Veteran stockbroker Wilson Sy said he will personally file a petition before the corporate regulators to grant the highly esteemed accounting guru Washington Sycip an exemption from the proposed rules setting an age limit on independent directors.
Sy, during a recent PSE-SEC Corporate Governance Forum, defended the 94-year-old Sycip, saying his wisdom and his contribution as an independent director of PhilEquity Management Inc. are very important.
“He is like an icon. He is known and his name is beyond material matters. He will say what he thinks, whatever is right or wrong in any company,” Sy said.
Sy recalled that before the 2008 collapse of the Lehman Bothers, Sycip already predicted that a major US investment bank was going to collapse. Sycip also mentioned last year that China would not be able to sustain seven percent growth rate until 2020.
Sycip currently sits as an independent director for various companies such as Belle Corp., First Philippine Holdings Corp. and Lopez Holdings Corp.
The Finance Department earlier released a list of “ideal” qualifications for directors of insurance and listed companies to improve governance in these firms. One provision states that an independent director must be below 80 years old, unless otherwise found fit.