Ramon Magsaysay, Jr.

Ramón Banzon Magsaysay, Jr. (born June 5, 1938) is a political figure and senator of the Philippines.

Early life and career

Magsaysay Jr. was born in Manila to former President Ramón Magsaysay and Luz Banzon. He was 15 when his father was elected president and was 18 when his father died in a plane crash in Cebu. He graduated in De La Salle College in Manila where he earned a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He pursued post-graduate studies in 1962 at Harvard School of Business Administration in Boston, Massachusetts, and spent another year in New York University Graduate School of Business Administration. In 1960 he worked as an engineer trainee at Procter and Gamble Philippines. From 1961 to 1962, he was a supervising engineer for operations for Caltex Philippines.

Brief political career

In 1966, he was elected as a congressman for the lone district of Zambales. He was the youngest Congressman to be elected to the Lower House at the age of 27. He went back to the private sector soon after.

Business career

After a productive four-year in Congress he returned to work in the private sector where he ventured into various industries including garment manufacturing and export, semi-conductor, and travel and tourism. Armed with his business education and engineering skills, Jun pioneered the cable television business in the country. Today, with over 550 cable operators nationwide, the cable TV industry business has turned into a P2-billion a year industry. In recognition of setting the blueprint for the sector, Magsaysay is known as "The Father of Cable Television."
*1969-1995 Reserve officer, Lt. Jr. Grade, Philippine Navy
*1972-1995 Company president, Colorview CATV Inc.
*1975-1995 Company president/chairman of the board, RMJ Corp.
*1970-1975 Company vice president, Gelmart Industries Phils. Inc.
*1978-1985 Company director, Labtech Manufacturing Industries Inc.
*1988-1990 Business columnist, Philippine Daily Inquirer
*1989-1995 Company president, Cable Communications Inc.,
*1989-1995 Chairman of the board, Dynatravel Management Corp.
*1991-1995 Company president, Country Communications Network Inc.
*1994-1995 Chairman of the board, Asian Cable Communications Inc.

Political career

In the 1992 elections, he was offered by Agrarian Reform secretary Miriam Defensor Santiago to be her vice presidential candidate under the People's Reform Party. He accepted the offer and run for the elections, hoping to follow his father's footsteps, but the voters favored actor and Senator Joseph Estrada. He went back to the private sector soon after.

In the 1995 elections, President Fidel Ramos invited Magsaysay to join the senatorial slate of the Lakas-Laban Coalition. He won the election and received the third highest vote among the twelve elected senators. In 1996, he was commissioned by the Senate to look for a suitable place to relocate the Senate offices. The building would be renovated as the National Museum would be expanding in time for the Philippine Centennial celebrations in 1998. The Senate session hall and offices found its new home at the GSIS Building in the Financial Center in Pasay City.

On January 13, 2001, Magsaysay was one who voted in favor of opening the bank envelope containing evidence in the impeachment case of President Joseph Estrada. The request was overturned by a negative vote that led to the second EDSA People Power Revolution. In the 2001 elections, he was reelected to the senate under the Lakas-NUCD-UMDP party and was affiliated with the People Power Coalition. In the electoral crisis involving President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, Magsaysay distanced himself from the ruling party Lakas and became an independent senator.

Personal life

Jun, as many people call him, is married to Marie Louise (Marilou) Kahn, and they have no children. However, he had two children from his first marriage, Francisco and Margarita.

External links

* [http://www.senate.gov.ph/senators/sen13th.htm Senate of the Philippines]
* [http://www.i-site.ph/Databases/Congress/13thSenate/SALS/magsaysay-SAL.html Ramon Magsaysay Jr.'s assets and liabilities]