Palace exec: SBMA chairman named concurrent administrator

Malacañang on Friday confirmed the appointment of Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) chairman Roberto Villaseñor Garcia as the concurrent administrator.

 

At a press briefing, deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said the confirmation of the appointment came from the office of Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr.

 

“We received confirmation from the Office of the Executive Secretary that Mr. Garcia has indeed been designated in a concurrent capacity as administrator of SBMA,” Valte told reporters.

 

But Valte did not say when the appointment was issued.

 

Last April 7, President Aquino appointed Garcia as SBMA chairman and Rafael Reyes as administrator and chief executive officer to replace Feliciano Salonga and Armand Arreza, respectively.

 

But Reyes reportedly resigned even before he assumed the post.

 

Garcia is a business executive and entrepreneur with over 40 years of experience in the manufacturing, food and leisure industries. He was the president and chief operating officer of Oriental and Motolite Corporation (OMC) when he retired in 2004.

 

During his 34 years in the battery manufacturing industry, Garcia played a pivotal role in growing OMC into the largest battery manufacturer in ASEAN and one of the most technologically advanced companies in Asia. The company also became one of the most fully integrated battery manufacturers in the world.

 

The SBMA is the operating and implementing arm of the government for the development the 262 square mile (670 square kilometer) area of Subic Bay Freeport (SBF) in Subic Bay into a self-sustaining tourism, industrial, commercial, financial, and investment center to generate employment opportunities. — Amita Legaspi/RSJ, GMA News