Family patriarch Oscar Lopez dies at 93

Oscar M. Lopez, the patriarch of the Lopez family who led the group’s business diversification into other major industries, passed away at 93 over the weekend.

First Philippine Holdings Corp. said Lopez passed away on April 22, 2023. He was born on April 19, 1930.

In its write-up, the firm cited Lopez’s leadership in its expansion into power generation, industrial estates, and construction, among others.

“He was our North Star, the inspiration, and guide for succeeding generations of Lopez Group executives and employees who learned to treasure and practice with him the Group’s distinct core values: a pioneering entrepreneurial spirit, business excellence, unity, nationalism, and social justice,” it said in a statement.

Lopez served as chairman emeritus of First Philippine Holdings, which counts as subsidiaries First Gen Corp., Batangas Cogeneration Corp., First Philec Inc., Rockwell Land Corp., and First Balfour Inc.

He also previously served as the chairman emeritus of First Philippine Holdings Corp. parent firm Lopez Holdings Corp., which counts as subsidiaries ABS-CBN Corp., First Balfour Inc., First Philippine Industrial Corporation, Rockwell Land Corp., First Philippine Industrial Park, and First Philec Corp.

Lopez graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Harvard in 1951, and a Masters of Public Administration at the Littauer School of Public Administration in the same institution in 1955.

He was conferred a Doctor of Humanities honoris causa by the De La Salle University and the Ateneo de Manila University in 2010, a Doctor of Laws honoris causa by the Philippine Women’s University in 2009 and the University of the Philippines in 2012. —KG, GMA Integrated News