MARKETING veteran Arnold T. Gonzales was chosen as officer-in-charge (OIC) of the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB), following the resignation of the agency’s COO, the actor Cesar Montano.
In a news statement, the Department of Tourism (DOT) said “Gonzales was unanimously chosen” by the Board of Directors, chaired by Tourism Secretary-designate Bernadette Fatima Romulo Puyat, in a meeting on Thursday, at an undisclosed location at the Bonifacio Global City.
“The 56-year old career executive has been with the TPB/DOT for 30 years, assigned at various posts abroad. Prior to his designation, Gonzales has been serving as OIC of Domestic Promotions Department of the TPB,” the news statement said.
Sources averred that three other TPB officials who were recommended by Montano for the OIC post did not appeal to the newly appointed DOT Secretary, following the outing of the controversial P80-million Buhay Carinderia project. The three officials were Maricon B. Ebron, OIC for the Office of the Deputy COO for Marketing and Promotions; Joselito V. Gregorio, OIC, Office of the Deputy COO for Corporate Affairs; and Leah Marie C. Sy, manager, Management Information Systems Department. (See, “Updated: Cesar Montano quits as head of Tourism Promotions Board,” in the BusinessMirror, May 21, 2018.)
The same sources explained that Romulo Puyat advised the board that if they follow Montano’s recommendations, they would be perceived as kowtowing to his wishes. Also, the OIC would be perceived as still being a “Montano man.”
Sources added the name of Gonzales was suggested by DOT Undersecretary for Tourism Development Planning Benito C. Bengzon Jr., taking into consideration the former’s lengthy marketing experience, and “clean track record.”
In a separate news statement, the TPB said as Domestic Promotions head, Gonzales “ensured new packages, products and services from lesser well-known destinations be given equal billing in TPB’s domestic campaigns.” As OIC for Media Relations and Communications, he was also “instrumental in maintaining excellent public relations for [TPB] with various tourism stakeholders both here and abroad.”
As senior tourism operations officer/marketing specialist, Gonzales pushed the marketing efforts of the DOT at it Frankfurt and Paris offices, with focus on Western and Southern Europe (France, Spain, Portugal, Benelux countries, Italy, Greece, Turkey and the Middle East.
“[Gonzales] is determined to bring forward the TPB and its mandate through professionalism and transparency, with the end-goal of becoming a world-class organization worthy of the Philippine brand,” the same statement said.
A civil servant for most of his career, Gonzales spent two years in the private sector, as a tour coordinator, then rising to Assistant Operations Manager at Rajah Tours Philippines Inc.
Gonzales holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from De La Salle University. He majored in Tourism at the University of the Philippines.
Repeated attempts by the BusinessMirror to secure a copy of the Board Resolution concerning the appointment of Gonzales failed, however. Since her appointment to the DOT, Romulo Puyat has insisted on the agency and its units being transparent in all its dealings. It would be recalled that it was through a TPB Resolution that the Buhay Carinderia project was approved by its board of directors.
While sources did not say if Gonzales was also being considered as COO of the TPB, the Tourism Secretary is said to be still looking for possible candidates to name to the post. Under previous practice, the DOT chief is supposed to submit to the President a list of possible candidates for the post, and indicate her preferred candidate. After the President approves the new COO, the TPB Board confirms the appointment as a formality.
Meanwhile, the Tourism Congress of the Philippines (TCP) is expected to name its private sector nominees for the five board director positions in the TPB “by next week,” said TCP President Jose Clemente III. At present, only two private sector nominees are sitting on the board — Vanessa Suatengco (accommodations) and Eduardo F. Pelaez (tourism estates). Malacañang failed to act on the TCP’s other three nominated board members.