TODAY, the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines and ING Bank N.V.’s Manila Branch will jointly present the 15th ING Finex CFO (Chief Financial Officer) of the Year Award at the New World Hotel in Makati City.
This year’s winner shall be revealed during the monthly general membership meeting of Finex that will be live streamed via Zoom and Facebook. Our keynote speaker is First Pacific Holdings Ltd. Managing Director and CEO Manuel V. Pangilinan, who is also the chairman of PLDT Inc., Meralco (Manila Electric Co.) and Metro Pacific Investments Corp.
Let me share the origin story of this coveted prize. In 2007, the Finex CFO of the Year Award Committee was born. With Vic Dela Dingco as our Overall Chair and Liaison Director, we had three sub-committees chairmen: Ochie Quito for events; Past President Mel Salazar for trophy design and development; and, Past President Dave Balangue for search and selection.
Vic conceptualized the award program and invited ING Bank, through its Philippine Managing Director Zondy Garcia, to be the major sponsor and co-presentor of Finex. He subsequently obtained approval from the Finex Board headed by then President Billy Cortez.
The search and selection phase was launched on July 10, 2007 at the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Auditorium. In his keynote address, then BSP Governor Amando “Say” M. Tetangco said: “This award program will identify role models who can inspire and motivate financial executives to do better.”
Renowned Sculptor Ramon Orlina was commissioned to create a glass trophy for the inaugural winner. The Board of Judges was convened to evaluate the nominees and everything was set for the awards night at the Makati Shangri-La Hotel on November 29, 2007.
But shortly after noon that day, the Peninsula Manila Hotel was seized by a group of rebel soldiers led by then Navy Lt. Antonio Trillanes IV and Philippine Army General Danilo Lim. The mutineers walked out of their hearing at the Makati Regional Trial Court and marched to the Manila Pen, where they occupied the second floor while calling for the ouster of then President Gloria Arroyo. Hotel guests and staff were asked to vacate the premises by police officers.
Across the road from Ayala Avenue, tension filled the air at the Makati Shang where we were preparing for the maiden CFO of the Year event. My main task was to coordinate with BBC anchor Rico Hizon, who flew in from Singapore to serve as our host for the awarding ceremony.
At around 3:30 p.m., Finex decided to cancel the event. By then, the military had sent 1,500 troops to crush the mutiny. The planned assault was held off until 3:58 p.m., when 50 Special Action Force commandos lined up outside the hotel lobby to arrest the rebel soldiers.
Tear gas was dispersed inside the hotel and an exchange of gunfire ensued between the military and the rebel group. Firing stopped at 4:30 p.m. and the 6-hour siege ended at 5:30 p.m., when Trillanes and Lim decided to surrender to avoid loss of lives since several civilians, including journalists, were trapped in the hotel. Malacañang declared that a midnight-to-dawn curfew would be imposed in Metro Manila and adjacent regions.
When the smoke cleared, Finex announced that the show must go on. On that same evening, the 1st ING Finex CFO of the Year Award was bestowed upon Delfin “Chito” Gonzalez Jr., who was the Chief Financial Officer of Globe Telecom Inc. at that time. And the rest, as they say, is history.
Vic, Mel and Dave are no longer with us to witness this “blended” in-person and virtual ceremony during the pandemic era. But their memories live on through the Philippines’s most prestigious CFO award program that they co-founded.
Joseph Gamboa is the co-chairman of the Finex Annual Conferences for 2020-2021, chairman of the Finex Business Columns Subcommittee and director of Noble Asia Industrial Corp. The views expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the opinion of these institutions and the BusinessMirror.