Gil Juco Puyat Sr. (September 1, 1907 – March 23, 1980) was a Filipino politician and businessman who served as a

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

of the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

from 1951 until 1972, when President

Ferdinand Marcos Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. ( , , ; September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino politician, lawyer, dictator, and kleptocrat who was the 10th president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled under martial ...

shut Congress down and declared

Martial Law Martial law is the imposition of direct military control of normal civil functions or suspension of civil law by a government, especially in response to an emergency where civil forces are overwhelmed, or in an occupied territory. Use Martia ...

, and as

Senate President President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the speaker in some other assemblies. The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's succession for its top executive office: for ...

from 1967 to 1972.

Education

Having been exposed to the world of business, Puyat was inevitably drawn to a course in commerce for his higher education. This he pursued at the

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; fil, Pamantasan ng Pilipinas Unibersidad ng Pilipinas) is a state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by Republic Act No. 9500 (UP Charter of 20 ...

where he topped his class. Even as a student, he was already immersed in intricate operations of finance and expense, of capital and production, and of management labor handling. He was a member of the college-base
Pan Xenia Fraternity
and

Upsilon Sigma Phi The Upsilon Sigma Phi () is the oldest Greek-letter organization and fraternity in Asia. Founded in 1918, it is also the oldest student organization in continuous existence in the University of the Philippines. It has two chapters — a single ch ...

Early career

He became a member of the

Rotary Club Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, prof ...

of Manila at about the same time that he was also a young professor of economics at the University of the Philippines. Puyat's skill in managing the family business caught the eye of the late President Manuel L. Quezon. At the time, the country was predominantly agricultural in activity and the President was advocating industrialization. Quezon named the young Puyat as dean of the College of Business Administration at the

when he was 33. An active member of international trades bodies, he acquired international stature in business. The Business Writers’ Association of the Philippines voted him "Business Leader of the Year" in 1948 and the Association of Red Feather Agencies voted him "Civic Leader of the Year" in 1949. In 1953, he received a plaque from the Community Chest of Greater Manila for “outstanding services as one of the founders, first president and first campaign fund chairman“ of the body. The Philippine Institute of Public Opinion (PIPO) awarded him a certificate of honor for demonstrating national leadership in business, economics, the civic and political fields and for his distinguished service to the youth.

Political career

In the Philippine midterm elections of 1951, he was elected Senator and he served in the

Philippine Senate The Senate of the Philippines ( Filipino: ''Senado ng Pilipinas'', also ''Mataas na Kapulungan ng Pilipinas'' or "upper chamber") is the upper house of Congress of the bicameral legislature of the Philippines with the House of Representatives a ...

until its closure by Martial Law in 1972. From 1967, he was the Senate President. As a legislator, Puyat created a few reforms and other things involving the dispensation of public works funds.

Business activities

He is founder of Manila Banking Corporation (now Chinabank Savings Bank), Manila Bankers Life Insurance Corporation and the Loyola Group of Companies. The Loyola Group of Companies is composed of Loyola Plans Consolidated Inc., Group Developers Inc. and Loyola Memorial Chapels and Crematorium Inc. He founded Loyola Plans Consolidated Inc. in 1968 and today it is the oldest Pre-need Company in continuous operation. Group Developers pioneered the concept of memorial parks in the Philippines with its two signature memorial parks in Marikina and Sucat. Loyola Memorial Chapels was the first to use modern cremation technology in the Philippines. Loyola Memorial Chapels has six branches, all in

Luzon Luzon (; ) is the largest and most populous island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the Philippines archipelago, it is the economic and political center of the nation, being home to the country's capital city, Manila, as ...

Family background

Puyat is the third child of Philippine Pioneer Industrialist Gonzalo Puyat and Nicasia Juco, both from Guagua,

Pampanga Pampanga, officially the Province of Pampanga ( pam, Lalawigan ning Pampanga; tl, Lalawigan ng Pampanga ), is a province in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. Lying on the northern shore of Manila Bay, Pampanga is bordered by Tarlac ...

. He was trained early in life by his father, Don Gonzalo, in the trade of manufacturing billiard tables and bowling alleys. Eventually, he assisted in managing the family business of Gonzalo Puyat & Sons, the brand holder of AMF-Puyat, Puyat Steel, and Puyat Vinyl. Puyat was married to Eugenia Guidote, an accountant and pioneer member of the

Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants The Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA) is the national professional accountancy body of the Philippines. Explorers with an accounting background first formed the PICPA in November 1929. The PICPA focuses on four areas ...

(PICPA), and a trained opera singer (soprano). They had seven children – Gil Jr. (deceased), Vicente (deceased), Antonio (deceased), Victor, Jesusa (deceased), Alfonso and Eugenia.

Death

In 1978, he was invested as a member of the Order of St. Gregory the Great. He died, 2 years later, on March 22, 1980 due to

cardiac arrest Cardiac arrest is when the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops beating. It is a medical emergency that, without immediate medical intervention, will result in sudden cardiac death within minutes. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and possi ...

, one of the complications of an asthma attack. He was buried on March 28, 1980 at Loyola Memorial Park in

Marikina Marikina (), officially the City of Marikina ( fil, Lungsod ng Marikina), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 456,159 people. It is locate ...

Buendia Avenue Senator Gil J. Puyat Avenue, also known simply as Gil Puyat Avenue and formerly and still referred to as Buendia Avenue, is a major arterial thoroughfare which travels east–west through the cities of Makati and Pasay in western Metro Manila, P ...

, which was originally named after

Nicolas Buendia Nicolas Buidon Buendia (born Nicolás Buendía y Buidon; March 12, 1879 – September 14, 1958) was a Filipino politician who served as Senator of the Philippines from 1941 to 1946, and from 1935 to 1941 as assemblyman of the first district of ...

, is now named after him, but most people tend to use the original name of the road.

References

External links and sources