By Henry Empeño | October 20, 2025

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT — Former Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman and Bataan First District Representative Felicito “Tong” Payumo, passed away on Sunday, October 19, at age 86.

The former technocrat, hailed here as a visionary who set most foundations for Subic’s economic growth, succumbed to hemorrhagic stroke while in Hong Kong, according to former Dinalupihan, Bataan Mayor Joel Payumo, his nephew.

An Economics cum laude from the Ateneo de Manila University with an MBA from the Harvard Business School, Payumo first worked for more than 20 years in private firms like Procter and Gamble Philippines, Mobil Corporation in New York, and Engineering Equipment Inc. before venturing into politics.

From June 30, 1987 to June 30, 1998, he served as the first representative of the First District of Bataan, where his hometown Dinalupihan is located.

It was during his stint in the 8^th to the 10^th Congress that Payumo’s political star shone the brightest, having authored landmark legislations like the PEZA Law (Republic Act No. 7916) and the BOT Law (Republic Act No. 6957, as amended by Republic Act No. 7718).

The Special Economic Zone Act of 1995 provides the legal framework for creating special economic zones to attract foreign investment, while the Build-Operate-Transfer provides the system for private companies to participate in financing, constructing, and operating government infrastructure projects, and then transfer them back to the government after a set period. 

In 1998, Payumo was tapped by then President Joseph Estrada to head the SBMA as Chairman and Administrator.

It was during Payumo’s time when the SBMA began its P12-billion seaport modernization project, which paved the way for the start of the construction of Subic’s New Container Terminal in 2004.

He also championed the construction of the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX), the country’s longest expressway at 93.77 kilometers, which started in 2005.

Another big-ticket infrastructure project that emerged from the extraordinary vision of Payumo is the proposed Bataan-Cavite Interlink Bridge (BCIB) that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has greenlighted to start late this year.

Payumo first broached the idea for the BCIB as Bataan representative in 1987, calling it “Trans Manila Bay Crossing.” As SBMA chair Payumo later tried to realize the proposed bridge-tunnel system, attracting at least two Japanese firms to present feasibility studies for the project, but this did not push through.

He again pitched for the Bataan-Cavite bridge link in 2016, citing it as a practical means to decongest traffic in Metro Manila, while opening up new economic opportunities in Bataan, Cavite and nearby areas.

In 2003, Payumo received The Outstanding Filipino (Tofil) award, which recognizes remarkable Filipinos aged 41 and above, whose integrity, excellence, and service have made a lasting mark on the country. 