Message from the Chairman

Corporate Governance was the cornerstone of our strategy when First Pacific made its investment in PLDT in 1998. We continue to build upon this foundation and recognize the critical role of good corporate governance in ensuring PLDT’s sustained growth and profitability.

Concretely, this means establishing the right policies. Our Revised Manual on Corporate Governance sets the appropriate structures and allocates responsibility among the various persons and offices in the company. Our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics clearly defines our corporate values of accountability, integrity, fairness and transparency; values which guide individual and corporate conduct.

We have also developed and implemented policies on the avoidance of conflicts of interest, the proper handling of gifts, entertainment and sponsored travel, maintenance of relationships with like-principled business partners, and the establishment of a whistleblowing system to prevent or address violations of these policies.

We are also pleased at the initiatives we have undertaken to ensure compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley Section 404. This means that with the necessary vigilance, our processes and practices allow us to work in an environment of sufficiently effective internal controls that forestalls fraud and other malpractices.

Our corporate governance journey continues and we remain committed to pushing our governance agenda further. We affirm that adherence to high standards of performance, anchored on genuine good governance is what sets apart truly world class companies from the rest.

In this endeavor, we realize that corporate governance is not just about a set of rules to comply with. Rather, it is a way of life, a package of knowledge, attitudes, skills and habits - nothing less than the company’s culture – that will ensure PLDT’s future, not just for now, but for the long-term; not just for some, but for all its stakeholders.

Manuel V. Pangilinan
Chairman of the Board
July 2013

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