Chairman Philip Lo and director Ram Antonio are accused of alleged shady moves and power grabs to overthrow President Michael de Jesus

Things are heating up at the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP). Chairman Philip G. Lo and Director Roberto V. Antonio are in the hot seat after a scathing complaint was just received by the president’s office.

The six-page complaint – filed by “DBP-affected employees” and received by the President’s Office on September 4 – was provided by a chatterbox and accused Lo and Antonio of alleged misconduct, violations of Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) rules and violations against the principles of good governance.

“May we request you to take appropriate and immediate action, Mr. President, as your actions are already causing great harm to the DBP and its employees,” said the affected DBP employees.

Lo and Antonio have not responded to Bilyonaryo.com’s request for comment since last week.

Lo is accused of derailing the board’s core functions by focusing on smaller personnel issues instead of key tasks such as loan approvals

The complainants requested Lo through his technical assistant Atty. Glaiza M. Vicente-Delos Reyes and Vice President Leah T. Navarro used “board meetings as an opportunity to speak out against the bank’s president (Michael de Jesus) and other senior officers of the bank.”

Lo repeatedly questioned Jesus’ orders and even called for them to be repealed. He also removed the president from the personnel committee to take control of personnel decisions, which was supposed to be the president’s job. At one point he even suggested eliminating the president’s salary because, according to Antonio’s claim, it was too high.

Lo, former Supreme Court Associate Justice Dante Tinga last year, is also accused of ordering arbitrary staff transfers (based on petty issues like parking spaces) and favoring employees with questionable integrity, resulting in poor work ethic and an unhealthy work environment has led.

“The Chairman is known to frequently mention Malacañang personalities by name to gain his favor or interfere in the decisions of the Bank’s President…The Chairman has tolerated his staff and technical assistants demanding special treatment during visits to Bank branches .

These demands included demands for special privileges, five-star accommodation and non-payment of such expenses, which were then borne by the affected branch managers,” said the concerned DBP officials.

Lo, a businessman and major campaign donor to President Marcos, has been a DBP board member since 2022.

Meanwhile, Antonio – a father-in-law of Special Assistant to the President Anton Lagdameo – is accused of receiving illegal double compensation from two government positions, implementing unreasonable loan conditions and spreading malicious allegations about de Jesus.

“He even went to the extent of questioning the bank’s policy on clean loans and demanding security from the triple-A borrowers from the bank, thereby discouraging the latter from availing a loan from the bank or, worse, paying off their loan obligations.”

The result was a significant decline in customer service morale and a significant decline in the volume and quality of loan portfolios,” the affected DBP officials said.

“Although Director Antonio was one of the directors who approved the bank president’s salary package during the board meetings, he has consistently raised concerns and created undue controversy on the issue.

He makes an expense out of the president’s salary so that he can secure the position.

His actions indicate an attempt to deflect responsibility and create division within the organization, which is both unprofessional and deceptive,” they added.

Antonio – a former Mandaluyong city councilor and former tourism undersecretary – took his seat on the board two years ago, reportedly with the support of former executive secretary Vic Rodriguez.

Both officials are accused of violating the BSP’s Fit and Proper Rule under the General Banking Law of 2000, which requires bank managers to have integrity and sound moral character.

The complaint calls for a thorough investigation to address these violations.

“Misrepresentations of facts and attempts to incite division to advance personal interests constitute a serious violation of this rule.”

Furthermore, this conduct violates the principle of accountability as set out in the BSP’s Manual of Regulations for Banks (MORB), which requires officers in banks to discharge their duties with the highest level of responsibility and integrity,” the DBP officials said.