Comedian Bert “Tawa” Marcelo did not live long enough to see the transformation of the company that makes his favorite beer. But son Gerard said that his dad would be proud and happy to learn of what San Miguel Corporation has become and that it has remembered to give back to his beloved Bulacan with a soon-to-be-built airport 25 years after his demise.
“He would have loved to meet Mr. Ramon Ang, the San Miguel visionary who led the diversification. He would have given him butong pakwan ni Mentong or a box of chicharon from Bulacan, his usual pasalubong to friends,” said the 47 year-old Gerard, one of the comedic legend’s four sons who have carved out their names in different businesses away from the spotlight of the entertainment world.
Gerard said his father’s closest association to SMC’s big boss Ramon S. Ang was the late chairman Eduardo Cojuangco, Jr. “I remember, when Boss Danding wants to have a good laugh, he will call my father and tell him to deliver Boss Danding’s favorite joke.”
But his association with SMC was not confined to the higher-ups and not constrained by his role as brand ambassador, a title he proudly held since 1971 until his death in 1995. San Miguel Corporation and subsidiary San Miguel Brewery celebrated their anniversaries last Sept. 29 and Oct. 1, respectively.
“My father was close to San Miguel people from its truck drivers up to the chairman. He can relate to them. He talks to everyone since he is easy-going and has a friendly nature. His jokes were snappy and non- lethal,” he said.
“He lived that value of friendship over money. He would do San Miguel shows for a minimal fee like the Balikbanda shows and appear in their Baguio summer shows yearly in the 80s. He did shows for San Miguel executives and friends for free. He also lived the SMB value of ‘Iba ang may pinagsamahan,’ another San Miguel Beer tagline,” Gerard said.
Gerard said the gloom of the lockdown due to COVID-19 has led Filipinos to revisit his dad’s old SMC television commercials on Youtube and share these on Facebook. One of the favorite ones was featuring Bert demanding debt payment from Bruno, a karate practitioner, who sends his sparring partner sailing through the front door. A dazed Bert then invites him with his characteristic Bulakenyo lilt, “Mag beer muna tayo.”
Gerard agrees that a lot has changed since then and San Miguel has diversified in many industries. “But my father would be happy that Ramon Ang is investing heavily in the country to help our kababayans by providing employment and improving our country’s infrastructure. His big investments are helping the country’s economy,’ he said.
Because his father values the bond and friendship with San Miguel and loves Bulacan dearly, particularly his hometown, Baliuag, Gerard said that the construction of the P734 billion Manila International Airport would definitely make him proud.
“Yes, definitely he will be happy and proud with the development. My father was a proud Bulakenyo. As Jose Guevarra also said, ‘He was one of the two men that the province of Bulacan can be truly proud of. He placed Bulacan on the map. The other one is Blas Ople, the serious one,” he said.
The airport, set to start construction, will be a game-changer in the province as it can handle up to 100 million passengers per year, eyed to create about 30 million tourism-related jobs, and generate more than a million direct jobs for host province Bulacan and nearby provinces.
It will also be a timely shot in the arm for many Overseas Filipino Workers, who lost their jobs and had to return to the country in droves due to uncertain global economic conditions.