My Tito Chito
Santa Claus was real to me. He came in the form of a big big guy, as Santa Claus should be; twice my age but with the heart of a child.
I met Tito Chito when I was still trying to sell the services of a boutique hotel and its bar when I worked for it as a PR and Marketing In-charge. He was a member of one of the richest Rotary Club here in Cebu (and also the most snobbish) and I was at their meeting talking to them about the advantages of our discount card.
He came up to me and asked where we had our cards made. Since I did not yet know by then, I gave him my business card and asked him to call me the next day to get the name and the contact information.
And he did call me and I gave the information he needed. Since it was part of my job to be nice, I was extra friendly to him over the phone. I did not realize that moment made him remember me well.
When I took a different job working for a business incubator in the new Ayala subsidiary, Tito Chito found me again and did not hesitate to broadcast my "talents" to the IT world. He took me under his wings and took me to every meeting he attended with the big guns of the industry. I still believe it was because of him that I got elected as a board member of Cyberpromdi.
It was because of him that I got to go inside the office of the Cebu and Investment Promotions Center and meet Joel Yu, "Tommy's lapdog," as he calls him. It was also because of him that I found myself in the loop in the dealings with CEDFIT and CebuisIT preparations. I met a lot of people through Tito Chito.
Though our dealings with each other were mostly business, he was Tito Chito for me. His son was the barkada of my batchmate, Kyra. Since Kyra calls him Tito. I thought I should also. But that had more meaning when our friendship progressed. He became some sort of a mentor for me and to a certain degree he also took care of me.
He was the one who gave me my readable copy of The Art of War. He said it was for those engaged in business and politics. I needed it daw. He gave it to me before I first ran for public office and before he left for Australia. Now I know why, he just wanted to make sure that I know how to fight my way in this world especially that he would not be there anymore to shelter me. He made sure I always have the ammunition.
I hope he's fighting well too.
