FORMER Philippine prime minister Cesar Virata has died, the Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) announced on Friday.
”It is with deep sorrow that the Bank announces the passing of Mr. Cesar E.A. Virata, our Corporate Vice Chairman/Director on Oct. 2, 2026. Mr. Virata was a valuable part of the organization, being a Director of the Bank since 1995 and has been the Board’s Corporate Vice Chairman for 26 years,” RCBC said in a disclosure to the stock exchange. It did not provide details on the cause of his death.
During the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Sr., Virata served as finance minister from 1970 to 1986 and prime minister from July 28, 1981 to Feb. 25, 1986. The position of prime minister was abolished after the EDSA People Power Revolution.
Virata served as the Governor for the Philippines to the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and the International Fund for Agriculture Development. He was a corporate vice chairman of RCBC and the president of the Bankers Association of the Philippines.
”I am deeply saddened by the passing of former Prime Minister Cesar E. A. Virata, a statesman, finance minister and fellow SGV partner whose counsel I was fortunate to have had at crucial moments in my career,” former Finance secretary Cesar Purisima said in a Facebook post on Friday.
”Before I decided to join the government, first as Secretary of Trade, and then later as Secretary of Finance, I sought his advice. It was always wise, considered and characteristically, very practical. Among other things, he told me to keep a certified true copy of everything I signed while in government. It was the kind of advice that only someone who had carried the weight of public office could give, and I have never forgotten it. His was the counsel of a man who bore the scars of years spent fighting the good fight, and yet was never broken, his passion for public service undimmed,” he added.Virata is survived by his wife, theater actress Phylita Joy Gamboa, and their three children.
