Henry Gozon at 75

When you get to be 75 like our friend Felipe “Henry” Gozon – not only have you “arrived” but more importantly – you can afford to write a “tell-all” book. Divided into eight chapters starting with his roots and family background, his days as a student to his experiences as a corporate lawyer, then as network big boss down to his “golden years,” the unapologetic and straightforward account of Henry makes it easy to see how he was able to turn around a network that was considered a far second into the giant – No. 1 as Gozon describes it – that it has become today.

Followers of the Kapuso Network will appreciate seeing the “heart” of Gozon in the personal details disclosed in the book, like how a shy, unassuming girl at the UP Diliman campus swept him off his feet the minute he laid eyes on her. Henry was so smitten that he solicited the help of a classmate to meet the 15-year-old campus beauty, going to the extent of enrolling for summer classes in UP Baguio just to be with Ma. Teresa “Tessie” Manotok. While not exactly a Lothario, the young pre-law student admits that he was a bit of a playboy who would show “interest in more than one girl at a time” – giving the young lady who would eventually become his wife the same kind of Valentine card he sent to the other girls.

Reading the book, one could imagine Henry as a smart, naughty young man but even that early, one could already see the determined character that explains why he is able to achieve an objective once he sets his mind to it. While the other chapters in the book are absorbing in the sense that one gets treated to the life and times of the man behind GMA’s success, one of the most interesting portions can be found in Chapter 7: As CEO of GMA Network – including the section titled  “Learning from the enemy” with Gozon disclosing that one of the first things he did was to study “the business strategies and practices of the Lopezes” in building and maintaining their business empire – in order to beat rival ABS-CBN “in both ratings and profit.” 

Being network CEO was no easy ride for the lawyer, as it involved having to make business decisions that were painful to some people – like letting go of a senior vice president who headed the engineering department and performed technical functions without having the requisite registration and license from the Professional Regulation Commission to practice his profession.

Describing his management style as being more than just hands on, Henry Gozon says he tries to know and understand everything, becoming personally involved whenever complicated problems and issues arise even to the point of drafting and finalizing the position papers of the company. It certainly helps that the then-new CEO is a lawyer by training and profession because it enabled him to readily make decisions on legal matters without having (to wait) to consult the legal department or the company’s retained law firm.

There’s no false modesty in Gozon’s statements, just a direct statement of facts when he says: “I do not delegate the most difficult and sensitive tasks I think I can do better than our executives.” Exacting business managers can certainly relate to this, especially those who believe that if you want to make sure something is done right, better do it yourself.

No doubt readers will get a lot of insight not only about Felipe Gozon’s personal life but more so, the business principles that have served him in good stead at the helm of a giant broadcast corporation – like the “zero tolerance for dishonesty.”

“I could tolerate error in judgment, even negligence and laziness to some extent, but I draw the line in acts of dishonesty,” he says, revealing that he does not hesitate to file cases against those who have defrauded and cheated the company even after these people have already resigned, to show that no one can cheat the company with impunity. Going over the book, one can easily understand why the Kapuso Network has become the powerhouse that it is today: because the man who leads it is likewise inspiring, extraordinary and formidable.

Mar’s unfortunate task

As DILG Secretary and trusted lieutenant of the President, Mar Roxas has no choice but to take the lead in disaster preparations. But unfortunately, something always mars his operations, similar to what he and Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin experienced when they were stranded in Tacloban during the onslaught of Super Typhoon Yolanda last year with zero communications. Last Saturday while the DILG chief was conducting a briefing “to make sure that local government units are prepared when Typhoon Ruby makes landfall” in Borongan, Samar, the televised session was interrupted by power outages – and save for the light from camera crews, people didn’t see any battery-operated sources switching on when the lights went off, plus they were totally incommunicado for a couple of hours.

Poor Mar. We know that he is trying his best to do his job but, unfortunately, disasters seem to get the better of him. Additionally, in one of the inspections conducted by Mar in Samar, he fell off a motorcycle. Almost immediately, the photo of the helmetless DILG chief went viral on social media – with people expressing their sympathy at the slight mishap. Two lessons for Mar: One, it would be better to set up his command center on safer ground less prone to being incommunicado and second, for his own safety – he should use a helmet when riding a motorcycle.

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