Roberto Velayo Ongpin, born on January 6, 1937 to Luis Roa Ongpin and Lourdes Morales Velayo, is a prominent Filipino businessman and Minister of Trade and Industry during the Marcos administration. His younger brother, Jaime Velayo Ongpin, was Minister of Finance of the Philippines under President Cory Aquino.
His business interests lie in real estate development, resort development, mining, energy, and transportation.
Early life and education
Roberto Velayo Ongpin was born on January 6, 1937. He is the second of seven children by Luis Roa Ongpin and Lourdes Morales Velayo. He grew up in the neighborhood of Pinaglabanan in San Juan, which was then a suburbs of the City of Manila.[4] Roberto Ongpin is the great grandson of Román T. Ongpin, a Filipino-Chinese businessman and philanthropist who aided Filipino revolutionaries against the Spanish and American colonial administration in the Philippine islands. The Ongpins have been named as among the “most influential and enduring families of the Philippines” for their contributions to the nation’s growth.
Ongpin was able to attend school through a scholarship. After graduating from Ateneo High School, he went on to earn a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (cum laude) from the Ateneo de Manila University in 1957. He became a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in 1958, after which he briefly joined Procter & Gamble in Manila.
In 1961, Ongpin earned his Masters of Business Administration from Harvard University. It was during his time in Harvard that he met and married his wife of 55 years, Monica Arellano of Valparaiso, Chile. They have two children together, Stephen Arellano Ongpin and Anna Arellano Ongpin. He also has two other children from different mothers, Michelle Schroer Ongpin and Julian Stone Ongpin.
1986 People Power Revolution
In the early hours of February 22, 1986, as Roberto V. Ongpin was preparing to go to Malacañan Palace for a meeting with President Marcos, US Ambassador Stephen Bosworth, and Special Envoy Philip Habib, he noticed that his military escorts had been pulled out. Ongpin’s subsequent calls to then-Defense Minister Juan Ponce Enrile inquiring about the whereabouts of his security detail inadvertently alerted Enrile that Marcos may have already been aware of his plans to stage a coup de’tat. This triggered Enrile’s hasty break from the government, eventually leading to the People Power Revolution that installed Corazon C. Aquino as the new Philippine President.
Summary
| Roberto Ongpin | |
|---|---|
| Born | Roberto Luis Melchor Velayo Ongpin January 6, 1937 Manila, Philippine Commonwealth |
| Residence | Manila, Philippines |
| Nationality | Filipino |
| Education | Ateneo de Manila University |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Known for | Businessman, former Marcos-era Minister of Trade and Industry |
| Net worth | $680 million (June 2014) |
Roberto Ongpin Net Worth: Roberto Ongpin is a Filipino businessman who has a net worth of $1.3 billion. A former Minister of Trade and Industry under the Marcos administration, Roberto Ongpin derives his fortune from diversified business interests that include mining, gaming, property and telecom. It was the former Philippines’ President Ferdinand Marcos that recruited him to be the Minister of Trade in 1979. Holding the post until 1986, Roberto Ongpin left the Philippines after his stint in the public sector to become the deputy Chairman of the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post. Since, he dedicated himself solely on business, making his net worth grow over the years.
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