President Duterte on Sunday visited the wake of Filipino-Chinese businessman Henry Sy Sr., the country’s wealthiest man.
Malacañang said Duterte arrived at around 10:50 p.m. at the Heritage in Taguig City.
“The President then expressed his sincerest condolences to Sy’s family. Duterte stayed for more than an hour before leaving the vicinity,” Malacañang said.
Duterte shook the hand of Sy’s daughter Teresita Sy-Coson before approaching the taipan’s coffin and have a moment of silence.
Presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo remembered Sy on Saturday by saying that the late philanthropist changed the landscape of malling in the Philippines.
“The landscapes of major cities in the Philippines seem unadorned and incomplete minus the imposing architectural delight. He made ‘malling’ a delightful experience as part of the urban living in the Philippines where Filipino families and the ordinary folks bond, promenade, and create wondrous and memorable moments,” he said.
Sy, an immigrant from Xiamen, died in his sleep last Saturday morning. He was 94.
He was the Philippines’ richest person from 2005 to 2018 and the 52nd richest person in the world.
Sy started his business empire from a small shoe business in 1958 in Manila known as Shoe Mart, which the SM chain of malls was named after.
In 2018, SM Investments said it had 70 malls in the Philippines and seven in China. (Argyll Geducos)
