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Celso G. de los Angeles Jr.


Personal Information

• Full Name: Celso Gancayco de los Angeles Jr.
• Birthplace: Marikina City
• Residence: Sto. Domingo, Albay
• Civil Status: separated
• Wife: Concepcion de los Angeles
• Children: Martin Nicolo P. delos Angeles (born July 2, 1983); Paolo Vicente P. de los Angeles (born July 19, 1993)
• Parents: Celso de los Angeles Sr., and Purita de los Angeles
• Sibling: Victorino de los Angeles
• Great-grandfather: Former Marikina Mayor Laureano Guevarra

Education

• Undergraduate degree from Ateneo de Manila University (BS Management, 1974)
• Graduate degree from the Asian Institute of Management (Masters in Business Management, 1976)

Career

• Mayor of Sto. Domingo, Albay (2007 - present)
• ran for Marikina City’s congressional seat in 2001, but lost
• former director of Home Guaranty Corporation (pending term of office)
• former president of the National Home Mortgage Finance Corporation (NHMFC), October 2004- July 2005
• De los Angeles started the pre-need business of the Legacy Consolidated Plans, Inc. in 1997
• listed as Chief Executive Officer, Chairman of the Board, Incorporator and Stockholder of Legacy Group, Inc. in 2003
• listed as CEO, Chairman of the Board and stockholder of Legacy Plans, Inc. in 2000
• net worth of P69,754,110.98 as of April 2008
• member of Alabang Country Club Inc. as a company representative of Asiantrust Development Bank, as of March 2008.

Issues

• Blacklisted. BSP resolution 1007 and 871, dated July 6 and August 10, 1984 respectively, placed De Los Angeles in the central bank’s temporary watchlist. This was after three of his rural banks, Thrift Savings and Loan Association, Federated Thrift Bank, and Rural Bank of Calumpit, became insolvent.

Depositors of the closed banks filed 28 cases of estafa against De Los Angeles in different courts in Bulacan, Makati, Aklan and Albay.

In 2002, De Los Angeles requested BSP to be taken off the watchlist, claiming that that no more cases were filed against him.

In a letter submitted to the BSP, De los Angeles made a commitment not to enter any banking-related business.

In January 2003, BSP took off De los Angeles from the watchlist, with clearances from the courts handling De Los Angeles’ cases, the Department of Justice, and the National Bureau of Investigation. The cases against him were dismissed after witnesses failed to appear in court.

• Stint at Housing agency. De los Angeles served as president of the National Home Mortgage Finance Corporation for less than a year.

In a paid advertisement in July 2005, the Philippine Undertaking for Social Housing and other groups working in the Community Mortgage Program (CMP) asked President Arroyo to remove De los Angeles from office.

The CMP People’s Organization said De los Angeles was “not morally fit to be in government."

De los Angeles resigned from the NHMFC in mid-July 2005.

• Legacy's woes. The Bangko Sentral has been monitoring a group of banks under the Legacy Group, owned by De los Angeles, because of potentially unsafe and unsound banking practices.

Thirteen of Legacy Group’s banks voluntarily closed in 2008 and were placed under receivership or liquidation. Bangko Sentral stated that these banks have “insufficient assets to cover their liabilities, suffer from severe liquidity problems, and perform unsafe and unsound banking practices."

On January 5, 2009 BSP filed complaints against “16 officers, employees and agents of the Legacy group for 49 counts of falsification of public and commercial documents, plus one case each of false reporting and false statement."

BSP, on February 6, 2009, filed more complaints against officers and employees of the four rural banks under Legacy Group with the Department of Justice: “116 counts of falsification of public and commercial documents were filed along with two counts of false statements against 18 officers, employees, and agents of four rural banks belonging to the Legacy Group".

However, the BSP did not include De los Angeles among the respondents.

On February 9, during the hearing conducted by the House Committee on Banks and Financial Intermediaries, De los Angeles accused former and incumbent BSP officials of extortion.

On February 29, the BSP filed a complaint of syndicated estafa against De los Angeles and other officers of Legacy group and affiliated companies.

In a Senate hearing, two former officers of Legacy pointed to SEC Commissioner Jesus Martinez as an alleged protector of Legacy. One of the witnesses said Parañaque Rep. Eduardo Zialcita received consultancy payment from De los Angeles. (also see BSP cases filed against Legacy Group)

• The Nograles connection. During a Senate hearing on February 2, 2009, De los Angeles confirmed that House Speaker Prospero Nograles invested in Legacy Consolidated Plans Inc.

Nograles later confirmed the investment.

But Nograles denied protecting Legacy and De los Angeles. This was in response to accusations of former Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation President Ricardo Tan that the Speaker sought a meeting with him to negotiate for Legacy and De Los Angeles.

• The Noli connection. Vice President Noli De Castro admitted that De Los Angeles supported his 2004 election campaign.

In 2004, De Castro recommended De los Angeles as chairman of NHMFC.

• Jueteng connection. In 2000, during the impeachment trial of former president Joseph Estrada, Luis ‘Chavit’ Singson mentioned De Los Angeles as one of former president’s ‘jueteng’ collectors for Ilocos Norte.

De los Angeles denied this, but admitted that Charlie “Atong" Ang was a client in his lending business.

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