THE BOSS | ‘Danding’ Cojuangco, beer and food tycoon and political figure, dies at 85

June 17, 2020 , 12:37 PM

(June 17, 2020) – One of the Philippines’ richest men and a known political kingmaker died late Tuesday at the age of 85.

Eduardo “Danding” Cojuangco, chairman and chief executive officer of San Miguel Corporation (SMC), the country’s largest food and beverage company, died of a lingering illness. He was often referred to as the “Boss” in the business, politics and sports industries.

Ramon Ang, a long-time associate and top manager of SMC which diversified into construction, power and property development, confirmed the tycoon’s death.

He had a kidney transplant in 2013 but reportedly died of lung cancer, according to a radio report.

President Rodrigo Duterte expressed deep sympathy with the businessman and politician’s passing, his spokesman said on Wednesday.

Harry Roque paid tribute to Cojuangco and his companies as a “reliable partner” at the time of the coronavirus pandemic.

“In these trying times, Mr. Cojuangco’s SMC has been a reliable partner of the government in mitigating the impact of the COVID-19 by providing support and assistance to frontliners and vulnerable sectors,” he said.

Cojuangco, who had a net worth of $1.3 billion in 2019 based of Forbes magazine list of Filipino billionaires, had left an indelible mark in the business sector.

In a statement, Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said Danding was a “true titan, one of the last of his kind in Philippine business and politics.”

“Ninong Danding was a larger than life figure whose colorful life shaped the course of our history,” he said. “His wisdom and business acumen will be sorely missed. His verve for life will continue to inspire those he leaves behind.”

Cojuangco, a cousin of the late former president and democracy icon Corazon Aquino, was a known associate of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, who appointed him as ambassador to Washington.

He was also a former governor of his native Tarlac province in central Luzon and served as a congressman for the province’s first district.

In 1992, he ran unsuccessfully for president under the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) a major political party he founded in 1990 and now aligned with Duterte.

He supported Joseph Estrada in 1998 who was elected president as well as Corazon Aquino’s son, Benigno III in 2010, over his own nephew, Gilbert Teodoro who was the anointed successor of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

In 2016, he also supported Duterte, cementing a strong coalition with his NPC party in the 2019 mid-term elections.

During the 1980’s he was the country’s number one sports patron, rebuilding the Philippines men’s basketball team as a formidable force in Asia by recruiting Filipino-American players like Ricky Brown and developing homegrown talents like Samboy Lim.

His foray into basketball sparked enthusiasm in the Philippine Basketball Association, Asia’s first pro-league.

But he did not escape controversy as he was linked to the assassination of Senator Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr., his cousin’s husband whose death led to the eventual ouster of Marcos in 1986.

Cojuangco was also investigated for amassing ill-gotten wealth, particularly on the coco levy fund which took money in form of taxes from poor coconut farmers which benefited Marcos and his cronies.

In 2015, some 85 million pesos in total were turned over to the farmers after their decades-long struggle with previous governments.

Dading was married to Soledad “Gretchen” Oppen with whom he had four children.

Two of his sons were former congressmen in Negros Occidental and Pangasinan where Cojuangco also had landholdings and strong political influence.

He also had two children with long-time partner, Aileen Damiles, a former beauty queen. (Christian de Lano Deiparine/MM)

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