Paniqui, Tarlac – An illustrious man, an institution graced this town.
Former Finance Secretary Roberto “Bobby” de Ocampo inaugurated yesterday the renovation of the Philippine Veterans Bank branch here showcasing Philippine war history and the heroism of “freedom fighters”-the veterans.
De Ocampo, acclaimed as the “Finance Minister of the year” and former Ten Outstanding Young Man awardee, is the Chairman of the Philippine Veterans Bank.
The Veterans Bank renovation features a 5-panel historical pictures of the country’s war scenes during the World War II accenting the “new modern look” of the bank’s interior.
“We are the only bank in the country where one can appreciate some historical scenes of our experience during the second world. We came out with this innovation, not only as a fitting memoriam to our veterans, but for all the people to appreciate our past. Our bank is now not only a bank but a mini museum where one can have a glimpse of our war history”, De Ocampo said.
Philippine Veterans Bank has 68 branches all over the country and has for its majority clients the Filipino war veterans of WW II.
De Ocampo disclosed that “in accordance to the law which created it, the VB is the only private bank which can extend loans to local government units for their infrastructure projects and other programs”.
The Paniqui branch is the only PVB branch in the province of Tarlac.
The inauguration was graced by this town’s mayor Max Roxas and representatives of governor Susan Yap-Sulit, Gerona Mayor Eloy Eclar and other local officials.
Roxas announced that it will deposit P50 Million of this town’s treasury account.
“Dahil sa magandang serbisyo at sa patuloy na pagbibigay ng halaga sa aming bayan, magde-deposito ako dito sa Philippine Veterans Bank ng P50 milyon sa aming pondo,” Roxas said.
Impressed with the scenic WW II memorabilia donning a corner of the bank, Tarlac Tribune publisher Paul Gonzales said, “ibang klaseng innovation, kapag magde-deposit ka dito iba ang ambiance, at may matutunan ka sa history.”
De Ocampo served as Secretary of Finance during the presidency of Fidel V Ramos from 1992 to 1998.
He graduated cum laude from Ateneo de Manila University (1967 Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics). Then he took his a Master in Business Administration from the University of Michigan (1970) and a post-graduate diploma from the London School of Economics (1971).
The career of De Ocampo began in 1972 when he pioneered the rural electrification program. He was then recognized as the youngest administrator in the history of the national government and received the Ten Outstanding Young Men of the Philippines (TOYM) award in 1975.
After working as a senior loan officer at the World Bank, he was appointed chairman and CEO of the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) in 1989. Under his leadership, the DBP won national and international recognition and was named “the world’s second soundest bank” by The Banker magazine. For his groundbreaking initiatives in the field of development banking, he was presented with the very first “Man of the Year Award” by the Association of Development Finance Institutions in the Asia-Pacific (ADFIAF) in 1997.
As Secretary of Finance, de Ocampo introduced and successfully implemented a number of important policies and measures and under his stint, the Philippines exited from a nearly continuous thirty years of IMF economic of “control”./Nelson Bolos