10th Weekly Membership Meeting: A Recap

Program Moderator

The Program Moderator, PP Archit Bartolome, invited Pres. Raffy Alunan to call the meeting to order.

Call to Order

Pres. Raffy Alunan sounded the bell to commence the Weekly Meeting.

Invocation

PDG Rudy Bediones led the invocation, seeking blessing for the good health of Past Pres. Bert Romulo, the membership, and all Manila Rotarians who are experiencing difficulties. The beautiful prayer is quoted below:

Heavenly Father, we thank you for gathering us today in fellowship to meet with friends, some of whom we have not seen or heard from for many years. We are glad for this opportunity to break bread with them and to delightfully engage them in friendly discourse.

Lord, we thank the Chair of the Sunshine Committee, Ricky Guevara for his thoughtful, unique, and exceptional initiative of gathering the distinguished leaders of this fine club, and to recognize their enormous contributions in steering the Rotary Club of Manila club to what it is today. Allow me, at this point, to digress from my prayer and ask that we applaud Chair Ricky Guevara for this brilliant way of showing our appreciation for our leaders.

Lord, we pray for the good health of our guest of honor and speaker Past President Bert Romulo who has for decades devotedly and outstandingly served our country in numerous elected and appointed positions. We likewise pray for the continued good health of all Rotarians gathered in this hall as well as those who are not able to attend our meetings. Guide us Lord and instill in our minds the need not only to look out for each other as brother-Rotarians but to generously lend a hand to our fellowmen who are in desperate need of our assistance. Lord, we lift up all our problems, difficulties, and concerns to you and as a fitting statement of faith and praise we all say Amen.

Philippine National Anthem

Rotary Members and guests took a position of respect as they sang the Philippine National Anthem, led by the WF RCM Music Chorale.

Four-Way Test

The recitation of the Four-Way Test was led by Rtn. Tong Payumo, which was meaningfully verbalized by the members of the Rotary Club of Manila and guest Rotarians.

RC Manila Rotary Hymn

RCM members sang acapella the Rotary Club of Manila Hymn, which was followed by the singing of the birthday song to serenade PP Albert Romulo, who celebrated his 90th birthday.

President’s Time

Pres. Raffy Alunan shared with the membership the club’s activities of the week, as well as the on-going projects and initiatives.

The Past Presidents of Rotary Club of Manila graced the stage, which was set in a light and relaxed mode, as the Club honored a well-respected Past President and public servant extra ordinaire, PP Bert Romulo.

Pres. Raffy Alunan formally welcomes back PP Alberto “Bert” G. Romulo as an esteemed RCM Honorary Member. Past Pres. Santiago “Santi” F. Dumlao shared some personal and endearing traits, as well as the many notable and outstanding undertakings of PP Bert Romulo.

A Tribute by Past Pres. Domingo “Boy” S. Guevara, Jr. for PP Alberto “Bert” G. Romulo

Our guest of honor and speaker has many false and inaccurate allegations! Firstly, his CV says he is already 90 years old. But look at him! He really looks like he is only of the same age or at worst a few days older than our incumbent president Raffy Alunan. Former Secretary and PP Bert Romulo has the following alleged accomplishments and contributions to the alleged improvement of nation-building of the Philippines, starting from 1984 to 2022:

Secretary of Foreign Affairs; Secretary of Finance; Secretary of Budget and Management; Executive Secretary; Senator for two terms from 1987-1998; Chairman of the Land Bank of the Philippines and his current post is that of Chairman of the BOD of Development Bank of the Philippines

But truth be told, the biggest contribution of PP Bert to the country and to the Rotary movement was when he was elected and served as president of the Rotary Club of Manila for the Rotary year 1978-1979. I was just a 2-year-old Rotarian at the time when PP Bert was elected president. It was PP Bert who really showed me by example what a true Manila Rotarian is!

I wish to share a little bit of trivia about PP Bert’s election as RCM President. The 70’s, if some of you will recall, was a decade of martial law and in the mid-late 70’s, the Philippines (including RCM) was facing insurmountable economic challenges. Interest rates were going as high as 48% p.a., and Peso/$ exchange rates were going over the roof. RCM was similarly facing challenges. The unrecorded history of RCM was the members needed to find a good president to lead us in the tumultuous and very challenging times. The members decided to elect a top-notch entrepreneur-businessman in the person of Mr. Fil Reyes in 1975-1976. A one-year tenure of a top-notch businessman was not enough! We then elected Dr. Benny Angtuaco, again a top-notch physician/surgeon to see if the problem of RCM was a medical issue. Finally, in “desperation”, we elected the late Fr. Frank Reyes (parish priest of Sanctuario de San Antonio). The joke was: RCM was so desperate that it needed a priest to exorcise it. Then came Atty. Alberto Romulo, a lawyer/accountant with a doctor of laws and a CPA certificate to boot.

PP Bert was elected RCM President during its diamond anniversary. PP Bert’s set of officers consisted of Manila Top 400 at that time. VP was the late Nick Jimenez (President/GM of PNR), the BOD consisted of PDs Liloy Balatbat (former Sec of Finance), Santi Dumlao (top business executive), Ben Jalbuena (haciendero from the Visayas), JJ Calero (Pres. of J. Walter Thompson, a top advertising company), Osky Gonzales (real estate broker), and PD Titong Mendoza (former solicitor general and par excellence lawyer). The treasurer was Archit Bartolome (who was the VP of RCBC), and Sgt. at Arms was John Courtney.

Some of the major achievements (and they are not allegations, mind you), is PP Bert is the father of the RCManila Foundation, the precursor of RCMFI. PP Bert has this unique ability to pick and mentor a scion of a well-known super-rich family. His name was Francisco Ortigas III, who later became a RCM President. PP Bert was able to tap and mentor Paqui Ortigas as Club Secretary. Imagine a scion of a super-rich family in the likes of Paqui Ortigas who was born with a silver spoon and was selected to be the club secretary. The result of this powerful tandem was the organization of the proper recordings and systematic filing of RCM records which today stands as one of the legacies of PP Bert and PP Paqui.

There were numerous projects that PP Bert started and finished during his short one-year presidency. But there is one aspect of PP Bert’s presidential valedictory address that I dare say is the true and outstanding legacy that touched me the most. Please allow me to share this short but most important part of PP Bert Romulo’s valedictory, and I quote.

“Once upon a time, it was the civic obligation of all roman citizens to carry the backpack of soldiers for one mile each day. And so it came to pass that one tired soldier asked an old man to carry his pack. At the end of one mile, the old man continued to carry the pack. “You have carried the pack for one mile, said the soldier. Why do you continue to carry it?” “It is simple”, replied the old man. “The first mile constituted my legal duty to the country. So I want to carry it a second mile so that I can render more services to my country.”

Fellow Rotarians: like the old roman citizen, let us walk that extra mile…. for every step that brings us closer to a world free of hunger, disease and in-humanity to a world where children are healthy and fully clothed, where men and women have decent jobs and decent homes, to a world where nations are at peace and there is goodwill and understanding amongst people of all races, religion and creed. Such a world is worthy of the highest aspirations of every true Rotarian.”

A Tribute by PDG Vicente “Vince” J. Carlos for PP Alberto “Bert” G. Romulo

When I requested Rtn. Ricky Guevara to give me the latest bio of our Guest Speaker, I received this one-page bio of his public service and experiences from 1984-2022 which reads as follows:

But as Rotarians, we all know of the public service of our Guest Speaker. He was extremely qualified as he holds a degree of Doctor of Laws and is a CPA. Let me just mention that in all the positions that he has held, there was not a hint of any controversy whatsoever. He held all these positions with honor and integrity.

But let me talk about his Rotary life. Like Archit and I, our Guest Speaker joined in 1975 during the incumbency of President Chester Babst. Because of his very active involvement in Rotary, he was appointed Club Secretary by President Benny Angtuaco in 1976. I was likewise appointed by President Benny as Club Treasurer. During the club elections in 1976, there was a parish priest from San Antonio who decided to run for director of our club. To everyone’s surprise, he ended up with the most number of votes and was elected club president for the year 1977-1978. At first, he wanted to withdraw as he claimed that he had no administrative experience to run the club. But he was prevailed upon to accept the position when he learned that no one has declined the position after being elected. He then re-appointed Bert to be as club secretary and I as club treasurer. During the term of Fr. Frank, it was President Bert who practically run the affairs of the club. And so during the next club election, when Bert decided to run for director, he ended up being elected our president for the year 1978-1979.

Bert launched many outstanding projects such as “Operation Paglilinis ng Palengke”, ”Kalinisan Awards 78" and the construction of the multi-purpose “Tulungan Center” in Barangay 704 in Malate. But his most outstanding project was the launching of the TOWER Awards, which our club has continued up to the present day. It was also during his term that our club celebrated our diamond anniversary.

On his personal life, Bert and Lovely have recently celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary. They are blessed with five children, two of whom have joined government service. Roman is the Honorable Congressman from Pasig and Berna was the Tourism Secretary during the term of Pres. Duterte.

Fellow Rotarians, it is my pleasure to welcome back to Manila Rotary our Past President, Senator Alberto “Bert” G. Romulo.

A Tribute by PDG Roberto “Obet” M. Pagdanganan for PP Alberto “Bert” G. Romulo

President Raffy and other officers and members of the Rotary Club Of Manila, Past President Bert Romulo and his lovely spouse Lovely and their family members here present including former DOT Secretary Berna, distinguished guests and friends, GOOD AFTERNOON!

Not a lot of people get the opportunity to meet, much less work with their idols in life, and learn from them. Even fewer, most certainly, get to personally greet their idols on their 90th birth anniversary! I am very lucky and am so grateful to be so blessed today with that special privilege. And so I say: HAPPY 90TH BIRTH ANNIVERSARY TO MY IDOL, PAST PRESIDENT BERT ROMULO OF RC MANILA AND ALSO ONE OF THE MOST OUTSTANDING PUBLIC SERVANT LEADERS IN PHILIPPINE CONTEMPORARY HISTORY!!!

I first met then Minister Bert Romulo of Budget and Management under President Cory C. Aquino when I was OIC Governor of Bulacan after the EDSA Revolution. My interaction with him continued when he was elected Senator for two terms and eventually held various cabinet and other senior positions in government.

What strikes me most about Past President Bert Romulo is his dignified demeanor which commands respect without demanding it! His well-modulated voice while articulating erudite views on every issue or topic, never fails to impress. He is always prim and proper, conservatively attired in every occasion. Despite his high station in life, he remains humble and approachable. PP Bert was COOL, long before that word became fashionable.

On top of all these exceptional traits, Past President Bert has maintained the Romulo family legacy of integrity, dedication and competence in public service. In his almost four decades of government service, he was never involved in corruption or questionable transactions. PP Bert Romulo is an epitome of a Public Servant Leader living Rotary’s Core Values and Four Way Test! Values that he and his beloved spouse Lovely, have evidently passed on to their offspring, who are very successful in their own right.

Ladies and gentlemen, Please allow me to share a vignette with my idol, when he was Foreign Affairs Secretary and I was Tourism Secretary in 2004. At that time, tourism arrival from China was a measly 30,000 per year. We did not have yet a Tourism Office in China, due to budget constraints. We therefore decided to close the Tourism Attache’s Office in Paris and transferred it to Beijing. We also negotiated to have a Memorandum of Understanding for Tourism promotion between the Philippines and China to be signed during the State Visit to China by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in the first week of September. One week earlier, I had already been designated to head the Administration’s campaign for every Filipino’s access to cheaper quality medicines. But Secretary Romulo insisted that having initiated the project, I should be the one to sign the MOU on behalf of the Philippines. And so I did, in the presence of the President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and President Hu Jintao and senior officials from both countries. Thank you PP Bert Romulo for giving me that honor and privilege. China incidentally, has become one of the biggest contributors of foreign tourists to our country, reaching more than one million arrivals before the Covid Pandemic struck, thanks to the efforts of our successors including Secretary Berna and their Teams.

My esteemed friends: I said earlier that, not so many people get to have the opportunity to work with their idols and learn from them. Even fewer get to greet their role models on their 90th birthday. Now and in the days to come, my fervent prayer is for the good Lord to continue blessing us with excellent health and long happy life, so that ten years from now, we will all gather once more to celebrate the centenary of our beloved Past President, BERT ROMULO, my idol!!!

MABUHAY SI PAST PRESIDENT BERT ROMULO!!! MABUHAY ANG ROTARY CLUB OF MANILA!!! MARAMING SALAMAT PO!!!

“Service Above Self” by PP Alberto “Bert” Romulo

Today I am truly overwhelmed and overjoyed. With this extraordinary outpouring of bonhomie, goodwill and fellowship, my cup is full and overflowing. This happy occasion reminds me of Charlie Chaplin who lived up to his late 80s. Asked how he managed to reach his late 80’s. Charlie Chaplin reportedly said that his best doctors were – laughter, family and friends. This noon as I celebrate with you my 90th birthday all this three are present here in abundance – laughter, family and friends.

First and foremost, I wish to thank President Raffy for the honor and privilege of the best birthday gathering we have received in a long long time. I want to thank each of you in this assembly for your gracious and warm welcome to me and my wife from the moment we arrived.

I’m truly proud to be a Rotarian. And I am grateful beyond words to Rotary. Rotary introduced me to its 4 Way Test and to the wonderful world of service – “of service above self.” Service to our fellow men, service to our communities and service to our country.

Rotary's 4-way test is biblical – Do unto others as you would have them do unto you:

Rotary’s Test no. 1 I will always uphold the truth,

Rotary’s Test no. 2 I will always strive to be fair in all my dealings with my fellow men,

Rotary’s Test no. 3 I will always endeavor to build good will and understanding in my community among my countrymen and among people of all nations,

Rotary’s Test no. 4 I will always seek to promote the greatest good for the greatest number of people in the spirit of rotary service.

Rotary’s “Service Above Self” and Rotary’s 4 Way Test have been my lodestar throughout my career in government and in public service – in the Senate, Foreign Affairs, Finance and as Executive Secretary.

Forty-five years ago in 1978 I was elected by you RCM’s 59th President. 1978 also coincided with Rotary’s DIAMOND ANNIVERSARY in Asia and in the Philippines. For RCM was Rotary’s first club not only in the Philippines but in all Asia as well.

During my presidency in 1978, I met and was friends with many RCM presidents. The careers of these RCM Presidents stood out as inspiration to me in the public positions I later held and occupied. Among these RCM Presidents are: Senate President Gil Puyat who was RCM's 23rd President in 1940 and then 25th 1945. Foreign Affairs Secretary Carlos P. Romulo who was Rotary's RCM President in 1935. Finance Secretary Eduardo Romualdez who was RCM President in 1953-1954. And Executive Secretary Emilio Abello who was RCM President in 1961-1962.

Little did I know then that one day in my lifetime I would be holding positions in the legislative and executive departments that RCM’s Presidents Senator Gil Puyat, General Romulo, Secretaries Romualdez and Abello had held with great distinction, fame and honor.

During my RCM presidency in 1978 all of them –Presidents Gil Puyat, Carlos Romulo, Eduardo Romualdez, and Emilio Abello were still active in Rotary. Indeed during our Diamond anniversary celebration in 1978 they were generous with their time, and they would attend, join and grace our functions and meetings. In the spirit of fellowship, I visited each of our Past Presidents in their offices and homes. In turn they would invite me to join them, their families and friends. When he met with his fellow senators, Senator Puyat usually included me among his guests either at his home or in his office. General Romulo invited me and my wife to dinners he tendered for visiting foreign ministers and dignitaries a number of whom I later met when I was Foreign Secretary. On occasions Secretary Abello would ask me to join him in his office for meetings, conferences or personal talks. The same with Secretary Romualdez who would call me to join him from time to time. Later the time came when I finally occupied the positions they had held – in the Senate where I was Majority Leader in the DFA as Foreign Secretary in the DOF as Finance Secretary and in Malacañang as Executive Secretary.

Even when they were gone and no longer with us, I continued to remember each of them as model, inspiration, and lodestar.

Before I conclude let me mention a major event during my Presidency in 1978. As President I initiated and launched the TOWER Awards to honor the TEN OUTSTANDING WORKERS of our country. Since 1978, the TOWER AWARDS has been RCM‘s annual presentation to our country and our people.

Fellow Rotarians, Those who started Rotary here and abroad were all dreamers and visionaries. They built with vision an enduring and international edifice of understanding, humanitarianism, fellowship, and goodwill. They dared to dream that through the ideal of service, they could lift the burdens, improve the lot and enrich the lives of men and nations and thereby built a better life and a better world for all of us. Today let us again dedicate ourselves to the ideals of Rotary –to the 4 way test and to “SERVICE ABOVE SELF.” Let us continue to pursue this vision. Let us continue to pursue this dream. Until we prevail.

Open Forum

PP Bert Romulo gamely engaged in an interactive conversation with Pres. Raffy Alunan, PD Oscar del Rosario, Sr., Rtn. Basti Lacson, and PE/Dir. Jujut Enriquez.

Presentation of Certificate of Appreciation

Pres. Raffy Alunan together with PDG Vince Carlos, PP Santi Dumlao, IPP Hermie Esguerra, PDG Obet Pagdanganan presented the Certificate of Appreciation to honoree - Hon./PP Alberto “Bert” G. Romulo.

RCM Music Committee, “World Famous” Chorale, serenaded PP Bert and spouse Lovely Romulo.

Adjournment

Pres. Raffy Alunan sounded the bell to signify adjournment to the 10th weekly meeting.

Election of Board of Directors for Rotary Year 2024-2025

IPP Hermie Esguerra, Chairman, Committee on Election, presented to Pres. Raffy Alunan the results of the electronic election for Board of Directors for RY 2024-2025. IPP Esguerra presented the members of the Committee on Election.

PE/Dir. Eduardo “Jujut” V. Enriquez, expressed his thanks the membership for their trust and confidence in voting for him and the incoming directors.