PSE polls seen to heat up

Even with the absence of long-time protagonists Vivian Yuchengco and Robert Coyiuto Jr. as candidates for the forthcoming board elections in the Philippine Stock Exchange, the voting is expected to be just as heated as the aspirants themselves have been split into two factions.

Not surprisingly, the candidates are, in one way or the other, affiliated with either the Coyiuto group or the Yuchengco camp.

Early this year, no less than President Arroyo convinced Yuchengco, the incumbent PSE chairperson, and Coyiuto, who leads the majority of the brokers in the present PSE board, to abandon their campaign for another term at the PSE to resolve the internal conflict at the board, hence hastening the pace of reforms and other vital measures to prop up the sluggish market.

Yuchengco, a former president of the pre-unification Makati Stock Exchange, and Coyiuto, the first PSE president in 1992 and its chairman in 1994, have been at loggerheads since the former was elected chairman during the controversial elections in March last year.

The PSE will hold its annual membership meeting and elections on April 5. As required by law, the members will elect a majority of eight directors in the 15-man board to represent the interests of non-brokers while the remaining seven slots are reserved for the brokers.

The broker-directors will be voted based on their combined turnover and paid-up capital value with five to represent the big brokers (P500 million and above) and two to represent the small brokers (under P500 million).

On the part of the non-brokers, four will represent the interests of the issuers or listed firms, investors and other market participants while the other half are the independent directors led by the PSE president.

Expected to battle it out for the chairmanship of the PSE are Filomeno Francisco of AB Capital Securities and last year’s top vote-getter Alicia Arroyo of RCBC Securities.

Francisco leads the brokers’ team with four re-electionists (Eddie Gobing, Edwin Luy, Federico Lim and Harry Liu), former PSE governors Paulino Soo and Joseph Roxas, and first-timer Gregorio Chan.

On Arroyo’s side, meanwhile, are Rodolfo Cruz, William Ang, Gregorio Kilayko, Marita Limlingan and Joseph Madrid.

Francisco’s group is allied with Coyiuto while Arroyo’s team is on the side of Yuchengco.

The 14 broker-candidates will vie for seven seats in the board while 25 non-brokers will contest the eight remaining slots.

A shoo-in for a second term in the board is PSE president Ernest Leung, who has actively supported the administration of Yuchengco. Also nominated to run for another term are former Customs Commissioner Tomas Apacible, banker Peter Favila, former Socio-economic Planning Secretary Cayetano Paderanga, Ateneo’s Fr. Joaquin Bernas and Enrique Aboitiz.

The rest of the non-broker candidates are: former PSE president Ramon T. Garcia; Omar Cruz, chief finance officer of the University of Asia & the Pacific; former Securities and Exchange Commission chairperson Rosario Lopez; newspaper publisher Napoleon Rama; former Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma; Judge Cesar Cruz; law professor Cristine Cuisia-Remollo; Lepanto Mining executive Ethelwondo Fernandez; ICTSI executive Jose Ibazeta; Insular Life president Vicente Ayllon; and IHAP representative Eduardo Francisco.

Benpres official Federico Lopez; San Miguel Corp. vice-chairman and president Ramon Ang; actuarian Enrique Zalamea; fund manager Vicente Lazatin; lawyer Francis Lim of ACCRA; Finex executive Roman Azanza; and Makati Business Club executive director Guillermo Luz.