A look at Archibald Po*

IN December 2009, I interviewed Archibald "Archie" Po, president of LionAir Inc., who had then just launched his newest business, a hotel in Boracay Island, as well as an air ambulance service in Asia. He has been in the aviation industry for more than three decades, and is one of the well-respected aviation experts and pilots in the Philippines.

Po has never been involved in any controversies before, and I don't believe he deliberately misrepresented those allegedly overpriced choppers sold to the PNP by Maptra, as brand new. The Po family is a very respectable clan whose father Joaquin, founded Popular Bookstore, which is still operated by his children today. I personally know a number of the siblings, and I've found them to be down-to-earth and very sincere people.

The case of the allegedly overpriced choppers, obviously involve unseen, and much bigger hands, and only the PNP officials involved in the purchase can shed light on it:

Former Asian Spirit owner diversifies into tourism, air ambulance

BORACAY ISLAND, Aklan—Archibald Po, former majority shareholder of Asian Spirit (now Zest Airways), is now going full blast in his investments in the tourism industry by opening another boutique hotel.

A pilot by profession, Po also recently set up an air ambulance service in Singapore, bringing in patients as far as Nepal and India to hospitals in the city-state.

In an interview, Po said his new resort, called Hotel Soffia, was built at a cost of P100 million under his property concern, Kifessia Realty Corp. “It’s always been a dream of mine to build a hotel on this island, which I passed so often during my flying days in the 1980s.”

Architect/interior designer/master plumber Chi-chi Victoriano, who also did the Amorita Hotel in Bohol, designed the boutique hotel. Because he is an environmentalist, Po explained that the hotel uses only natural lighting aside from its energy-saving light bulbs, solar heaters, and filters its waste in a leaching field which produces fertilizer, instead of emptying into the island’s sewerage system.

It employs 50 employees in three shifts for its round-the-clock operations, making it a “very lean” hotel, he added. Room rates of the hotel are “affordable”, ranging from P3,500 ++ (standard, twin/triple-share) to P5,000 ++ (superior, twin/triple-share).

Although nestled on a hill in barangay Yapak, the hotel, Po said, will attract Boracay tourists who want quiet and privacy, but still need quick access to the restaurant strip and main white beach. “You just relax here and swim in our infinity pool. Or have your cocktails while taking in the 340-degree view of the island. If you want to go to the beach or the party places, we’ll transport you there. It’s only seven minutes away.”

This is the second boutique hotel to his name after the 48-room Hotel Fleuris in Puerto Princesa, Palawan, built at a cost of P90 million. Said to be a “favorite” among diplomatic embassies, consular offices, Fleuris is now on its 11th year of operation, “but it still looks brand new,” said Po. At least 84 percent of Tripadvisor members who have stayed at Fleuris have dubbed it the “cleanest and friendliest” hotel in Puerto Princesa.

Po said he is considering to build another hotel in Basco, Batanes, and is currently evaluating other possible hotel sites in the country.

“I think the Philippines has no way to go except tourism. That is what will save our economy, not manufacturing, which is already the stronghold of China,” he stressed.

Meanwhile, Po recently bought a Hawker jet to beef up his fleet of air ambulances via Executive Jets Asia, a company in partnership with other Asian and American air transport experts.

Po said he invested some $4 million in the company, based in Selatar Airport (East Camp), Singapore, supplying the company’s four-plane fleet. The company also provides cost-effective executive jet transport services to the region’s high-powered businessmen.

“All the jets are convertible to air ambulances,” he explained, adding that the planes, mostly eight-seaters, are chartered by hospitals, insurance firms and individuals needing quick medical evacuations for critical medical conditions.

Po praised the Singapore government for its efficient bureaucracy, allowing businesses to operate with the most minimal permits and signatures required. “An air ambulance, for instance, has to mobilize quickly in less than 45 minutes,” he stressed.

He said he is eyeing to invest another $2 million to expand the operations and maintain four planes in Singapore. He is also eyeing to expand to other countries.

Po also operates LionAir Inc., a charter service with 20 helicopters and two LET aircraft. The company is also the licensed distributor and service center of the Torrance, California-based Robinson Helicopter Co. in the Philippines. A number of well-known politicians and high-profile businessmen in the country are owners of Robinson choppers. LionAir is also the favorite go-to charter service by politicians running in national elections.

In 1995 Po set up Asian Spirit with two other businessmen—Antonio Turralba Jr. and Noel Oñate—capitalizing it a cost of $3 million. In May 2007, he sold his shares in the airline to Antonio Ang, founder of CATS, the distributor of Mercedes-Benz locally. Ang, in turn, along with the airline’s minority shareholders, subsequently sold their shares to juice king Alfredo Yao in March 2008.

*This piece was originally published in December 2009 in the BusinessMirror.

Getting away from it all

(Staying at Discovery Shores in Boracay was a different kind of experience altogether. More on that in a future blog entry.)

Something Like Life
Aug. 31, 2007

GOING on an extended vacation, where you just want to be by yourself, away from all the pressures of city living and demands on your time, isn’t as simple as it used to be anymore.

After going through some unfortunate family events in the past few months, I thought it was time for me to take a break, at least two weeks, to get my head together and revive my spirit. This would only be the second time in my entire adult life that I would take off all by myself and try to relax solo.

At the onset, it was difficult to explain to my usual travel buddies why I wasn’t inviting them along on my holiday. Of course, there was also the mother creature whom I had to persuade to live with my sister and her family during the time I would be away so she wouldn’t have to be all alone at home. I was just in dire need of some alone time.

Then, there was the packing. I realize that as one gets older and becomes a creature of habit, there are just certain items that one can’t live without. First of all there was the matter of what toiletries to bring.

When I was in my 20s, I was quite content with just a small bag of toiletries containing my toothbrush and toothpaste, deodorant, lotion, cologne, baby powder, foundation, eyeliner and lipstick. On this last trip, I had to bring two kikay kits along—one for my toiletries, which now included age-defying creams (for daytime and nighttime), and another for all my makeup (eyeshadow, mascara, lash curler, blush, brushes, lipliner, lipsticks and lipgloss).

(The main pool at Shangri-La Mactan, Cebu. Heaven!)

Even what resort wear to bring has become a tad complicated. I never ever packed jeans while on vacation, as I was quite content living in my shorts and T-shirts every day, whether at the beach or in any resort. But now I found myself packing a pair of jeans, black capri pants and a few light long-sleeved tops for cocktails I needed to attend at a resort. And, no, the sarong over the bathing suit just doesn’t work anymore...I had to have my lounging tunics as well.

Whereas before I used only one purse which took me from day to night, nowadays I would bring three different bags of varying sizes. One is a casual bag small enough to put in my wallet, two cell phones and a lipstick for that quick trip to D’Mall or some café; a medium-sized bag made of banig to bring to the beach or the pool, carrying—besides those items mentioned previously—sunblock for my face, sunblock for my body, a book and a magazine, and a bottle of water; and, last, a large foldable all-purpose bag to accommodate all other items that I expect would no longer fit in my luggage on my way back from vacation. (We girls always end up with more stuff than what we had originally brought for our holiday, don’t we?)

Truth to tell, I was even going to bring my iBook because I had never taken a leave from work that long. (The last time I did, laptops had yet to be in vogue.) I thought I might get some writing done while I was away. But then I had already locked myself in my home office for three days straight before my vacation, just finishing my assignments and advancing stories for my editor abroad. All that work would have been all for nought. I had to draw the line and do a mental check, convincing myself that I could live without my iBook for the duration of my holiday. I was only supposed to read a book or two, lounge by the pool or beach, and eat without guilt. So I unpacked the iBook and banished it to my cabinet.

Still, as I was about to begin my vacation to Cebu and Boracay, I found myself at the airport trying to stand upright as I struggled with my mid-sized luggage on wheels, a backpack and a purse! Ack!

In Cebu the sun was out and the heat was on, tricking my brain into thinking it was still summer. My hotel room overlooked the ocean and the inviting pool below, which I thought I would be enjoying for next few days. After a quick merienda, I took a leisurely walk around the hotel’s splendidly manicured grounds and made a quick tour of the hotel spa, and was calmed by the wonderful scents permeating throughout. Off I was dreaming of my own day of wellness.

(Tourists watch a local para-wakeboarding – not quite sure if that's the right term for the sport – in Boracay.)

With the constant breeze from the ocean cooling me, and the relative quiet of the surroundings, I was lulled into thinking that I was in for two weeks of relaxation...until someone mentioned that I had narrowly missed a typhoon which by then had been battering Metro Manila, plunging it into a flooded mess. The comment threw me off-track and quickly put me on my “city” mode. For the next two hours, I was glued to the TV set in my room watching ANC for more news of the typhoon.

I then made the mistake of checking my cell phone, which I had put on silent mode supposedly in keeping with my vacation. But there was a text from a friend back in Manila asking me how the weather was in Cebu. He added that it was flooding everywhere in the metropolis and the rains were just pouring unabated. That did it! I had to once more check myself and mentally struggled to shift back to “relaxation” gear once more. So I hurriedly changed into my bathing suit and went for a few laps in the pool that had beckoned to me only the day before.

I managed to catch a few winks as well in between my magazine reading, then it was time for lunch. But then, I foolishly passed the business center on the way back to my room. The next few minutes caught me plunked down on my sofa reading the Asian Wall Street Journal’s analysis of the subprime credit mess in the US. Oh, good grief!

Over the next few days, I was lounging at the pool—and hanging out at the business center, watching the TV news (this time, CNN as well), reading the AWSJ and, ultimately, succumbing to checking my e-mail on my cell phone, even as I continued to myself that I had switched on the vacation response option on all my e-mail servers.

I thought things would be different when I landed in Boracay. But as soon as I had lunch and had leisurely eaten my favorite dessert of lemon tart and coffee, I was off looking for an Internet café. After two hours, I had already read all my e-mails, chatted via YM with some friends back in Manila, and updated my news blog (http://sludge.wordpress.com). Arrgh!

That being said, I don’t mean to sound ungrateful for this spot of “me” time. And, of course, there were a few days when the endorphins and dopamines kept me happy and calm, especially after a few visits to the spa and some delicious meals with my favorite reds. I was also able to sleep soundly throughout the night, waking up feeling quite refreshed. I also have a slight tan and my slowly fading dyed hair to prove I had been using the pool and the beach and not simply parading my bathing suits. But I was foolish to think that in this day and age, I could still get away from everything that would remind me of my frenetic life back in Manila.

Vacations are no longer as easy as leaving your watch in your hotel room or switching off your cell phone. As we get older, the packing becomes a bitch. Gone are the days when my vacation consisted of a few clothes and my toothbrush and toothpaste in a small backpack. (On my way back to Manila, it became the luggage on wheels, backpack, the large now-unfolded all-purpose bag, as well as a box of sweet treats from Boracay. Oh, brother!) And as technology pervades every corner of our lives, we will never again be so isolated and alone no matter how far away from Manila we go. All hotel rooms now have TV, our cell phones are always within range of cell sites, and even if we don’t bring our laptops, there are Internet cafés everywhere to pander to our Web surfing habit.

Now, did someone mention Bhutan?

(My column, Something Like Life, is published every Friday in the Life section of the BusinessMirror. All photos by the author.)

What's your favorite Christmas tradition?

Something Like Life
Dec. 22/23. 2006

IS it just me or can you smell it, too? I don’t know, but there’s just something superspecial in our carbon monoxide-laden air these days that gives me an extra high, with just a few days to go before Christmas. Sure, we’re all probably tapped out right now, having exceeded our Christmas budget again…or suffering a splitting headache from the vocal contortions of the blind woman with the mic outside the mall…and maybe a bit frazzled from managing the maze of pasilyos at the tiangge and shoppers meandering like they were walking under the moonlight in Luneta!

But gee…Merry Christmas! It’s a wonderful holiday that should be celebrated throughout the year (sans the traffic). Let’s take some time to reflect on the birth of the Christ Jesus who has made all our blessings possible. And for that, we should offer our grateful hearts to Him and share the bounties of the season with all. As my gift to you dear readers, here are some friends to share their thoughts on their favorite Christmas traditions. Happy Christmas to you everyone!

Mayor Jojo Binay, Makati City

When I was still in high school (I was living with an uncle’s family then), I was supposed to go out with my cousins and my barkada. May karnabal pa noon, at ’yon lang ang pinaka-happening ng mga panahon na ’yon. I really wanted to go but I begged off, saying I had lots of books to read. The truth was, I didn’t have any money. This experience encouraged me to establish a tradition of gift-giving, especially to indigents in our beloved city, and treat them with free entertainment during Christmas/New Year.

Gov. Say Tetangco, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas

Besides family reunions, what’s my favorite Christmas tradition? Ah, it’s the golf circuit; I play with friends between Christmas and New Year. We’ve had one scorekeeper all these years, and only he knows how the tallies of wins and losses are made...but that has never seemed to bother any of us. We let him have his way, all in the spirit of friendship and camaraderie that fills the Christmas air.

Jimmy Bautista, president, Philippine Airlines

My favorite Christmas tradition is the Noche Buena, when after going to Mass all family members, from grandparents to grandchildren, dine and drink together and exchange gifts and pleasantries. When my parents were alive, we made it a point that my family and my sisters’ families spend Noche Buena in our parents’ home. It’s like our annual reunion and everybody, especially the kids, looks forward to it.

Lance Gokongwei, president, JG Summit Holdings Inc.

My favorite Christmas tradition is decorating the tree with my wife Jay, my daughter Hannah and my son Jacob. Basically, we use the same ornaments every year, but this year Hannah, who is four years old, added a Dora star on top of the tree. I love seeing my children’s faces light up as they watch the tree disappear under all the lights and colorful decoration.

Fritz Kahler, general manager, Alegre Beach Resort

Back home in Austria, our Christmases were mostly white, with a large freshly cut fir tree set up in our living room, beautifully decorated and lit by real beeswax candles, which altogether created that very special Christmas scent. My father then would walk through the house on Christmas Eve with pieces of hot coal from the fireplace on which he put some incense, which further enhanced the atmosphere. Christmas out here in the tropics is a bit different but we’ve kept some of the traditions. We always have a natural “Christmas tree” which could be a local bush or small tree “adapted” by my wife Cynthia and decorated with ornaments we’ve collected from the numerous countries we’ve lived in. We have real beeswax candles from back home which we light on Christmas Eve.

Macel Fernandez-Estavillo, legal counsel, Yuchengco Group of Companies

My dad would make wonderful paella that he’s famous for, my mom and aunt would make chicken salad and potato salad, and we’d eat at 12 midnight after our 10 pm Mass. When my sister Andion is in town (from Berlin), she’d sing Christmas carols during Mass (our family’s gift to Jesus). Now that it’s our first Christmas with our baby Javea, we’re hoping to start our own traditions, too. We got a trinket for the tree to celebrate Javea’s first Christmas, and hope to get one each year, so that when my husband, Karlo, and I are old, we’ll have a tree filled with trinkets for each year. We’re excited to be spending Javea’s first Christmas in Berlin with family, including Andion’s baby Jeffrey Jr., who is celebrating his second Christmas.

Nilo Cruz, managing director, HP Philippines

After Simbang Gabi on Christmas Eve, we’d stuff ourselves during Noche Buena with home-baked Chinese ham, pasta, fruits and French garlic bread, downing it all with either hot chocolate or freshly popped champagne. It’s gift-giving/opening until the wee hours. On Christmas Day, we visit relatives and friends, and in the evening we call those who are abroad. We also sponsor an orphan through our parish-church project during the holidays.

Ruby Gan, co-owner, Schu

We usually start our Christmas shopping when the school break starts. My sons Martin Francis and Raphael and I would scour the malls and shops armed with our lists. This is also the time when they would choose their Christmas cards for the rest of the family members. This time of the year, I tend to spoil my sons because I try to get everything on their lists. But hold your horses! These are not long lists—only about two to five items between the two boys, and they’re not really that expensive. On the 24th, after the 6 pm anticipated Misa de Gallo, we celebrate Christmas Eve with a nice dinner, usually at the Peninsula Manila, dressed in all our finery. Then at exactly midnight, we would open all our gifts!

Prandy Yulo, managing director, Hella Phils.

As a born-again Christian, I attend a Christian service normally before midnight of the 24th in our local church where we remember the birth of Jesus as told in Scripture and focus on the reason for the season, the coming of the Messiah. After congregational songs of worship and prayers, we proceed to the reading of Scripture. The highlight of the service is our pastor’s sermon on the significance of the season. My family would then spend some time after the service in fellowship with our churchmates, then go home to sleep.

Joey Bermudez, president, Chinatrust Commercial Bank Corp.

On Christmas Eve, we always hold a talent contest where we—my wife Ester, my kids Miggy, Anjo, Jeff, Gabby and Christine, and myself—perform individually with the househelp as our audience. The househelp also act as judges and they select the best performers. Of course, we give the househelp their Christmas gifts before they do their judging chores to ensure that they will be neutral. I have never won in any of these contests.

* * *

At no better time of the year can we give of our hearts to the less fortunate among us. I would like to enjoin all to remember the Guimaras oil-spill victims, whose futures are not as secure as most of us in this Holy Season. You may send your donations, either in cash or kind, to:

PROJECT SUNRISE (http://www.projectsunrise.org)
c/o Land Bank of the Philippines Guimaras Branch
Account Name: Provincial Government of Guimaras
Account No: 1922-1000-35
Bank Swift Code: TLBPPHMMAXXX

VISAYAN SEA SQUADRON
c/o Lette Teodosio
Cell-phone Nos.: +63919-225-3262, +63928-231-3193, +63915-7854-035
E-mail: cleanupoilspill@gmail.com

(My column, Something Like Life, appears every Friday in the Life section of the BusinessMirror. Photos from BusinessMirror.)