The Presidential Spokesman in private

I go off-the-rack now because designers tell me mine is a mannequin body.

Inspired by a son who has passed on. PHOTOS BY DAVID JOHN CUBANGBANG

The President of the Philippines has praised him for his “sartorial elegance,” while lifestyle articles describe him as being “fashion forward.” Whether he is wearing a pair of tattered jeans, a colorful barong or a suit with a unique added value by way of an accessory or an ornament, Atty. Salvador San Buenaventura Panelo, presidential spokesman and chief presidential legal counsel, never fails to attract attention and, yes, words of praise as much as derision.

In fairness to the gentleman Sal, as his friends call him, he laughs off the criticisms. “I dress for myself,” he told the Daily Tribune in an interview conducted by Lifestyle editor Dinah Ventura and her co-host, Jojo G. Silvestre, for “Spotlight,” the magazine show of TribuneNow, the online version of Daily Tribune.

“Besides, you cannot please everybody,” said Sal, who, instead of focusing on negativity hurled against him, has chosen to live a life of service, while keeping true to his many passions.

Sal revealed to us the private side of his personality — a son close to his mother, a loving brother, a proud husband and a father who has never stopped loving his son whom he lost early.

Daily Tribune (DT): Who influenced you in the way you dress up?

Salvador San Buenaventura Panelo (SSP): You know, my mother was tall, beautiful and a smart dresser. And very intelligent. She was a valedictorian. Her name is Soledad San Buenaventura.

I had another brother who loved to dress up, Nap, our handsomest brother. So, we would wear what was fashionable at that time.

SSP: In fact there was a time when I was in Roosevelt Memorial High School, which was three kilometers away, when I would walk all the way from home to school just so I could save some cash with which to buy my clothes in Escolta.

SSP: They always say I set the trend. It was I who brought tattered jeans here. I would travel a lot because my wife, a doctor of medicine, loves to travel and she attends conferences. I would always go with her. One time, I think it was in Germany, I saw these tattered pants so I decided to buy a few pairs for myself. It was also I who started wearing rubber shoes with a a suit. I was also the first to have a coat-barong, or a suit made out of barong cloth.

SSP: I don’t patronize any tailor. I used to have my clothes made, but that has been a long time ago. I go off-the-rack now because designers tell me mine is a mannequin body. So if I see something that I like that is worn by a mannequin, I assume it fits me and it often does.

SSP: Usually when I am abroad, that’s when I buy my clothes. So, anything that I see that I like, I buy. I am not particular about brands. What is important to me is that they fit me well.

DT: Does the president notice the way you dress up?

SSP: He used to describe my style as sartorial elegance, but later he would kid me about my sartorial confusion.

SSP: No, I just laugh off such comments. There are those who dislike the way I dress up, while there are those who praise me. The nice thing is I have yet to meet a fashion designer who has not given me the thumbs up. These are the experts of the fashion trade.

DT: I think it’s admirable that you have your sense of style which is a way of expressing yourself. So, when you wear something, what are you trying to show?

SSP: Nothing. I dress for myself. That’s a good reason. I noticed that sometimes my photos in Tribune show me frowning. Or you would describe me as ‘fashion forward’ and yet the description does not fit what I am wearing. So let me show you this picture. It’s this one you should put on the paper. Now, look at my pictures. Look at my hats. I have different hats.

DT: Do you collect hats? How many pieces do you have now?

DT: Why did you become interested in hats?

SSP: Oh, I think as early as my high school days, I already loved wearing hats.

DT: Outside of fashion, what are your other passions?

SSP: I cook. I play the piano. I compose. I sing. I dance. I tend my garden. I have a 700-square meter bonsai garden.

SSP: Oh, yes. I play the piano at home. I play it every morning to my special child who passed away two years ago. Every morning I woke up when he was still alive, he would be there beside me. So I would play the piano for him. He had Down Syndrome. They really die young. Doktora (his wife) and I are lucky to have had him for 27 years. His classmates had long gone ahead of him. So, when he died and was cremated and his remains were put in an urn, I got another urn so we would still have him at home. And I transformed the grand piano into an altar where we put his framed photograph and the urn. So, he would have flowers every day. So I still sing to him every morning. When people ask me if I miss him, I tell them, ‘No because I get to talk to him every day.’

DT: You are a good father. Did you have good parents?

SSP: Yes. The taught us well in life. My mother was a disciplinarian. No one could act like a señorito or señorita and not contribute to the household work. We were 12 — eight boys and four girls.

“SPOTLIGHT” co-hosts Dinah Ventura and Jojo Silvestre with Presidential Spokesman Panelo.

DT: And you had time to learn the piano and all that?

SSP: Actually not learning. I just discovered I could play the piano by ear. But my siblings and I love to sing. My mother had a beautiful voice. People would ask me when I learned to sing and I would reply, according to my mother, “When you were born, you were not crying, you were singing. A different sound was coming out, it had a tune.”

Later, when we were grown up and we all had something to do at home, I was assigned to scrub the floor or sometimes wash the dishes or wash clothes. This, even if we had a helper. We all had to work. And we are grateful we were given that kind of upbringing. That’s why at home, today, I would know if our kasambahay did her job well or not because I myself could do what she is doing.

DT: What about music? Did you just proceed naturally?

SSP: Actually, I had just graduated from high school in Naga City, when I met this girl who was playing the piano. She would play “Fascination.” And I asked her to teach me how to play it. So, that’s how it started. We began with my right hand and then she had to do something else, so on my own, I tried to use my left hand, too. And when she came back, she was shocked that I could play the piano correctly.

At that time, one would hear the songs of Tony Bennet, Frank Sinatra, Jerry Vale, and I would sing with them while their records were being played. And so that’s how I started singing.

SSP: Yes, I have had six concerts. The first time, I was with Imelda Papin. Then I was with a group, along with Joey Lina and Mark Toledo at the Manila Hotel. Then, I had another with lawyers, also at the Manila Hotel. Then one produced by Annabelle Rama and finally one by Daisy Romualdez.

They always say I set the trend. It was I who brought tattered jeans here.

DT: How are you as a father? Are you strict?

SSP: No, not at all. I am mapagbigay todo (willing to give all). I let them be. They should be able to take care of their lives. I have adopted daughters. A sister of mine was dying of cancer. And her husband, who was coming home from abroad, died along the way. It took us three days for us to be able to tell her. But she somehow knew that something had happened, because when we, together with a priest, were approaching her, she asked immediately what happened to her husband. Now, they had three daughters, who were then five, seven and nine years old. And every time she was on the verge of dying, we would run to her house, but she would live on despite her suffering. The doctor confided to us that something was holding her. So, we talked to her and asked her why she did not want to move on yet, and she wondered aloud who would take care of her children. So, I asked her, what is your problem? We are 11 brothers and sisters. It turned out she was worried that her children might be separated from each other. So, I promised her I would take care of them together. After one week, she died. So, I took care of them. I was still a bachelor.

DT: What happened to the three girls you adopted?

SSP: I took care of them. One is in Ireland, by whom I have two beautiful granddaughters. She married an Irish so the combination produced pretty daughters. The other one is a manager in a company, while the other one is a career girl too. I already have grandchildren by all of them.

DT: You surprise us. You seem to be so different from your public persona.

SP: Façade ko lang ‘yun. (That’s just my façade).

DT: You have attacks from right and left. Why makes you brave?

SSP: I don’t really mind those things. I am just amused by all that. I don’t even read about them but people tell me about it. That’s the way it is. You cannot please all of them.

DT: But you’ve always had this social consciousness. Like you were an activist.

SSP: My idol then was Pablo Trillana III. We met and he asked me how I became an activist. And I told him it’s because Jesus Christ is my idol. Wasn’t Jesus Christ the first Communist? And he was shocked.

DT: Oh, since that was your view, you probably didn’t become a card bearer.

SSP: No. But I was in the shoot-to-kill list. I was tagged as the organizer of the National People’s Army in Albay. They were saying I was pretending to be an activist by day and a communist by night. (laughter) They were saying that the farmers in Albay became NPA because of me. You know, I singlehandedly organized the protest movement in Libon, Albay. So, they were wondering how I had been able to do that. Well, I am from UP so you know how to do these things.

DT: Did that just come from your UP orientation?

SP: Oh even long before that. My father was a principled man so he would stand up for his rights. He even fought the City Hall. In fact, he became my first client because he was convicted by the Court of Naga for building without a permit. And I happened to have just passed the Bar. So we went to the Court of Appeals. And we won. I beat Hugo Gutierrez, the SolGen then. That was my first case.

SSP: He was a geodetic engineer, and then he took up law. So, I asked him why he took up law but he did not take the Bar. He said all he wanted was to know about the law because in his work he would talk with a lot of lawyers. He wanted to be sure the lawyers would not fool him.

My father is an Ilocano from La Union. Once he went to Naga and saw my mother, a beautiful lady. So we would tease my mother why she agreed to marry this Ilocano. But Papa, she would relate, dressed well. He was always in a suit. He was a scholar.

DT: Where did your interest in gardening come from?

SSP: From my mother too. I would be with her in the garden. We were together often, even when she went to the market. That’s why I can cook too. You should try my laing (Bicol dish of taro leaves stewed in coconut milk)

DT: Sir, let’s shift gears. How did you become close to the President?

SSP: I would fly to Davao to file cases. This was during the 1980s. I had a Sigma Rho “brod” there. I would visit him in his office and we would go out.

So, years later I asked a friend if he knew this guy Duterte. I told him I wanted to meet him because I have read about him and he was good at his job as mayor. So he brought me to the city hall.

It was the first time I had seen a city hall with so many people. So, I asked my friend why there were so many people. It’s because they like him a lot and they come to seek his help. So, we decided to wait. And we knew it was going to be a long wait. I just sent my name to him in a piece of paper. At that time, I was always in the papers because I was a lawyer in the Sanchez case.

Within seconds, he came out. And he said, ‘Atty. Panelo, I’ve been following your career.’ And I replied, ‘No, I’ve been following yours.’ And that’s how we became friends. Through the years I would visit Davao, he would have me picked up at the airport and he would invite me to dinner. Then, we would sing together.

One time, while having dinner, he told me that he had known me before, long before I went to his office when he was a mayor already. He said that even those days when he first knew me, ‘mayabang ka na nuon, maporma ka na magdamit. At napakasuplado mo na. (You were already a braggart and you already dressed smartly. And you were already a snob),’ he said. ‘So, when was this?’ I asked. ‘You used to visit Joe Lopez at the Fiscal’s Office. I was a Fiscal and we shared the same room. But you never talked to me.’ When he became President, I was the first cabinet member he appointed. And many were surprised because not many people knew that we have been friends for a long time. He called me to say that I was the first choice of his family to be his spokesman. I knew I would be losing my practice, and it is a good one, but I said yes, all for the President.

DT: So, are you busier now than when you were a lawyer?

SSP: I am busy now because as a spokesman I have to respond to many queries. That’s why very early in the morning, I would make statements in my phone. And I am also the chief presidential legal counsel. And then there are events that we have to attend.

DT: Attorney, you write well. Were you writing as a student?

SSP: In high school, I graduated in Naga as a journalism awardee. And even in Roosevelt, I was writing the editorial. In my annual, it says there that I want to be a doctor and a writer. I didn’t become a doctor but I married one, and she is recognized as the best diabetologist. And as a lawyer, you need to do a lot of writing. So, I have achieved my dreams. And here I am now writing all these statements and dealing with the media.

DT: So, any future plans when it comes to your singing career?

SSP: Well, a record producer has just approached me and he wants me to cut a record. You know, I compose songs for my son, my wife, my children.

DT: Last question, Sir, before you sing for us, what do you do on Sundays?

SSP: I just sleep at home. I am with the family.