Copy Reference When China began pooling its resources to fight the coronavirus in Hubei Province, 86-year-old Lucio Tan grew worried about his motherland and sought to help China. From 2,000 miles away in the Philippines, Tan donated 10 million yuan (US$1.4 million) to the Chinese Language and Culture Education Foundation of China to help provinces including Fujian, Hubei, Liaoning and Jiangxi fight the epidemic.
Tan has been deeply concerned about the coronavirus outbreak since it started. “China is now facing a great challenge, and we must help her,” he told his staff.
Legend
Lucio Tan was born in Jinjiang, Fujian Province in 1934. He traveled to the Philippines with his parents at age four and began working in a factory at 11. He managed to enroll in the Chemical Engineering Department of Far Eastern University, after which he eventually became the most influential Chinese-Filipino businessman. Tan bought Philippine Airlines and owns Asia’s biggest modern pig farm, the Philippines’ biggest tobacco corporation and the country’s second-largest brewery. Known as a king of banking, tobacco and beers, Tan built a business empire featuring interests in Southeast Asia, the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Papua New Guinea.
“I grew up with Chinese culture, and it taught me a lot,” Tan notes. Educated in the Philippines, he has always been enthusiastic about learning Chinese culture, and Chinese philosophy has served him well throughout his career.
“Many people want to know how to obtain such achievements from scratch, but I do not have any keys to success,” admits Tan. “All I can say is seize opportunities and work hard despite the risk.” Many business strategies embraced by the legendary businessman reflect Chinese philosophies such as yin and yang, dialectical thought on good and bad luck, and war tactics illustrated in Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
During childhood, Tan learned Romance of the Three Kingdoms from a teacher. As an adult, Tan went on to study under masters of Chinese culture to learn ancient Chinese classics such as Art of War, Analects of Confucius and Yi Jing (Book of Changes). Chinese culture nurtured Tan so deeply that he even required his offspring to learn Chinese and attend Chinese schools.
Lucio Tan sent his children to Chinese elementary schools and still insists on his family speaking Chinese at home. Tan required his children memorize Chinese poems and even sent them to China to ensure their command of Chinese language and history.
Tan’s private library houses nearly 50,000 books. In 2002, he opened the Philippines’ largest Chinese language library. He placed two sets of Siku Quanshu (Complete Library in Four Sections), China’s largest encyclopedia on Chinese classic texts, history, philosophy and literature, in his Philippines banking headquarters so he and his staff can read them. Tan believes doing businesses requires teamwork and that the results depend on wisdom and knowledge.
In September 2019, Tan and his wife, Carmen, were invited to attend the celebration of the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. “We were very honored to be invited to attend the grand military parade and are so proud that China is developing so fast,” he proclaims. As early as 1984, Lucio Tan led a delegation to attend the 35th anniversary celebration of the founding of the People’s Republic of China and bought prime Philippine TV airtime to broadcast the parade.
As a Chinese-Filipino business magnate, Tan concentrates his efforts on serving the Chinese-Filipino community and promoting friendly China-Philippines exchange as much as he focuses on growing his business.
Inheritance
On January 8, 2020, Lucio Tan was awarded the title “2019 Global Overseas Chinese of the Year.” For many years, he has been promoting Chinese education in the Philippines and the exchange between Chinese and Filipino youths, endeavors which make him an ideal Sino-Philippine friendship envoy.
Since 2001, Tan has been supporting nearly 1,000 Filipino students yearly to participate in a Chinese Summer Camp for Chinese-Filipino Students Searching for Chinese Roots. The program involves a two-month trip to Xiamen, Fujian Province. So far, 15,000 teachers and students have participated in the activity. Accompanied by his wife and participating students, 85-year-old Lucio Tan visited China in April 2019.
“When our plane landed in Xiamen, all 360 teachers and students on board cheered and applauded, which was particularly moving,” recounts James Tan Wang, director of Philippine Chinese Education Research Center. Upon seeing the smile on Lucio Tan’s face, Wang recalls Tan nodding and declaring “we have inheritance” five times in a row.
“I want to set a good example for younger generations and encourage them,” explains Tan on how the root-seeking program was developed. Tan considers maintenance of Chinese roots not only his responsibility but also the heart of his strong connection with China.
Tan also participated in a donation program to foster Chinese language teachers. The program selects outstanding Chinese-Filipino or native Filipino students and sends them to Chinese universities to further study Chinese teaching. After returning to the Philippines, these students can teach Chinese in local schools.
Tan never seeks repayment when supporting Chinese education. He organizes Chinese educational activities in his hotels and uses his company’s aircraft to transport students to China for summer camps for free. “This is how I show my love for my motherland and motivate the next generation of Chinese and Filipinos to learn about China and Chinese culture to carry forward the traditional friendship between the two countries.”
“The summer camp enables young people to see China with their own eyes,” proclaims Carmen Tan. “We see the students change alongside their parents. They learn Chinese quickly and make us very proud.”
“The Chinese roots of people living around the world will never break,” adds Lucio. The couple spent many of their best years promoting Chinese education. Now, their golden years are highlighted by stronger global inheritance of Chinese culture.
Lucio Tan
Lucio Tan and his wife visit the Chinese Language and Culture College of Huaqiao University in Xiamen, Fujian Province, in April 2019.