Zobel-led Ayala Corporation paid tribute to the late former president Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, noting that his legacy of “transparent governance” paved the way for economic growth.

Aquino died of renal disease secondary to diabetes on Thursday, January 24.

“We will remember President Aquino as someone who genuinely aspired and worked hard for the good of the nation and the Filipino,” the conglomerate’s chairman, Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala, shared in a Facebook post on Thursday.

Ayala Corporation also lauded Aquino’s focus on good governance, broad reforms, and promotion of the Philippines, which were “instrumental in gaining the confidence of local and international investors.”

“His legacy of transparent governance, the patient deliberation of policy, and firm stance on championing the welfare of the Filipino will be his indelible mark in our nation’s history.”

In 2012, the Zobel brothers, Jaime Augusto and Fernando, credited Aquino for providing a “period of political stability.”

“Every businessman around the world is looking for stability…. At the end of the day, investment depends on a very peaceful and predictable political environment. That’s what we’re seeing,” Fernando told CNN in 2012.

Ayala Corporation’s businesses generally performed well during Aquino’s time.

The conglomerate saw its net income nearly double in less than five years.

Its net income surged to P22.3 billion in 2015 from P11.2 billion in 2010, anchored on the strong performance of its real estate, telecommunications, and power generation businesses.

Ayala won big-ticket public-private partnership deals, including the Daang Hari-SLEX Link Road (Muntinlupa-Cavite Expressway), Automatic Fare Collection System, Light Rail Transit Line 1 Cavite Extension and Operations & Maintenance, and South Integrated Transport System, under Aquino’s watch.

Ayala Land also signed a P24-billion purchase agreement with the government for the sale of the 103-hectare Food Terminal Incorporated complex in Taguig City. This was one of the largest deals in the history of privatization of government assets. – Rappler.com