Felipe Gozon’s advice to Bongbong Marcos: Do good and vindicate, redeem your family name; don’t change history

Felipe Gozon and Bongbong Marcos

“I don’t know.”

This is bilyonaryo Felipe Gozon’s response when asked if President Bongbong Marcos would take back the ill-gotten wealth his father allegedly entrusted to his cronies, including GMA Network, as forewarned by former Associate Justice Antonio Carpio before the elections.

In an interview with “Alpha Matters”, the GMA chairman and CEO dismissed the warning of his good friend and fellow abogado, Carpio, as “just his opinion” as he noted that Marcos has not announced plans to retake his family’s ill-gotten wealth “so far.”

Gozon, however, is optimistic Marcos wouldn’t turn out as Carpio has feared.

“Ako, I would like to believe the good things rather than the bad. I would like to believe that BBM will try to do good as he promised to do and vindicate and redeem his family. Kung ako siya, that is what I will do,” said Gozon.

“That is the best way, to redeem, di ba? Rather than what some people say, he is trying to change history. Iredeem mo na lang. Napakahirap to change what really happened, nakarecord na ang lahat ‘yan including mga kaso. They are all written in the decisions of the court,” he added.

In a stockholders’ meeting on May 18 or a few days after Marcos’ landslide victory, Gozon assured GMA investors: “We have no reason to believe that our relationship with the new government will not be friendly, harmonious and proper.”

It was Marcos’ sister, Senator Imee Marcos, filed a complaint before the Securities and Exchange Commission three days before GMA’s initial public offering in July 2007.

Imee claimed her family owned 28.35 percent of GMA through the shares allegedly entrusted by her father to the late Abogado Gilberto Duavit Sr. – a long-time executive of Marcos father and a Batasang Pambansa member during the Martial Law years. Duavit’s son, Jimmy, is the president and COO of GMA.

Duavit, Gozon and their accountant partner, bought GMA (originally called Republic Broadcasting System) form its owner, American entrepreneur and TV host Robert “Uncle Bob ” Stewart, in 1974.

Imee’s case did not prosper and GMA proceeded with its IPO which raised P7.8 billion which it used to keep up with rival ABS-CBN Broadcasting of the Lopez family in the ratings game.

(“Alpha Matters” is an in-depth conversation with the country’s bilyonaryos and the top C-Suite executives. Bilyonary.com is releasing the interview in doses rather than a big slab on our website and social media).

https://bilyonaryo.com/2022/10/09/felipe-gozons-advice-to-bongbong-marcos-do-good-and-vindicate-redeem-your-family-name-dont-change-history/business/