee. The mock
Derek Ramsay, Anne Curtis and Zanjoe
relationship even- Marudo star in ‘The Wedding’
tually leads to
preparations for a real wedding. But what if Candice’s first
love Warren (Derek Ramsay) returns to win her back? “The
Wedding” also stars Eula Valdes, Michael de Mesa and Irma
Adlawan, among many others. Fall in love with “The Wedding,” now airing on ABS-CBN Primetime Bida! (K. Solis)
Email subject lines:
Short is sweet!
When
it comes
to subject lines,
length does
matter.
Christine
Kent explains
how to hook them in.
HOW do you convey the timeliness and
brilliance of your pitch—in no more
than seven or eight words, and preferably fewer? Here’s how several PR professionals managed the job.
“Why my acquisition failed”: Shawn
Whalen of Schwartz Communications
in Massachusetts used this in a bid to
woo reporters covering management
issues. “The goal was to show how a
company had survived and become independent again,” Whalen explains. It
worked so well that The Wall Street Journal, which did a story on the company…
(as did Forbes), used the same wording
in its own headline.
“Pearls and paychecks/Sapphires
and salaries”: The Gemological Institute
of America’s career fair and open house
is a vehicle for connecting job seekers
to employers and also to attract anyone
interested in gems. Laura Simanton, senior PR manager for the institute, tied
in the two themes of the fair into a short
and sweet pitch subject. (Pairing two
seemingly disconnected ideas in a pitch
opener is always an attention-getter.)
The result: more mainstream coverage,
and great trade ink.
“Weather to pack sunscreen or an
umbrella”: This… was useful in driving up media responses to the pitch
that Justin O’Neill of Ogilvy PR in San
Francisco sent out on behalf of Weather
Underground. The pitch helped land an
Associated Press article, which then ran
in 19 dailies.
“Colorado: Help bring a cow into
the world”: This kind of subject line
is hard to resist—and Greg Morton of
Praco PR in Denver was counting on
just that reaction when he penned this
subject line for…the Colorado Tourism Office. The pitch won a story in the
New York Daily News and also generated interest from The New York Times
and USA Today.
“Researchers take ‘Fantastic Voyage’ through the human body”: William
Dube of the Rochester Institute of Technology in Rochester, NY was asked to
get coverage for a faculty/student project
at the school. “They had created a 3-D,
virtual tour of the human pancreas…,”
Dube explains. “…Given that the movie
‘Fantastic Voyage’ was about a miniaturized crew traveling through a human,
the line also had nice symmetry,” he
says. Stories ran in The Washington Post
and on the TV program Discoveries &
Breakthroughs Inside Science.
“Veggies for dessert? Blue cheese
gelato!”: With a flavor combination
like this, journalists couldn’t fail to take
a peek at the pitch, written by Claire
Bloxom of Cooper Smith Agency in
Dallas. Bloxom was charged with
pitching new fruit and vegetable flavors
from Paciugo Gelato, an ice cream store
chain. “… What reporter wouldn’t be
able to open the email after knowing
that someone would create such a flavor?” says Bloxom.
Email the author at chrisk@ckeditorial.
com.
‘Agimat’ boys Jolo Revilla, Jake Cuenca, Gerald Anderson and
Coco Martin. Photo by Allan Sancon
‘Agimat’ to cast its powers on
ABS-CBN
Gerald Anderson, Jake Cuenca, Coco Martin and Jolo Revilla are set to cast a spell on Philippine TV in “Agimat.”
“Agimat” is the story of four men whose lives have been altered by a fairy as she gives them special powers in the form
of an amulet. Action, suspense, comedy and drama combine
in this one big project. Let “Agimat” take you to a world beyond the ordinary capabilities of a human being, soon on
ABS-CBN! (L. Dionisio-Piravalasamy)
Piolo in Maruja’s world!
Piolo Pascual joins the mystical world of Cristy (Kristine Hermosa) in “Komiks Presents Mars Ravelo’s Nasaan
Ka, Maruja.” ABS-CBN management kept the hunky
heartthrob’s participation in the series under wraps to create more e x c i t e m e n t
and curiosity among the
viewers. Now it’s time
to let the world know.
What secret does the
Piolo
character of Piolo
Paspossess
that
cual and
will
affect
Kristine
the
whole
Herstory? Don’t
mosa
blink as the
tables turn
on “Komiks
Presents Mars
Ravelo’s Nasaan
Ka,
Maruja”
Saturdays after
“Cinema FPJ”
on ABS-CBN.
(L. Dionisio-Piravalasamy)
Lopezlink July 2009
All-star ‘Wowowee-lympics’
raises P.8M for charity
‘WOWOWEE’ host Willie Revillame and the show’s production staff,
crew and talents were overwhelmed
with joy when they saw that the
Big Dome was packed during the
“Wowowee-lympics.” They were
able to sell 13,000 tickets amounting to approximately P800,000,
which will be given to charity.
The volleyball and basketball
games were fast-paced and full of
surprises. Joining the Star Magic
volleyball lineup were Angelica
Panganiban, Kim Chiu, Nicole
Uysiuseng, Nene Tamayo, Dionne
Monsanto and Janna Dominguez,
who battled it out against Valerie
Concepcion, RR Enriquez and
the ASF dancers.
In basketball, Gerald Anderson,
Diether Ocampo, Zanjoe Marudo,
Jason Abalos, Rayver Cruz, Rodjun Cruz and Matt Evans were
strong contenders with the help of
their coach, director Johnny Manahan. Playing for the “Wowowee”
team were Cesar Montano, Vhong
Navarro, Jhong Hilario, Gab Va-
lenciano and ex-PBA player Alvin
Patrimonio, who went up against
son Angelo, a Star Magic talent.
During halftime, Pokwang gave
a hilarious impersonation of Dionisia Pacquiao, while the Gigger Boys
offered an upbeat dance number to
the tune of the “Boys Over Flowers”
theme songs.
The “Wowowee-lympics” was a
huge success! Aside from bringing
cheer to Filipinos, everyone who
was part of the event was also able
to help those in need. (K. Solis)
Wowowee’ cohost RR
Enriquez (right)
Extending viewers’ ABS-CBN experience
THE ABS-CBN experience doesn’t end with
a button pushed on the
remote control. The network’s licensing group
makes sure of that.
“We want the viewers
to experience the shows
beyond just watching
them onscreen, to make
them…a part of their Kids can now relive Kuya Kim’s adventures
lives,” said ABS-CBN’s in the ‘Matanglawin’ books
head for licensing, Karen Coloma. chandising arm of the network,
The ABS-CBN licensing in charge of the management and
group is the licensing and mer- protection of ABS-CBN trade-
marks. Part of its task is the development of products and consumer
goods for ABS-CBN’s television
brands. Among the best-sellers
are “Matanglawin” books, “Pinoy
Big Brother” shirts and “Lastikman” and “Super Inggo” toys, while
talangkanin, an actual replica of a
dish in “Only You,” is available in
Kaya Korean Restaurant.
“In the Philippines, licensing
of local brands is gaining ground,
having been dominated largely by
foreign brands. But through ABSCBN’s pioneering efforts, the
retail and consumer industry has
come to recognize the potentials
in local licensing,” Coloma noted.
The ABS-CBN licensing
group projects more out-of-thebox licensing programs and concepts that go beyond the norms
of merchandising and into the
promotional side of licensing.
“Now we’re venturing into
sports licensing and celebrity licensing, and moving into events.
The long-term goal is entering
the global arena,” Coloma said.
(Kane Choa)
Red Cross collaborates with Star Records
THE music video for the
Philippine National Red Cross
theme song, “Bagong Umaga,”
was finished recently. This is for
one of the biggest projects of the
Red Cross in partnership with
Star Records.
Top-billed by Toni Gonzaga,
Erik Santos and Yeng Constantino, the upbeat number is included in “I Move, I Give, I Love,” an
inspirational album conceptualized for the 150th anniversary of
the Red Cross
worldwide,
to be released
soon.
The artists
who shared
their voices
for “Bagong
Umaga” revealed
that
they waived
their talent fees
for the cause.
Toni Gonzaga, Erik Santos and Yeng Constantino
“Naging volunteer ako ng Red
Cross kaya nang nalaman ko na
napili ako for this, go ako agad,”
Toni explained.
The organization recently
attempted to set a record for
the largest human formation
of the Red Cross, in addition
to organizing a concert with
the artists involved in the
project, at the Mall of Asia
grounds. (Lorelie Dionisio-Piravalasamy)
‘Dose’ screens at Indiesine!
CINEMA One’s daring and disturbing
gem, “Dose,” is screening at Robinson’s
Galleria Indiesine until July 7!
Top-billed by Yul Servo, Emilio Garcia, Irma Adlawan, Ray-An Dulay, and
introducing the Golden Screen nominee
for Breakthrough Performance of the Year,
Frits Arvhie Chavez, “Dose” is the directorial
debut of award-winning writer Senedy Que.
The film was exhibited at the 2009
Barcelona Asian Film Festival as part of
the “Focus on Southeast Asia” section.
Moreover, it also been invited to the Q!
Film Festival in Jakarta and Bali, Indonesia, and the Hong Kong Lesbian and Gay
Film Festival, among others.
“Dose” follows the unlikely relationship
that develops between an unloved 12-year
old boy, Edy (Chavez) and a lonely gardener, Danny (Servo)—two individuals
coping with their forlorn existence away
from their loved ones. When their friendship slowly breeds intimate familiarity,
the line that defines love and friendship,
passion and trust inevitably intersects. In
the end, theirs become either a complex
relationship or mutual companionship that
defies age and gender.
Catch “Dose” at Robinson’s Galleria
Indiesine from July 1 to 7 as part of the
continuing celebration of Cinema One’s Director Senedy Que (center) with ‘Dose’ stars Yul
15th anniversary. (K. Solis)
Servo and Emilio Garcia.
Lopezlink July 2009
It’s in the
DNA
ONE brother was “quiet
and cerebral,” the other
“guileless, open and approachable.” But they
were united by their drive
to be pioneers in business—Eñing and Nanding
Lopez were always the first
to bring in and introduce
cutting-edge technology to
the Filipinos. At the same
time, there was a strong
focus on philanthropy
and public service, with
Eñing’s famous assertion
that “a greater proportion
of the earnings accrued
from business should be
returned to the people,
whether this be in the form
of foundations, grants,
scholarships, hospitals, and
any other form of social
welfare benefits.”
These character traits,
which carried the family
through the past 80 years,
remain the blueprint
according to which the
present-day conglomerate does business and are
collectively known as the
“Lopez Group DNA.”
“Eighty years later
we remain a conglomerate committed to serving
Filipinos, ready to invest
in leading-edge technology to serve them better,
constantly on the lookout
for new opportunities to
pioneer in service, and
ready to absorb setbacks
and disappointments on
the way to long-term
success,” Lopez Group
chairman Oscar M. Lopez wrote in his overview
of “Passing the Torch.”
TIMELINE 80
1928-1938
The Lopez brothers establish
E&F Lopez, the co-proprietorship that will be the seed
for the future Lopez Group;
at the same time, they take
over the management of
their two sugar plantations
in Negros Occidental. Over
the next 10 years, the brothers venture into newspaper
publishing, shipping, air and
land transport, real estate
and movie houses.
Lopez brothers Ening and
Nanding
executiveFEATURE
Some of the third-generation
Lopezes, the offspring of Geny,
Oscar, Manuel and Presy (l-r):
Brothers Raffy and Gabby
Lopez; Gina Lopez, Cedie
Lopez-Vargas and Cary Lopez;
cousins Jay and Mike Lopez;
Rina Lopez-Bautista; and Geni
Psinakis and Rogy Panganiban.
GENERATION...
from page 1
For them, the work they do today is a way of carrying on the work
their grandfather started over 80
years ago.
Martial law years
When the third generation of
Lopezes was growing up, it wasn’t
clear that there would even be a
Lopez Group in their future. They
spent their formative years in the
shadow of martial law. They saw
how the family business had been
pillaged by the dictatorship in 197273.They all know how quickly and
arbitrarily the world can change.
The tribulations of the martial
law years served one useful purpose,
in that they underscored for the next
generation that it made no sense to
be attached to material wealth. Cedie
recalled: “I learned to make the most
of what I had, which is a very important lesson, and it is important to
learn it when you’re young. So you
don’t feel you’re entitled to all these
things, to money and comfort.”
They had spent 1972 to 1986
finishing their studies and working
for other companies, thinking that
there would never again be a Lopez
conglomerate. Then all of a sudden,
the world somersaulted again, and
the younger generation had to readjust their thinking.
Piki said: “I remember being really
angry with the Marcoses for what they
did to our family. So at that point, definitely I didn’t feel rich or privileged. I
was really resentful and bitter. But all
of a sudden, after the 1986 revolution, the Marcoses were gone. And
so my objective became a lot more
constructive. We had these companies
back, but they were all in shambles,
practically bankrupt. So my energy
became channeled to something more
constructive—helping the family.”
Hard work
When Geny, Oscar and Manolo
Lopez were rebuilding the Lopez
Group after 1986, some of their
children were working alongside
them, getting to know the ropes and
rising through the ranks. The most
experienced entrepreneurial families
know that there is no surer way than
this to spell disaster for a family
corporation than to base corporate
succession on bloodlines instead of
merit. The fact is, the young Lopezes
who entered the family business in
the 1980s went through a harder
time than an ordinary employee.
This is nothing new for the Lopez family, of course: Don Eugenio
was very tough on Geny when he
was starting out in the Chronicle in
the 1950s, and Manolo was made to
pound the streets as a bill collector
and a meter reader for Meralco in the
1960s. For the younger Lopezes like
Gabby and Cedie, who joined ABSCBN, and Piki, who joined First
Holdings, it would be their turn to
go through the gauntlet. Piki understood: “It’s very important that our
businesses should be run as businesses and those of us in the family who
chose to work in the business have to
earn the respect of our peers.”
Gabby Lopez’s path to the top of
ABS-CBN was not easy. His father
cut him no slack. If one day Gabby
was going to run the company closest to Geny’s heart, then he was
going to have to earn it. Geny said:
“I have always judged Gabby more
sternly than I do other people [in
ABS-CBN], and I told him why:
years of the Lopez Group
1939-1948
After the end of World
War II, Eñing and
Nanding make more
forays into the transport
business, establishing
the international airline
Far Eastern Air Transport Inc.
(Feati) in
1945 and
Negros
Navigation
in
1946, in
ad d i t i on
to acquiring
The
Manila
Chronicle
in 1947.
Lopezlink July 2009
1949-1958
The brothers put up Iloilo
City Colleges, now University of Iloilo, in their hometown in 1949. The seeds of
today’s ABS-CBN Corporation are planted with the establishment
of Chronicle
Broadcasting Network
(CBN)
in
1956 and the
purchase of
Alto Broadcasting System (ABS)
and Bolinao
Electronics
Corporation
in 1957.
1959-1968
he had to live up to a higher standard; he had no special privileges;
he had to earn everything.”
Gabby recalled: “He was very
demanding, and he insisted that I
work as hard as he did. He often
castigated me in front of all his
managers—embarrassing
everybody. But that was his style. I never
took it personally. I realized that
what he was trying to instill in me
was a very strong sense of integrity,
and [the need for] staying focused
on the business. He was ensuring
that I learned it properly. I think
his father treated him the same way,
and he passed it on to me.”
After eight years of putting
Gabby through the wringer as the
network’s CFO, Geny was satisfied.
In 1997, Geny named him ABSCBN chairman. Geny said: “I was
fortunate that I had Gabby, who
liked business and who liked the
job and took to it as duck takes to
water. Gabby has worked out very,
very well. I’m quite proud of the guy.
He doesn’t mind long hours, he’s got
a good head on his shoulders, he’s
got good values and he has a vision
about where ABS-CBN can go.”
Lopez values
Geny and Gabby agreed about
what values made for a winning
broadcast organization: “the passion
for excellence, the drive to be number
one, the commitment to public service,
the caring for our family of employees,
and above all, never ever giving up.”
Gabby said: “Those were the
values my father taught us. He knew
those values like the back of his hand.
Over the years, he instilled them in
us so relentlessly that they remain
the essence of our company DNA.
Imbued with these values, we learned
how to win—and how to win with
honor.”
In 1962, the Lopez
brothers create Benpres
as their new holding
company. They venture
into banking via Philippine Commercial and
Industrial Bank (PCIBank) in 1960. This decade saw the organization
of Meralco Securities
Corporation (now First
Philippine
Holdings
Corporation) in 1961
and the subsequent purchase of Meralco from
its American owners in
1962. One of Eñing’s pet
legacies, Lopez Memorial Museum, is unveiled
in 1960.
1969-1978
The Lopezes acquire
Philippine Telephone
and Telegraph Company (PT&T) and
found the Philippine
Engineering
and
Construction Corporation (PECCO,
later ECCO-Asia,
now First Balfour
Inc.) in 1969, and establish the first cable
company in the Philippines, Nuvue Cable
TV Inc. 1971. With
the declaration of
martial law in 1972,
the Lopez Group is
systematically
pillaged by the regime.
Gabby calls Geny “my mentor and
my hero”—the man who taught him
“never to do anything halfway,” and
that ABS-CBN “will always be in the
service of the Filipino.” He said: “I pay
attention to the values that drive the
organization—because if you have the
right values, people will make the right
decisions. Big businesses are driven by
values, not by profits—the profits are
an output of doing the right things.
It’s the way you keep score, but
it doesn’t drive the business. The
values are what drive the business.
I learned the importance of values
from my father.”
Piki underwent a similarly stern
training regimen at First Holdings
and he emerged eventually as CEO
of First Gen, the top Filipino power
producer. He too began to focus on
Lopez values as being the reason for
being in business. He said: “Despite
getting pilloried now and then, we
Lopezes keep going back to public
service, to building better infrastructure and providing better services.
It’s ingrained in us that public service is what we do best and where we
would like to be. We are dedicated
to investing here for the long term,
because the need here for better infrastructure is so great.”
He added: “The power industry
is very visible. Everyone uses it on
a daily basis. The destinies of the
country and our company are intertwined. So there should be a convergence of the country’s objectives and
our objectives as a company. When
you have that kind of convergence,
then you can go very far.”
Social responsibility
The Lopez Group takes pride
in being leaders not just in business,
but also in social responsibility. Don
Eugenio believed that business had
to benefit society at large and not just
1979-1988
The new Manila
Chronicle starts
to roll off the
presses in June
1986, signaling
that the Lopezes’
business rebirth
has started in earnest. In the same
year,
Eñing’s
sons Geny, Oscar and Manuel
reestablish their
control of ABSCBN, Meralco,
and First Holdings. Control of
PCIBank reverts
to the group in
1987.
1989-1998
shareholders. In 1958, he wrote: “We
sincerely believe that a greater proportion of the earnings accrued from
business should be returned to the
people, whether this be in the form
of foundations, grants, scholarships,
hospitals and any other form of social
welfare benefits.”
He practiced what he preached,
with large donations to hospitals,
schools and other worthy causes.
Education and culture were his
favorite causes. He was a generous
donor to his alma maters: the UP,
the Ateneo de Manila and Harvard.
He made a crucial donation to help
found the Asian Institute of Management (AIM). He also founded
Lopez Memorial Museum and the
Eugenio Lopez Foundation to carry
on his philanthropic endeavors.
The next two generations of the
family have continued the tradition
of building a better society through
philanthropy, through several foundations working under the aegis of
the Lopez Group. These foundations
include ABS-CBN Foundation,
Knowledge Channel, Bayan Foundation and many more. For instance,
Rina started Knowledge Channel in
1999. KCFI is an all-educational TV
channel with 14 hours of curriculumbased programs on elementary and
high school subjects such as math,
science and English. KCFI acquires
and produces video programs and
distributes them via cable or satellite
to public schools for free. Students
who watch these programs regularly
score higher on tests and get better
grades as a result. Today, the Knowledge Channel is available to over 2.8
million public school students in
1,800 public elementary and high
schools in 40 provinces nationwide.
Rina said: “Sometimes when we
A revitalized Lopez Group goes
on an expansion binge. This
period saw the establishment
of ABS-CBN Foundation Inc.
(AFI) in 1989, SkyCable in 1991,
Securities Transfer Services Inc.
in 1992, Benpres Holdings Corporation in 1993, Bayan Telecommunications in 1995,
ABSC B N
Bayan
Foundation in
1997,
and First
G e n
Corporation
in 1998.
Turn to page 8
1999-2008
Two major CSR efforts—in
education through Knowledge Channel Foundation
Inc. and in conservation
through First Philippine
Conservation Inc.—kick
off another decade of the
Lopez Group. At the same
time, the growth of member-companies established
decades earlier proceeds
apace, with the list of spinoff firms and subsidiaries
growing longer by the year.
The group makes a
major shift by acquiring
Energy
Development
Corporation, the country’s
largest producer of geothermal energy, in 2008.
NOT all the grandchildren of Eugenio H.
Lopez Sr. (Don Eñing) work for the group of
companies that he founded. But those who do
have had to start from the bottom and work
their way up. In fact, some of them started
working outside the Lopez Group, and were
later reeled in to serve.
For example, 1) Benjamin R. Lopez
( Jay), youngest son of Lopez Group chairman Oscar M. Lopez (OML), first worked as
a management trainee for a European trading
company in Singapore. “It was the early ‘90s
[and] the entire Asia Pacific was booming.
It was a very exciting period,” Jay recalls. He
was moving into his second year when OML
asked him to come back home. “It was, obviously, an offer I could not refuse,” he says.
Jay joined First Philippine Holdings Corporation (FPHC), spent his first few years
with the business development group looking into the electronics and export-oriented
businesses under the late Tato Diaz, but was
soon seconded to Rockwell Land Corporation where he was mentored by Rockwell
CEO Nestor Padilla. After 10 fruitful years
in Rockwell where he learned the ins and outs
of the property development business, Jay
returned to FPHC where he is currently vice
president and assistant to the chairman.
His eldest brother 2) Oscar R. Lopez Jr.
(Cary) also spent three years in the US working for a petroleum company and later a personal computing firm before returning home
to join the information technology department of ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corporation in 1986. After 10 years in ABS-CBN, he
moved to FPHC where he started as one of
two people in procurement. Today, Cary is vice
president for administration with a staff of 12.
3) Federico R. Lopez (Piki), now chief
executive officer of First Gen Corporation,
started in the agriculture side of the business
in 1987, trading fruits and vegetables around
the country, living in the small town of Sta.
Catalina, Negros Oriental, and building and
operating aquaculture farms. In 1993, he
shifted gears and formed the power and energy task force of FPHC that eventually led to
establishing and acquiring many of the First
Gen companies currently under their wing.
“If there’s any powerful legacy that Lolo
Eñing has left us with, it’s that many of our
businesses are imbued with public service.
FPHC spent years trying out other businesses
but somehow we would always be irresistibly
drawn back to providing many basic public
services.
“Of course, these very same businesses
have either been spectacular successes or have
caused us some painful heartaches. These last
few years have given us many experiences both
good and bad and if there’s any major lesson
to take away from all these it’s that in public
service, good intentions are never enough.
Simply having a ‘build it and they will come’
attitude is a sure recipe for disaster. It’s just as
important to win the trust, hearts and minds
of the public and give them the best value for
their hard-earned money. I think Lolo understood this deeply and did this in his own way,
fit for the era in which he lived. But as times
change and the public becomes even more
demanding we have to be ready to meet those
challenges and continue to earn that trust in
new and innovative ways.”
9
During martial
law when many
members of the
Lopez family were
in self-exile in the
US, their cousin 4)
Rogy Panganiban,
Studio Tours manager in ABS-CBN,
worked for a car
rental agency while
another cousin, 5)
Rafael L. Lopez,
chief executive officer of ABS-CBN
Global, pumped fuel
for a gas station. “I
consider it a blessing
in disguise. If the
going gets tough,
we know from our
own
experience
that we can do it,
we can survive,”
says Panganiban.
6) Gina Lopez,
managing
director of ABS-CBN
Foundation Inc. (AFI), started working for
the foundation as head of the disaster desk
reporting to then AFI director Gretchen
Ocampo. After earning her Master in Development Management degree at the Asian
Institute of Management in 1991-1992, she
was appointed to head AFI and thus, began
expanding the reach of projects and adding
to the menu of socially responsible endeavors
that the foundation spearheads, among them
Bantay Bata 163, E-Media, Bantay Kalikasan,
BayaniJuan, and Kapit Bisig Para sa Ilog Pasig.
7) Martin L. Lopez (Mark), vice president
and chief information officer of Meralco
and head of e-Meralco Ventures Inc., joined
Meralco in 1998 as a management trainee. He
went through the lineman’s training course,
climbing poles as high as 30 meters, and
joined field units inspecting illegal connections in order to have hands-on experience of
fieldwork. He eventually got involved in the
technology side of the business.
Although too young to recall any experiences with Don Eñing, Mark grew up with
the same values that the old man taught his
own children. “Working in Meralco today
even after he (Don Eñing) has been gone for
over 30 years now, his legacy still lives on and
you can somehow feel it as you walk along
the corridors of the Lopez Building. He had
a genuine concern for his employees which I
have also seen with MML (Meralco chairman
Manuel M. Lopez, Mark’s dad) throughout
his years in Meralco,” he says.
8) Miguel L. Lopez (Mike), marketing
head of Meralco, explains thus: “My dad
(MML) and his brothers were really tough on
the next generation. They don’t want anyone
saying that we are here just because we are
Lopez grandchildren. They want us to prove
that we’ve done our share in terms of learning
the business. That is what Lolo Eñing did to
them. It’s the same discipline which they are
instilling in all of us. When I came back from
my studies abroad I was offered by NYNEX
(partner at Bayan) to train with them and
6
4
2
10
3
13
5
11
Third-generation Lopezes
earn their spurs
learn the telecommunications business. This
required learning the fundamentals such as
climbing a telephone pole at their pole barn
in Massachusetts and looking for a dial tone.
Also, I had to spend some days under the
busy streets of Manhattan splicing fiber optic
cables. Part of the training included travelling
the world to learn business development and
understand how joint ventures are structured
among different nationalities.”
As the members of the third generation rise from the ranks and assume greater
responsibility, they are guided by the values
passed on by their parents from Don Eñing
and make it their goal to add value to the
work and the business entrusted to them.
9) Eugenio L. Lopez III (Gabby), chairman
of ABS-CBN and eldest grandchild of Don
Eñing, particularly admires his grandfather’s
business acumen. “He was a visionary, always
willing to take risks and to make the bets that
would transform the business landscape. He
was also very nationalistic. What he did with
Meralco was unprecedented. Meralco was in
the hands of foreigners, it was big risk but he
took it because he believed it would help in
nation building,” Gabby says.
10) Cedie Lopez Vargas, director of
Lopez Memorial Museum, affirms their
grandfather’s love of country. “Understanding his essence all came together when I went
to the museum. I got to know the spirit of the
man in what he collected. He was a historian,
an adventurer, a nationalist. As a child, I saw
his adventurous spirit in his desire to always
try something new, whether it is food, a new
place or any new experience. This spirit now
echoes in my consciousness and in his legacy
in the museum,” says Cedie.
11) Rina Lopez Bautista, president and
executive director of Knowledge Channel
Foundation, says their Lolo Eñing was always
larger than life. “I was always in awe of him,
his foresight and his determination to tread
where others had not. Being the founder of
the Lopez Group, there were many things
about him that touched our lives, but for
me, the one thing that stood out was his
generosity. He was not only generous to his
family and friends but to others whose lives
he touched and to the Filipino in general.
I would hear time and time again how he
helped this or that individual or family and
our country in his different undertakings. I
feel that this generosity and giving nature is
expressed by us in all our different endeavors.
Each of us gives and serves others in our own
ways,” Rina says.
12) Geni Psinakis, entrepreneur and
Don Eñing’s youngest grandchild, was only
two weeks old when the old man passed
away. But she keeps his philanthropic values
alive as she works full time as director of development for WE International Philippines,
a new nongovernment organization committed to eliminating poverty and collaborating
toward holistic approaches to the many issues
people in poverty face. WE is currently focusing on the Smokey Mountain area and has an
existing partnership with the Palawan Project
Foundation. It continues to look for opportunities to make a positive impact throughout
the country.
Perhaps equal in importance to helping
others, 13) Ernesto L. Lopez (Ernie), head of
ABS-CBN Publishing, also values how they
were taught to help themselves. He remembers
his grandfather’s perseverance, a trait he also
saw in his father, the late Eugenio Lopez Jr.
(Geny), especially in the middle of seemingly
insurmountable odds.
“He (Geny) would just chip away, chip
away [at the problem] and not give up…I
think that Lolo and my dad would be proud
that the Lopez Group is still able to thrive
and survive and adapt. A few years ago, we
had a difficult slump, but we recovered. They’d
be pleased to know that they built an organization that was able to adapt and it was not
relying purely on the founders…They wanted
an organization that outlived them. That was
their goal,” says Ernie.
Note: Portions excerpted from “Passing the
Torch.”
CSR ACTIVITIES
Lopezlink July 2009
AFI celebrates 20 years of
service to Pinoy kids
Since 1989, ABS-CBN Foundation Inc. (AFI), borne out of necessity and with a disaster-stricken nation as its canvas, has been
faithful to its vision of developing
programs to achieve a better
world for Filipino children.
Through the years, it has
created E-Media, Bantay Bata
163, Sagip Kapamilya, Bantay
Kalikasan, Bayan Microfinance,
BayaniJuan and Kapit Bisig Para
sa Ilog Pasig (KBPIP)—projects that strengthened minds,
AFI, Watsons renew partnership Save La Mesa
Watershed
project
manager
Valerio
Mendoza;
ABS-CBN
Foundation Inc.
(AFI) chief
of staff Jocelyn Saw;
Watsons Philippines’ Robert Sun and Aida Lapez; and Bantay Bata
(BB) 163 resource mobilization manager Elvira Yulo signed a memorandum of agreement reaffirming AFI and Watsons’ partnership to preserve
nature and help Filipino children. Watsons, which has been supporting
La Mesa Watershed’s reforestation since 2008, pledged to help protect the
forest for three years. The company is also taking part in BB 163’s Bantay
Kalusugan by bringing kids to La Mesa Ecopark for educational tours.
(Ana Terrese Junio)
GENERATION...
from page 7
go to the schools, the principals say that when we bring TVs and
materials and training, that actually, what we bring is love. Because
they feel neglected, abandoned, that no one else cares. But here’s
this group that provides educational materials, takes extra care of
the teachers and takes time to visit them. So what’s important is not
just the learning that we bring into the classroom, but the hope.”
Gina Lopez joined ABS-CBN Foundation in 1993 and
over time built a legion of successful programs. Among them
are: Bantay Bata 163, which rescues and cares for abused children; Bayan Foundation, which runs microfinance and business
education programs for the entrepreneurial poor; Bantay Kalikasan, which runs environmental protection and conservation
programs; and Sagip Kapamilya, which helps victims of disasters
recover and rebuild.
She said: “Doing good for society is a Lopez family tradition,
but we are adding a new twist. We are putting value-added. Lolo
helped start AIM 40 years ago, but it was for the elite; now, Bayan
Academy gives an added dimension by giving business training
for the poor. We were into banking before [with PCIBank], but
now we are doing it for the poor, with microfinance.”
Gina said: “I think that this is would be something Lolo would
have loved very much. And for me, to connect the family in a tradition like that is great. It’s a family tradition but with a new twist.
You are putting in value-added. There’s a feeling of fulfillment that
comes from knowing that you’re adding a new dimension.”
FPIP gets
busy with
‘Brigada’ First
Philippine Industrial Park (FPIP)
employee-volunteers
recently repainted
19 classrooms in
three elementary
schools and repaired
a clinic in Batangas
as part of the “Brigada Eskwela” program of the Department of Education. This is the second year that FPIP volunteers have taken part in the
activity, which aims to prepare the facilities of public schools for the new
school year. They were joined by employees from seven companies located
within FPIP. (Roger de Guzman, Marco Amurao)
changed hearts and ensured
futures.
On July 3, 2009, AFI, in
partnership with ABS-CBN,
celebrates its 20th anniversary
with a by-invitation-only concert at the Meralco Theater. It
will showcase a night of music
and entertainment to show
appreciation to AFI partners
and donors. The concert will
be hosted by Edu Manzano,
Kris Aquino, Karen Davila,
John Lloyd Cruz and Luis
Manzano. Kapamilya stars will
perform at the event. (Faizza
Tanggol)
ONGOINGS
KNOWLEDGE
Channel Foundation Inc. (KCFI) bared plans
to connect 8,000 more schools
to Knowledge Channel (KCh)
in the next 10 years, a fourfold
increase from the estimated
2,000 schools now enjoying the
educational TV channel through
satellite and cable TV.
To this end, the 10-yearold foundation led by executive
director Rina Lopez Bautista is
guided by its credo of “Teaching More, Reaching More” to
increase its circle of advocates
that will help it meet its goal.
At present, there are 19 million Filipinos in public schools
and around 42,000 public
schools in the country. KCh
programs, which are based
on the prescribed curriculum
of the country’s public school
system, reach some 2.9 million
students, not counting millions
of household viewers. It is about
to launch an online version to
provide wider learning opportunities through the Internet.
With KCh Online, students
will be able to extend their
learning anytime, anywhere by
watching educational videos
and playing games and exercises
on KCh Online. Teachers will
also be given the opportunity
to interact with their students as
Lopez School
Give leaves to knowledge
welcomes
EDUCATIONAL programs aired over
1st batch of Knowledge
Channel are now being watched
by around three million poor public schoolAeta grads
children in as far south as Sitangkai in Tawi
SIXTY-FIVE Aetas successfully graduated from ABSCBN Lopez School of Aeta
Community, which enables
Aetas to learn and also serves as
a refuge for those who experience discrimination in public
schools. Fifteen advanced level
graduates meanwhile qualified
to enroll in a regular school.
Established in 2007, the Lopez School of Aeta Community
was made possible through the
Tree of Hope project spearheaded by the morning program
“Umagang Kay Ganda,” where
ABS-CBN employees, viewers,
the local government, and private companies joined forces to
put up the school. ABS-CBN’s
public service team continuously
provides food, hygiene kits, uniforms, books and school supplies
to the students. To donate, contact 415-2272 loc. 5409 or 4157875 or email [email protected]. (Kane Choa)
BAYAN ACADEMY
CALENDAR
BAYAN Academy offers the
following certificate training
program this month:
July 9-10—Organizational
strategizing and diagnosis
(External and internal
assessment)
The seminar will be held at
Bayan Academy, 2/F Cinderella Bldg., 825 EDSA, Quezon
City. Fee of P2,000 per
participant per day is inclusive
of meals. For more info, contact
KC Villanueva at 928-5576 or
at [email protected].
Tawi and as far north as Itbayat, Batanes.
Armed with quality education they acquired
through educational television, they have a
better chance to fight poverty. On KCFI’s
second decade, help more students in other
remote areas by donating one or more vacation
or sick leaves; monthly donations of any amount; or a one-time
cash or check donation. To donate, contact your HR department.
facilitators of learning, and enhance their teaching approaches
through the website.
In the first leg of its new
campaign, KCh’s new advocacy
plugs will be aired on ABSCBN and on TFC and SkyCable channels. This intensive
campaign will ensure that the
channel’s name, logo, and mission will be readily recognized
and known by the market.
This will be followed by
fundraising efforts, with the
aim of forming alliances with
individuals and corporations
that could assist the foundation
in its advocacy. In addition to
immersion trips to public schools
with corporation movers, partners, stakeholders, donors and
volunteers, this part of the drive
will feature the “Take a Step”
campaign, a fun run, and a new
dynamic website.
To top it all off, outstanding
schools, partners and stakeholders will be honored in the
Knowledge Channel Outstanding Stakeholder’s Awards (Kosa)
night in November; the winners
of the “Estudyantipid” Circle will
also be recognized on the same
day. (Ruby Bustamante)
LGFI’s CSR Toolkit Series
Involve and evolve
“IF you are not engaging your
stakeholders, you are not doing
CSR (corporate social responsibility),” Prof. Richard Welford
reminded more than 40 Lopez
Group executives and managers recently.
Prof. Welford, chairman of
CSR Asia and a professor of
the University of Hong Kong,
was invited by Lopez Group
Foundation Inc. (LGFI) as resource person in one of LGFI’s
CSR Toolkit series—an ongoing effort sharpen the knowledge and skills of Lopez Group
CSR practitioners.
So what is stakeholder engagement? It is the continuous
involvement of the stakeholders
in identifying needs and issues
which your CSR programs respond to. Key stakeholders are
the individuals or groups that
your organization cannot exist
without, such as investors, donors, customers or beneficiaries,
employees or the government.
According to a study conducted by CSR Asia on stakeholder
perceptions in Asia, environment
and climate change is the number one issue that stakeholders
expect to be addressed.
Prof. Welford noted that
the Lopez Group, being a conglomerate active in energy generation and distribution, could
take the lead in the private sector in promoting programs that
mitigate and adapt to climate
change.
Will the Lopez Group take
on the challenge? Log on to
www.lopezgroupbeknet.net
to participate in the Lopez
Group’s climate change response. Visit www.lopezgroup.
org and discover the diverse
CSR programs of the Lopez
Group. (Vanessa Suquila)
AEI plants 180 mahogany trees In an effort to promote respect for and consciousness of the
environment, Asian Eye Institute (AEI) bought 180 mahogany saplings and planted them at the First Philippine Industrial Park in Sto. Tomas, Batangas during its company outing in May. Ninety-two AEI employees
and medical staff participated in the tree-planting activity. (Sheila Sochayseng)
EXHIBITS
@Lopez Museum
Maps, school texts on exhibit
STUDENTS and lovers of geography,
history, politics, art and education will
delight in Lopez Memorial Museum’s
exhibits showcasing rare maps in one
and school texts in the other. Maps are
not just physical but charged political
delimitations of territory. The maps in
the Lopez Museum collection, including a 1734 Murillo Velarde map of the
Philippines, books on cartography,
and memorabilia items of Jose Rizal
are featured in the exhibit Coordinates
at the Rare Books gallery.
As noted in the “History of Cartography,” maps are not just artifacts
but graphic representations that
communicate through their shapes,
sizes, orientation, position and relation of the different masses. Viewers
Rizal’s compass is among the national hero’s
memorabilia included in ‘Coordinates’
are asked to look
at these markers
in light of their original purpose,
modes of production and context of
use to recognize how these delineate
feature
NOSTALGIA
what is within and what is
without, what is ours and
what is not, what is “we” and
what is other. Maps promote
spatial understanding of the
world, including one’s place
in it as city dweller, national
Capture images with an improvised camera
and kin to others living in
an imagined region of commonality
and shared desires.
At the Library, Tutelage assembles
school texts and their accompany- Pinhole
ing images crafted by a generation of photography
artists represented by Fernando and basics
Pablo Amorsolo. Focus is given to On July 4, 11,
books from the American colonial and 18 (Saturdays) from
Commonwealth periods and the early 1:30-5pm, Mark San Valentin
Philippine Republican administra- will facilitate a pinhole photography
tions, as these espouse the different workshop. The workshop will go into
views of the function of education and the history of the camera and lensless
issues arising from it. The exhibit also photography. Participants will learn
how to create a pinhole camera and
features works by sculptor Ikoy Ricio.
LVN photos, Raya Martin in ‘Double pinhole images. A pinhole camera has
a tiny hole instead of a lens through
Take’
Double Take, curated by Chit and Ei- which light passes through.
San Valentin is a UP College of
leen Ramirez, features works from the
museum’s permanent collection, LVN Fine Arts graduate, currently taking
archival photographs and a video in- his Masters in Fine Arts and teachstallation by the featured artist, direc- ing in the same university. He was
tor Raya Martin. Martin holds a BA the curator and organizer of “Tulin Film and Audiovisual Communica- dok: An Exhibit on Pinhole Photion, cum laude, from the University tography” held at the UP College of
of the Philippines in Diliman, and a Fine Arts.
BA in Journalism from UP Baguio. Lopez Memorial Museum is at the
His latest works, “Independencia” and ground floor, Benpres Building, Ex“Manila,” were shown at the Official change Road, Pasig. Museum days and
hours are Mondays to Saturdays, 8
Selection Cannes Film Festival 2009.
The three exhibits will run until a.m.-5 p.m., except holidays. For more
info, call Fanny at 631-2417.
September 25, 2009.
Those who cannot remember the past
are condemned to repeat it.— George
Santayana
July 20, 1901
Eugenio H. Lopez Sr. is born
to Benito Lopez
and Presentacion
Hofileña Lopez
of Jaro, Iloilo.
The young
Eugenio Sr.
WORKSHOP
School texts with the
works of Fernando
and Pablo Amorsolo
in ‘Tutelage’
SPECIAL
Lopezlink July 2009
July 1947
Eugenio
Lopez Jr. is
sent to the
V i r g i n i a VMI cadet Geny LoMilitary In- pez, who later got the
moniker ‘Kapitan’
stitute (VMI)
because of his disciin Lexington,
pline and bearing.
Virginia to
complete his college studies.
July 25, 1968
Eugenio Sr. establishes the Eugenio Lopez Foundation Inc.
to formalize his philanthropic
undertakings. The foundation
also manages Lopez Memorial
Museum.
July 1986
The Presidential Commission on
Good Government turns over two
radio stations, DZMM and DZRR,
to ABS-CBN. DZMM resumes
broadcasting and in three months
rises to No. 1 in the ratings.
Source: Mercy Servida, head librarian, Lopez Memorial Museum
Library
When typhoons strike
TYPHOON season brings with it
the possibility of floods and extended
or widespread power outages. Pay attention to the weather report—check
the Pagasa (www.pagasa.dost.gov.
ph/) or Japan Meteorological Agency (www.jma.go.jp/en/typh/) websites—and prepare your household
accordingly in order to minimize inconveniences and prevent accidents.
Call the Meralco call center at 16211
or text 0917-5592824 or 0920-9292824
or give online feedback through the
Meralco website (www.meralco.com.
ph) to report power failures, damaged
electrical facilities and floods.
Meralco also offers these tips on
preparing before, during and after a
typhoon.
BEFORE A TYPHOON
Be informed. Tune in to TV and
radio stations and the internet for
weather updates.
Store water. Water service may be
interrupted for days.
•
•
•Store food that will not spoil even •Coordinate
without refrigeration. Have a supply of canned goods and instant
food like noodles and biscuits.
Prepare a typhoon kit which includes a battery-operated radio,
flashlights, extra batteries, raincoats and medicines.
Anticipate possible power outages.
Charge gadgets that may be helpful, like cellphones and rechargeable lamps.
Secure things that may be blown
away. Seal windows and doors and
check if your roof is firmly secured.
Make sure gutters are not clogged.
Trim your trees. Report any tree
branches that are touching Meralco
lines.
Help your village association to be
typhoon prepared.
Post important contact numbers
near the telephone, like that of
Meralco, telephone companies,
village security, etc.
•
•
•
•
•
•
with the MMDA
or your local government unit
if your house is near billboards
so that they will take down the
tarpaulin banners to prevent accidents.
DURING A TYPHOON
Tune in to radio
and TV stations
for
emergency
information.
Turn off and
unplug all appliances if a
power failure
occurs.
Go to the
center of the
house, hallway
or any part that
is least exposed
to
external
glass windows
in case of very
strong winds.
•
•
•
• Turn off the main switch and move
your appliances and other valuables
to a higher area in your house if
your house is flooded.
AFTER A TYPHOON
Check your house for damage.
•
Damage to loadside electrical
facilities should be immediately
repaired by a qualified electrician.
Don’t operate wet electrical appliances. Have them checked by a
qualified repairman.
Help in road clearing and surveying for damaged Meralco facilities
in your area and have your village administrator report these to
Meralco.
Help in securing electrical facilities from unscrupulous people
after a typhoon. Stolen Meralco
properties extensively delay power
restoration.
Call Meralco to report power outages and monitor status on electricity restoration through radio. This
will help prevent congesting the
Meralco call center. Meralco will
provide regular updates through
different radio stations.
•
•
•
•
10
Lopezlink
July 2009
Tour of Hope 2009
LIFELONG WELLNESS
‘Pinays’ helped: millions (Friendships: priceless)
Photos: Miguel de Leon
Jeena with daughter Sabrina
By Jeena L. Lopez
AS far back as I can remember
I always had a bike. First, I had
a three-wheeler and my older
heavy brother would stand on
the back platform and ride along
with me just to irritate me. Then I
moved to my two-wheeler, which
I could only bike up and down
our parking garage at home.
In high school, I got a bigger and more stable bike. The
five streets in our village proved
sports & wellness
calendar
JULY
12: 2nd Fit & Fun Buddy
Run, 5 am@ Fort Bonifacio,
Taguig. Fee: P500/pair (5k),
P750/pair (10k). Register
at Robinson’s Supermarket
branches or check http://
takbo.ph/ for more info.
18: Asthma Control
through Education, 1 pm-5
pm. 4/F The Medical City,
Ortigas. Free admission and
snacks. Contact 635-6789
loc. 6444.
18: Sweetness that Kills,
1 pm-5 pm. 4/F The Medical
City, Ortigas. Free admission
and snacks. Contact 6356789 loc. 6444.
19: M.O.V.E. Manila Run,
UP Diliman. Fee: P250
(2.2k), P300 (5k), P350 (10k).
Contact Thumbie Remigio @
0915-6872380/[email protected].
25: Walk the
Talk, 6:30 am
@ Forest Hills,
Antipolo. Participants must
register with their respective
HR departments. Contact
Rico de Manzana @449-6122.
31: Silent Retreat@ West
Wing, Calamba, Laguna. Fee:
P3,000. The Phil. Foundation
for Cultural & Educational
Development’s retreat for
young professionals, until
Aug. 2. Contact Vina Pineda
@ 898-8905/0920-9080312.
Day 5 in Nato Pier, Camarines Sur with (l-r) Tessa Prieto Valdes, Leica Carpo, the author, Lara Villafuerte, Hans Bock, Joyette Jopson, David
Charlton, Nina Dacanay; Ernie with daughter Isis.
to be boring for my friends and
me, so we would bike down
Roxas Boulevard to the CCP
Complex (about four kilometers). Eventually, I concluded
that although the adventure of
getting to see places was great,
the number of emergency room
visits and scars I got from biking was not worth the trouble.
I am married to a triathlete,
Ernie, who has been convincing me to bike. I always told him
that I was a klutz on the bike. Of
course, he did not believe it until I finally agreed to give biking
a try. In 1997, we biked around
Batanes and I loved it. The view,
the wind and just being on a
bike instead of sitting in a van
was thrilling. Ernie immediately
bought me a mountain bike and
took me on a trail in Montalban,
Rizal. After I fell three times
within an hour, he agreed that
I was a klutz and that maybe
I should not bike on a trail. I
shelved my bike for 12 years.
Hearing about the Tour of
Hope opened my mind once
more to the possibility of biking.
The tour was a five-day, 500-km
bike ride (on roads, not trails) to
promote cervical cancer aware-
ness in the Philippines. It was
created four years ago by Hans
Bock of GlaxoSmithKline,
starting with 12 bikers going
approximately 2,500 kilometers
from Singapore to Bangkok,
Thailand. Last year, the tour was
brought to the Philippines from
Vigan, Ilocos Sur to Subic.
This year, 68 bikers would be
biking from Muntinlupa to Camarines Sur, a distance of 500 km.
This meant we were spreading
awareness of the second largest
cancer killer in the Philippines,
from Muntinlupa to Tagaytay,
then to Lipa, Lucena, Daet and
finally Naga, Camarines Sur.
Seminars about cervical cancer
were held in key cities that we
bikers passed. Not only would
we be biking for a cause, but also
for our own fitness. To top it all
off, we would be mostly women.
Without a second thought, I
made an impulsive decision to do
the tour. Five hundred kilometers
and four months to train, I knew
it was possible.
I hired a personal trainer, Ige
Lopez, who is Level 2 ITU (International Triathlon Union)certified. We started our first
session with how to get on and
off a bike, how to clip and unclip
your shoe to your pedal. This is
probably the most important
session because most falls from
your bike happen at 0 kph.
We increased our distances riding around in the villages. I went
on an out-of -town bike ride with
my husband’s Polo Tri team. I
ventured into unknown territory,
Caylabne in Cavite. It was a 70km bike ride from Alabang.
I was increasing my distances
quickly, going to different places.
Seeing other bikers on the road,
I would immediately give a wave
and a smile. It’s like there was a
telepathic message: “I know the
pain that you’re going through,
pero ang ganda ng view di ba?” I
found myself hooked! I talked
about bike gear, I went to bike
shops to buy stuff, I read biking
stories, I planned many trips. I
just spoke bike language.
Knowing my hydration and
refuel needs, I was now ready
for the tour. The tour was not a
race—that was the beauty of it.
It was the time to bike at your
own pace, chat with the biker
beside you, and just enjoy the
view. Of course, the most important goal was to finish the
A closer look at children’s eye diseases
DOES your child appear to
have difficulty seeing or focusing? Does he turn his head
unexpectedly? Strabismus, one
of the most common children’s
eye diseases, can cause this behavior. Called duling or banlag
in the vernacular, it is the lack
of coordination between the
eyes. In most cases, the cause of
strabismus is unknown.
According to Dr. Pik Sha
Chan-Uy, pediatric ophthalmologist and strabismus specialist of Asian Eye Institute (AEI),
in more than half of strabismus
cases in children, the problem
arises shortly after birth. “Parents need to have their
children’s eyes checked
even at a young age because most of the time, kids
don’t complain about their
vision,” she stresses.
Another eye disease that affects children is amblyopia,
characterized by poor vision in
the absence of physical disease.
Pediatric ophthalmologist Dr.
Norman Fajardo explains that
amblyopia is usually caused by a
refractive error such as extreme
farsightedness in the
affected eye. It can be
prevented with
timely medical
intervention. “But
once it’s too late, it is
irreversible,” he warns.
Give your child the
special eye care he
needs. Talk to a pediatric ophthalmologist
to know more. For more
info, call AEI at 898-2020 or
0918-8982020 or visit www.
asianeyeinstitute.com. (Sheila
Sochayseng)
distance. My objective to finish was driven by the fact that
some people pledged to support
the cervical cancer foundation
with every kilometer I finished.
So I had to finish the 500 km. I
carried lives with me. If my 500
km could save a life of just one
mother, it would be worth it.
Our trip started in Muntinlupa with a nice, easy 60 kmride to Tagaytay. Many people
joined us, including Sen. Pia
Cayetano and Ironwoman Ani
de Leon. Being met at Tagaytay City Hall by hundreds of
women who joined the seminar
was pleasant.
Our second day took us from
Tagaytay to Lipa, through a
detour of bad roads, roads under construction and extremely
steep hills. Some bikers had to
literally carry their bikes through
a road being jackhammered. By
UPDATE
12 noon, five hours after we
started, many of us were tired.
Due to the detour, no one knew
how much further it would be.
The sun was scorching and we
were getting hungry and cranky.
This was by far the hardest day
of the tour. Even I was ready
to give up. I called it “the ride
to Mt. Calvary.” But we had to
press on, pledges were riding on
my back. The day ended almost
at 2 p.m., logging in 117 km. We
were tired but happy.
The third, fourth and fifth
days became easier as we were
getting used to the routine and
the distance. We understood
our own body and went our
own pace. We actually grew
stronger. Having spent lots of
time with the others on tour,
we developed little groups of
“pace-mates” we stuck with
during the ride. These were
the days I enjoyed more of the
view: the seaside roads in Lucena, through the rain forest
in Camarines Norte, having
Mt. Isarog, Camarines Sur as
a backdrop, cycling on a road
ending at Nato pier were all
spectacular! Actually smelling
breakfasts being cooked as you
passed the homes was unique.
Our 500 km experience not
only made us better bikers,
but made us half-crazy people.
The amount we collected from
pledges will help millions of
Filipinas. But the friendships
we made along the way are
priceless.
The FPIP team members line up to have their stats measured.
‘Race to 120’ holds 1st weigh-in
“THE weigh-in process this year is very orderly/organized. I
was able to complete the process in about 20 minutes, including
getting my food. Great job!” This was one of the comments received by the Lifelong team after the Race to 120 contest’s weeklong weigh-in/blood chem at the Benpres Building in Ortigas;
the FPIP Oasis covered court in Batangas; and the Rockwell
Tent in Makati in May. The participants went through seven
stations: two registrations, weight measurement, height measurement, waist/hips measurement, blood pressure reading, and
blood extraction. Data sheets were signed by both the medical
staff and the participant to ensure that there were no discrepancies. In FPIP, the weigh-in was capped off with a tree-planting
activity. (Benjo Sandoval)
Don’t keep the good news to yourself. Pass on your copy of LopezLink! For your comments and suggestions, please text 02-382-0139 (Bayan Wireless Landline).
Lopezlink July 2009 11
Sudoku
Maglaro tayo ng Sudoku, ang bagong libangan ng bayan!
Ayusin lamang ang mga numero simula 1 hanggang 9 para
ang bawat numero ay minsan lang magagamit sa bawat row,
column at kahon.
 Very
Easy
 Easy
 Medium
 Hard
Answer to June puzzle
Solution, tips and computer program available at www.
sudoku.com
FOR
usin the Lopez Group, July has
always been the month to remember our
founder, Eugenio Hofileña Lopez. Don
Eñing, as he was known, was born on
July 20 108 years ago. In his 73 years—he
passed away two weeks before his 74th
birthday—he distinguished himself as
a man of vision, blazing trails in such
diverse fields as sugar milling, transportation, publishing and broadcasting.
Don Eñing was also known as a dedicated proponent and practitioner of corporate social responsibility, which role several of his grandchildren
have since stepped into. For our special cover story, Lopez biographer Raul Rodrigo chronicles the work of the third-generation
Lopezes as they live a distinct set of values in the big shadow of
Don Eñing’s legacy.
On a related note, over at ABS-CBN Foundation Inc., Gina
Lopez is marking the 20th anniversary of the organization that
grew out of the “TV Patrol” segment Lingkod Bayan. Rina LopezBautista and Knowledge Channel Foundation Inc. are gearing up
for the foundation’s 10th year in November with an awareness
and fundraising campaign aimed to harness support for its 10year goal: to connect 8,000 more schools to Knowledge Channel
to add to the 2,000 it is already servicing.
Rains and disease go hand in hand, and this is even more true
these days as the H1N1 virus continues to stalk the populace. The
number of confirmed cases in the Philippines as of this writing
has already breached the 800 mark. In response, Lopez Group
companies such as Benpres and ABS-CBN have put in place
anti-H1N1 measures to protect their employees, following the
lead of First Gen, which implemented its Pandemic Business
Continuity Plan in May. Meanwhile, in time for typhoon season,
Meralco offers valuable tips for keeping one’s family and home
safe when rains and floods strike.
Power Plant Mall strikes a fun note with some cool finds to
drive the rainy day blues away; ABS-CBN unveils new surprises
featuring heavy hitters Piolo Pascual, Gerald Anderson and Anne
Curtis, among others; and the Lopez Group pays tribute to outstanding employees in the 48th Gabi ng Parangal.
ooOoo
The results of the Watson Wyatt survey published in the June
issue proves that the financial crisis may not be as bad as people
Boracay
Dear Rosie
think. I hope media will do its part by coming up with more
positive stories instead of all these gloom-and-doom scenarios.—Aumee
ooOoo
What are the minimum requirements to avail of HDTV from
SkyCable?—Mikel
According to Marriane Nill of SkyCable corporate marketing,
to avail of SkyCable HD, you must live in a digitally activated
area, and must have an HD-ready TV set (such as plasma, LCD
or projection TV) and a SkyCable HD box which, when attached
to the TV set, will decrypt the signal and display the HD content.
SkyCable now offers Discovery Channel and History in HDTV.
To subscribe or know more about SkyCable HD, call 631-0000.
ooOoo
Please feature Boracay. I know it’s the rainy season already but
we would prefer to go there when it’s off-peak. Thanks.—Jing
You’re in luck! Boracay is our featured destination from Griffin
Sierra Travel this month. Like you, we don’t see anything wrong
with being at the beach during the rainy season. If anything, it just
adds to the fun! Look it up on this page—and enjoy your trip!
ooOoo
Paano po makasali sa Meralco Liwanag program? Wala po kasi
akong internet. Salamat.—Laya
According to its website (http://liwanagcard.com.ph/faq.jsp),
membership to the Liwanag Card program is by invitation only.
Those qualified will receive a letter of invitation and enrollment
form, which must be filled up and returned to Meralco for card
processing. The Liwanag Card is a privilege/loyalty card program
of Meralco in partnership with Finserve. The primary purpose and
functionality of the cards is to reward consistently prompt paying
residential customers with average monthly electricity consumption greater than 800 kilowatt-hours.
If you have questions, comments, opinions, suggestions and reactions about
anything and everything about the Lopez Group, please send them to Dear Rosie
through email [email protected] or send text to bayanWIRELESS
landline number 02-3820139 (for Globe, add
2963 + 02 +3820139).
travelGRIFFIN SIERRA RECOMMENDS
when it rains
By Pauline Cala-or
ABOUT an hour’s flight from Manila, Boracay boasts of
white sand beaches and azure blue waters, and the nightlife pulsates with many bars and restaurants serving food,
drinks and fun until dawn!
But it’s the rainy season, why bother to go to Boracay? This is considered an off-peak season, which means
airfare is relatively cheap. For those who are on a tight
budget, this is actually the right time to go because there
are more choices for accommodations.
Also, the island is less crowded—you can roam around
to your heart’s content and there will be no long wait at
restaurants and bars. What’s more, island recreational
activities are easily available. Enjoy island hopping and
boat rides without having to wait in line forever.
Relaxation is the top reason people go to Boracay.
Your choices are varied, from the most budget friendly
to the most costly. There are women offering massages
along the beach and small spa salons that offer scrubs and
facials.
Skim boarding is one of the more popular sports in
Boracay. There are experts and guides that you can hire to
assist you to try this sport.
Just like any other tourist destination, there are a number of small malls and stores along the beach. Here you
will find souvenir pieces such as trinkets, native accessories,
beachwear, artworks and memorabilia that you can bring
home as pasalubong for your friends and relatives.
Whether it is a romantic break, a family vacation or a
barkada escapade, Boracay will always have something to offer. Don’t forget, you can enjoy Boracay even on a rainy day!
For more info, call 898-2451 and look for Diana, Allan or Shiena or email [email protected].
The calm waters of Boracay
(above); One of the famous sand
sculptures.
12
Lopezlink July 2009
What’s new
from ABS-CBN Publishing this July
By Sheila Quieta
Jackie on the rise in ‘MAXIM’
On its third anniversary, MAXIM Philippines gives readers what they’ve been clamoring for:
Jackie Rice on the cover! Native Angeles resident and funny man Tim Tayag takes readers
on a trip to his city’s red-light district, Fields Avenue. We also feature half-Filipina sexpot
Kaylani Lei, Fil-Chinese looker Melissa Chua and the Russian pole dancers of Club Divino.
Then, MAXIM checks out the 2010 Toyota Prius and puts you in the ring with UFC champ
Lyoto Machida.
‘Kimerald’ fever in ‘StarStudio’
Kim Chiu and Gerald Anderson, who star in the primetime hit series “Tayong Dalawa,”
share personal photos from their growing-up years and answer the questions their fans have
always wanted to ask. Gerald also gives SSM the first look at his brand-new house. In addition, we have exclusive photos of boxing champ Manny Pacquiao’s P94-million property in
Beverly Hills, California. Truly, Pacman has come a long way from his humble beginnings
in GenSan!
‘Chalk’ ushers in UAAP, NCAA season
Chalk celebrates the start of the UAAP and NCAA season! Leading the new generation
of basketball superstars are double-cover boys Joshua Webb of DLSU and Nico Salva of
ADMU; and Nathaniel Matute of JRU and Anjo Caram of San Beda. Get up close and
personal with UP’s Mike Gamboa, UE’s Raffy Reyes, Letran’s Kevin Alas, San Sebastian’s
Raymond Maconocido and more. Plus, courtside reporters Sharon Yu, Alexis Go, Pia Boren
and Tracy Abad offer tips on looking pretty at the games!
Pamper yourself with ‘Metro’
Indulge big-time as Metro unveils its Indulge Special, where we
hunted down the top 20 salons and spa treatments just for you!
Also, take your pick from among a hundred of the best beauty
products in the market in our 2009 Beauty Awards, and ogle
100 of our top fashion designers’ masterpieces in Metrowear
100. Cover girl Ruffa Gutierrez, TV host/actress/beauty queen
and true-blue child of showbiz, reveals how she deals with intrigues—including those pertaining to her love life—to come
out a stronger, more resilient mom and daughter.
Get the newest issues of your favorite magazines at leading bookstores and magazine stands
nationwide. Exclusive to Lopez Group employees within Metro Manila, use your office
address and get a full year subscription discount up to 50% off cover price. For inquiries,
call ABS-CBN Publishing Inc. at 455-9434.
ROCKWELL POWER PLANT FINDS
Clockwise from left: A funky find
from Moonshine; The 7 for All
Mankind display; A glimpse of
Wisdom; Flats in rainbow colors
from Shoebox & Me
By Lisa Gomez
DURING the rainy season, people usually prefer to stay at home and
snuggle up with a good
book. But with Power
Plant Mall’s newest store
offerings, you’ll surely
choose to hit the mall!
Meaty delight
from Sango
Editorial Advisory Board
Executive Editor
Contributing Editors
Carla Paras-Sison (Benpres)
Maite Bueno (Meralco)
Estela de la Paz (First Gen)
Kane Choa (ABS-CBN)
Angelo Macabuhay (FPHC)
Rafael Alunan III (Wellness)
Circulation
Editorial and Layout
Boo Chanco / Danny Gozo
Rosan Cruz
John Rojo (Bayan)
Arlene Torres (SkyCable)
Sheila Quieta (ABS-CBN Publishing)
Vienn Tionglico (Rockwell)
Vanessa Suquila (LGFI)
Lucy Torres (Tel. 449-2468)
Mousetrap Publishing
LopezLink is published by Benpres PR Group
4/F Benpres Bldg., Ortigas, Pasig City
Telefax: 633-3520
For feedback, please email
[email protected]
Available online at www.Lopezlink.ph
7 For All Mankind
The premium denim brand sports a new
look and location at the R1 Level. Since its
launch in 2000 in Los Angeles, the brand
has been characterized by unrelenting style.
Denim lovers regard their Sevens a staple in
their closets. Get a limited 7 For All Mankind
notebook with every purchase.
Sango
The burger master, famous for its sumptuous
Japanese burgers, is now open at the R1 Level.
Sango burgers are freshly prepared and cooked
upon order, delectable and healthful because
they contain mountain-grown vegetables!
Shoebox & Me
Gone are the days when you had a hard time
picking shoes for your children because the designs are either a little too kiddie or a little too
mature. Find the perfect matching pair for you
and your little one in Shoebox & Me!
Moonshine
A regular participant in the Urban Bazaar, Moonshine always gives shoppers a
wide range of unique
clothing for the
young. You’ll never
run out of choices
with their funky
dresses, fashionable
tops and bottoms!
Wisdom
perfect
The
outfit is simple yet elegant—an outfit that
you can wear to work, a
casual weekend or a night out, which is what
you will find in Wisdom. You can’t go wrong
with Wisdom because it sticks to basic colors,
cuts and designs that are never dull or boring.
July highlights: Cars, fashion on exhibit
WATCH for Fashien (“fashion for the environment”), a fashion show and exhibit featuring Archeology shops’ collections made from recycled materials. Another exciting event is the second
leg of the Focus on the Collections series. Last month, toy and comic book enthusiasts gathered
for Focus on Toys; this month, catch the hottest cars in Focus on Cars on July 10-15. For more
info, visit www.powerplantmall.multiply.com or call 898-1702.