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Don Domingo M. Guevara
Where economic nationalism is, the call to patronize Philippine-made products should be loudest. This belief is exemplified by the government's continued pledge to bring local goods to the fore. Since the Commonwealth era, every president who sat at the helm of Philippine government has sought to uplift national industry by promoting locally manufactured goods. The catchphrase “buy Filipino” was first heard under the Commonwealth government of Manuel Roxas in 1946, following the birth of the National Economic Protectionism Association (NEPA) movement. Still in support of this, succeeding president Ramon Magsaysay was very expressive about his unwavering faith in Filipinos in their ability to progress under their leadership, management and initiative. When Mr. Magsaysay died in 1957, the promotion of local goods was carried on by his successor, then Vice President Carlos P. Garcia. President Garcia made the "Filipino First Policy" one of his flagship programs. The succeeding administrations, until now, have included the revival of this program in their respective economic agenda. However, it would seem that centuries of colonial rule, which urged most Filipinos to develop a liking for foreign goods, could not easily be dismissed by decades of product promotion, especially in light of globalization. There was a time, however, when domestic products almost rose beyond the reach of foreign competition, if not for the growth arresting interference of politics. In the 1950's, the country was on the verge of becoming the first "tiger economy" in Southeast Asia. At this time, the late Domingo M. Guevara figured prominently in the local business scene, being one of the entrepreneurs who helped the Philippines in reaching the status of a newly industrialized country. D.M. Guevara is said to personify the Filipino entrepreneur, industrialist and businessman that then President Magsaysay urged Filipino to become.
The late entrepreneur certainly knew his way around the electronic business. His eldest brother Jose, was the proud owner of the very first radio unit that Bicol ever set its eyes on. D.M. Guevara had openly attributed Bicol's radio culture to his brother, who he regarded as his "idol", Jose, unfortunately, died of tuberculosis when he was only 23 years old. Before his demise, he bid his younger brother to take up studies on radio repair and maintenance. This is why, at age 16, D.M. Guevara began traveling to Manila to watch radio technicians do their work. During his spare time when he got tired of sightseeing around the city - he buried his nose on radio manuals to master the craft. From a small repair shop in 1930, his business grew to eventually cover the radio dealership. Later on, it ventured into importation and selling radio sets. Radiowealth also sold communications equipment such as transmitter and telegraphic keys on the side and its clientele included the Bureau of Posts and the United States Armed Forces in the Philippines. By 1951, the company was already assembling its own radio sets, with one of its products being the Claire de Lune, the local stereo famous for its distinct cabinet-type shell. This knack for quality electronic products merited the company honor and recognition and, in 1954, Radiowealth became the recipient of the "Electronics Firm of the year" award of the business Writers Association of the Philippines. Buoyed by this major feat, the company pioneered in the manufacture of television sets a year later. D.M. Guevara's second son, Reynaldo, attributes Radiowealth's success to the ability to meet customer satisfaction. "Dad had many satisfied customers. That became the strength," he said. Reynaldo Guevara is now Chairman of Guevent Industrial Development Corp., which is presently the holding company of the Guevara Group of companies. The expansion that Radiowealth embarked on in the mid-50s did not stop at manufacturing radio and TV sets. Radiowealth continued to cover a larger spectrum of the electronics business, branching out to manufacture other households appliances such as air conditioners, electric fans, and lawnmowers from 1958 to 1959.
And the list of electronics and automotive-related products under the Guevara management grew. Even as the businessman strived hard to make his companies creditworthy, he also became active in politics. He ran for election as delegate to the 1971 Constitutional Convention, motivated by a vision to create a more conducive environment for heavy industry and enterprise. The bills he proposed focused on protecting the interest of domestic enterprises through tariff protection. He ardently supported resolutions that called for bringing wholesale business to national level and prohibiting importation of luxury products and exportation of raw materials that could be use in processing local goods. He was also a member and past president of NEPA, which over the years pursued its commitment to protect Filipino industries and factories. He was even one of the famous seven delegates who openly declined to sign the Martial Rule Constitution. In a foreword to D.M. Guevara's biography (written by Nick Joaquin and published in 1993), friend and erstwhile business associate Dominador Aytona said that throughout the businessman's career, "I saw him overcome inertia and resistance to change, exert the drive which defied regulation in attitudes to production of consumer durable goods…. He (had) a social conscience and (had) been an advocate of social justice. For he fought abuses of economic strength in order to close the gap between the powerful and powerless, between big business and small business, and between rich and poor, and in order to prevent domination of the economy by a few corporations… Above all, he (was) patriotic and a nationalist. For he (was) for the judicious use of scarce resources through the tariff mechanism, as well as for selective import and exchange restrictions, in order to develop a self-reliant and independent national economy effectively controlled by Filipinos."
In addition, he strongly lobbied for the creation of distinct Filipino brand names. His son, Reynaldo, explained that aside from generating jobs and pioneering businesses, one of D.M. Guevara's greatest legacies to Philippine business was his struggle to bring Philippine made products to the fore. “What Dad was fighting for was to use Filipino names. It was maybe unfortunate that he did not realize that. All the time, America influence was very strong, and Americas were insisting on the use of RCA, Motorola, Admiral, Dad was fighting that. In the end, however, colonial mentality prevailed. That could have been also the downfall of Dad. Filipinos wanted foreign names. The Filipinos, unfortunately, did not have the same interest as the other Asian countries. Our nationalism is not strong. Japan is very strong on that. Korea is very strong in that. Their wanted their own names, their own identity, and they were able to do it. Mr. Guevara added: "Maybe that was where government
support was lacking. I think, with more government support,
we would have succeeded." Its impact was very much felt by DMG, Inc. which not only brought Volkswagen in, but was also poised to go into massive production of automotive vehicles. Mr. Guevara explained that, if fate and politics had been more indulgent, his father could have helped the Philippines in coming out with its very own brand of passenger cars.
The manufacture of Volkswagen through the years made experts out of DMG, Inc.'s labor force. Such led to experimentation, and in 1969, the prototype of the first Philippine car with a Filipino name was assembled. It was called Sakbayan, or Sasakyang Katutubong Bayan, a box type two door passenger car. By this time, D.M. Guevara had developed a proposal for a government sponsored car manufacturing program that would encourage the production of cars in the country at minimum capital requirements and with little wastage of existing facilities. Shortly before the Martial Law, the Progressive Car Manufacturing Program (PCMP) was formed, and Volkswagen, along with Toyota, Ford, Chrysler and General Motors, was chosen to be among the participants. And o the Sakbayan, along with its bulkier truck counterpart, the Trakbayan, was produced under the PCMP. The program was aimed at closing the domestic automotive market to the importation of completely built-up (CBU) units. The government then selected five companies Volkswagen, Toyota, Ford, Chrysler and General Motors to participate. "The sad part is the all five companies lost money during that program," said Mr. Guevara. "There were two other companies Mercedes Benz and Renault who could not get in under PCMP. But during the time of Marcos they were allowed to bring in complete units without actually setting up the manufacturing and setting up manufacturing facilities required a lot of money." Mr. Guevara explained that the entry of tax free CBU's, which was contradictory to the very thrust of the PCMP (and which he openly called "rampant smuggling"), killed the local industry and rendered the program worthless. To make matters worse, the oil crisis in the early 1980's and the upsurge of interest rates added pressure on the business. The Guevara family could not turn to its other business, which included Radiowealth, Inc. and lending arm Radiowealth Finance, because these were likewise affected by the economic crunch. And so, like other companies at the time, DMG sought out government support. This move, however, brought ruin to the business, as DMG became vulnerable to the government's imminent take over. "When the economy started to falter, we tried to ask for government support, like the other companies. At the time, through some intermediaries, we were asked to negotiate with the Romualdezes in order for us to get some support. But Dad never agreed to the conditions. What he agreed to was that it had to be a buyout," said Mr. Guevara. Under the terms and conditions, a sum of P10 million was to be paid to the Guevara family as payment for DMG, Inc. After the turnover, the new owners were to manage the business and pay the sum in a succession of years. "Ten million pesos at that was a big amount. So we already turned over the company to Romualdezes, but we were not paid." He disclosed. Meanwhile, D.M. Guevara went into self-exile in the United States after the loss of DMG, Inc. He came home only after the ouster of Marcos. He decided against reacquiring the Volkswagen franchise in the post Martial Law years, however, because this already proved to be "uncompetitive" The (German currency) Deutsche mark kept on appreciating. The companies that were really more competitive were the Japanese companies, said Mr. Guevara. Instead, D.M. Guevara focused on his other business. This is the reason why the Guevent Industrial Development Corporation of today has long since dropped the less productive type of businesses in favor of more lucrative ones. At present, Guevent is comprised of Radiowealth Finance Company; G&S Transport Corporation; Aquatic Agro-Industrial Corporation; Honeycomb Builders, Incorporated; Pan-Mar Corporation (DBA Konig Importers N.A.); RFC (Hong Kong) Limited; Asian High-Technology Corporation; Tree's Company; G&S Travel and Tours, Incorporated; and Guevent Insurance Agency Incorporation. This diverse host of businesses is testament to how D.M. Guevara's business expertise did not wane through the years. He had plenty of help, of course, from his six sons and two daughters who are now at the helm of different businesses. Until the last days of his life, the Guevara patriarch remained a true entrepreneur. "Dad never really retired," his son said. As Chairman Emeritus of Guevent, he continued to be strong presence in Guevent's 3.3 hectare main offices in Mandaluyong. Incidentally, D.M. Guevara purchased the lot for only P2 per square meter in the 1950s. Today, the property is estimated at about P20,000 per square meter. Recently, Guevent tied up wit property developer Megaworld for the construction of high-rise establishment on the property. Before D.M. Guevara passed away in November 29, 1999 at the age 91, he kept abreast of the developments of Guevent. "He would just sit here and look pleasure in just talking with our executives who would just come and talk to him," said Mr. Guevara. The late entrepreneur even kept in touch by inviting key executives to lunch in his Wack Wack home about 15 minutes from the office to discuss important plans for company. He did not meddle with the decision-making, said Mr. Guevara, but instead freely gave his opinion and advice. "He forced us to make our own decisions. He would just wisely counsel us," Mr. Guevara. Even until now, said D.M. Guevara's daughter and GIDC Vice-Chairperson Carmen T.G. Monfort, the values their father taught are still considered when making major decisions. "We think twice when we make big decisions; we say that would Mom and Dad say? That remains at the back of our minds."
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A
native Bicol province, he braved the course of progressive
development in the manufacturing sector by coming out with
enterprises that ranged from simpler lines of production to
the more complicated. His flagship company, electronics firm
Radiowealth, Inc., started as a small radio repair shop in
1930.
By
1960, Radiowealth had already manufactured the first locally
produced TV picture tubes. Also in this year, D.M. Guevara
formed automotive company DMG, Inc. which was introduced to
Filipino motorists.
D.M.
Guevara spent a lifetime trying to create a market of all-Filipino
products. His dream was to uplift national industry by creating
products that were 100% Filipino - from the raw materials
to the labor to the finished products themselves. He firmly
believed that this was the key to getting ahead of neighboring
countries, especially in the lucrative industries of electronics
and automotive.
In
the 1960s, D.M. Guevara bought the manufacturing plant of
the Ysmael Steel Company in Manila. This jumpstarted the production
of cars, and by 1965, DMG was already catering to a customer
demand that rose to 25,000 units.