What does power mean to the country’s most powerful women?
Was it in Spider-Man movies that we are told, “With great power comes great responsibility”? This proverb, made famous in Marvel comics and films introduced by Stan Lee, was later attributed to Uncle Ben as a piece of advice to the young Peter Parker.
And if we are to dig deeper in older sources, specifically the Bible, we are reminded: “To whom much is given, much will be required,” according to Luke 12:48.
Inspired by these words coming from comic books and the good book, I made a survey and asked: Who are the country’s most powerful women? How do they use their power?
Seven names came up in our little survey: First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos, whose very position carries an aura of immense power. Two senators—Loren Legarda and Risa Hontiveros—who are powerful fighters in the Senate. Two Forbes listers—Tessie Sy Coson and Robina Gokongwei Pe—who wield tremendous economic power but it is not in their consciousness. One powerful builder—Alice Eduardo—whose main concern is also building lives. And Karen Davila, perhaps the country’s most influential media personality, who uses her powerful voice well.
First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos: ‘Power is a tool for service’
Friends, fans and foes call her Fierce Lady. And I agree. She is fiercely intelligent, fiercely hardworking, and fiercely, a people person.
This is what I find out as a journalist as I attend her events relevant to education, diplomacy, culture, health, social welfare and sports. She renovates heritage structures for a better public consciousness of history. She helps local artisans and craftsmen—especially those from the provinces—find a bigger market. She refurbishes museums and hopes the younger generation will appreciate old artifacts along with their techie gadgets. And so on and on, projects too many to name here.
Amid a busy sched, our lawyer-First Lady finds time to lecture before classes on law. “I realize that we have so many useless laws,” she laughs. Something untold about her is that she is witty, funny and her sense of humor is disarming. She also watches Netflix—when she has the luxury of time, like she had recently when President Bongbong Marcos and she caught the bug and had incessant coughs and cold. Atty. Marcos was able to watch Your Honor and Presumed Innocent, a break from real-life legal dramas.
Once, during an exhibit of local artisans at SM Aura attended also by diplomats who had been standing up too long during cocktails, First Lady Liza read the first two pages of her prepared script. Then she said: “Last two pages na lang, promise!” And she ad-libbed, amid smiles. She herself held the camera phones of people wanting selfies with her. (She is adept at it.) She talked to almost every craftsman, many of them having come from mountain dwellings. She was so approachable that they felt comfortable sharing stories with her. This was my first encounter with the First Lady a year ago. She is in tune with the age of selfies. She is by far the coolest First Lady we know.
What are First Lady Liza Marcos’ thoughts on power?
“Power is often perceived as a position of authority or control, but to me, true power goes beyond titles or influence. It’s about the ability to inspire, uplift, and make a tangible difference in the lives of others.
“As First Lady, I see power as a tool for service. It’s a privilege that has a beginning, middle and an end. And when I say ‘end,’ it means we only have about 1,378 days left before the next president is inaugurated on June 30, 2028.
“In a country as diverse as ours, power means fostering unity amidst differences. It’s about harnessing the strength of our shared culture, values and aspirations for anyone who is willing to be open-minded.
“At the end of the day, power is not about what you can take for yourself, but about what you can give to others.
“I sincerely hope that during my time as First Lady, I can use whatever power I supposedly have to initiate projects that will make a difference and will continue after these 1,378 days.”
Sen. Loren Legarda: ‘Power is a responsibility’
Power, for me, is a responsibility, not just a privilege. It carries with it the capacity to influence change and, as a legislator, craft laws and policies that will uplift lives and communities,” the four-term senator and topnotcher, a warrior for the environment and climate change, a culture and education advocate, and fighter for the underprivileged, explains.
Sen. Loren Legarda looks like a no-nonsense person with a formal and strict mien. But up-close, she is a warm, loving person with a heart. She knows how to laugh. Talk to her about things close to her heart—including farming veggies, which she has mastered beyond the song Bahay Kubo. She also knows how to grow friendships with people she meets along the way, including centenarian weavers.
“When power is given to you, it means people trust you with the ability to lead, and you are expected to use it for the greater good. The 24 million Filipinos who voted to place me in the Senate entrusted me not just as a legislator but as a public servant charged with the mission to address their needs—alleviate poverty, ensure access to quality education and healthcare, protect and preserve culture and heritage, and confront the challenges brought about by the climate crisis.
“With the power given to me, I channel resources and provide support where they are needed the most, targeting our kababayan who are among the last, the least, and the lost.
“Power also gives you a broader perspective, a longer reach, and a deeper understanding of the daily struggles faced by the marginalized and the vulnerable. You have to look beyond the surface and never ignore those who have been long neglected. This is why I always work down from the grassroots, reaching out to the farthest barangays and sitios, because this is where the pulse of the nation can truly be felt,” says Sen. Legarda.
“Power can be very dangerous if not wielded with care. You should never allow power to control and corrupt your principles.”
She continues: “Power should always be exercised with integrity, dignity, compassion, and responsibility because, as someone entrusted by the people to lead with power, you will be remembered not for the authority you held, but for the lives you touched, the transformative actions you made, and the quality of service you rendered to ensure inclusive and sustainable change for the Filipino people.”
Sen. Risa Hontiveros: ‘Power is a privilege’
Power is the energy to collect myself and move in a way that is purposeful, strong, and hopefully beneficial for others. As a Senator, power is a privilege that I do not take for granted, it’s a responsibility that I take seriously. As a lifelong activist, I see power as the strength that comes from the collective action of citizens who are willing and able to participate in building our nation and protecting our democracy.
“In times of gloom, I view power as our ability to stoke light in one another. To inspire in each other the capacity to care and to empathize with our fellow human beings. To spark the hope within us so we persist and continue no matter the adversity. Power is all of us Filipinos and human beings doing all these together, side by side, for our country and even for the world,” says Sen. Risa Hontiveros, who is a health and women’s rights advocate, and the first socialist woman senator. Lately, she has been in the headlines as a fighter exposing injustice and anomalies.
“I always show up. I wake up each day grateful for the opportunity to serve at the Senate, a very potent chamber of our legislature. Through this work, I am able to fight for policies that benefit the marginalized and underprivileged. Through our collective strength, we have passed laws for the basic sectors, for our women and children, for the last, the least, and the lost.”
Risa adds: “At the Senate, I am also vigilant in holding power to account. Unfettered power is a grave threat and danger to our democracy, making my role, as part of the Opposition, critical in upholding the principle of checks and balances in government. I also use this power not only to ensure that our institutions and systems are not corrupted or exploited, but also to go after those who dare abuse power and bring them to justice.”
The senator smiles: “On a more personal note, I am able to best wield my power when I give myself the time to do the things that bring me joy: practicing yoga, praying, acting with my chosen community, and striving to inspire a purposeful, strong, and beneficial movement wherever we may be.”
Tessie Sy-Coson: ‘I am far from any power’
If you see me now, I am far from any power you are looking for. I am just the same self when we met, except I am older now,” says Tessie Sy-Coson.
So true. We met when we both were in our twenties, and she hasn’t changed. Tessie is still humble and hardworking, a person with simple joys. Over a plain black dress, she just throws a printed scarf, and it need not be branded. During a trip to Bangkok where we both attended a wedding years ago, we went to a mall and the only thing she bought was a simple leather bag without a screaming logo. One thing I noticed — she walks fast while shopping. Never wasting a minute, just like in everyday life.
This is how a Forbes toplister behaves: unconscious of any power she wields, even if she (and her siblings) are in control of the country’s top companies like Banco de Oro and SM.
One simple joy of hers is still finding time to choose fashion merchandise from suppliers for SM. And that explains why the goods in SM have maintained style and quality at the right prices through the years.
How does Tessie use the economic power that she holds to make a difference in other people’s lives? Again, she refuses to talk about it, for doing so might be tantamount to boasting. After all, true charity is something that never needs announcing.
So I did some research and saw how the SM companies, since the time of Henry Sy Sr., have been helping communities and the nation through its advocacies.
The SM Foundation helps achieve people’s aspirations for a better life. In the fields of education, health and wellness, food security and livelihood, the numbers are staggering. Thousands of technical-vocational alumni under scholarship programs, a hundred school buildings, countless medical buildings, and more. And hear this: even a building for the Philippine School for the Deaf.
All the Sy siblings, headed by Tessie, play a part in these advocacies. I have visited two medical centers for children with cancer built by Hans Sy, who, by the way, is passionate also about boosting sports, particularly basketball, in the country. Their mother, Mrs. Felicidad Sy, has initiated the construction of two churches—one in SM MOA and the other in SM Cebu—and chapels in five SM Malls.
All these translate to economic power being used to improve people’s lives.
Robina Gokongwei-Pe: ‘I am powerless’
I am not powerful! I can’t even get my husband to disappear when his jokes become corny, nor ask him to pick me up from work if my driver calls in sick. He says I have the power to take a cab or Grab and that’s it, my power stops at that level,” says Robina Gokongwei-Pe.
Tessie Sy-Coson and Robina seem to be two tycoon peas in a pod. They do not consider themselves powerful, and neither do they think they should be on the list of powerful women, even if they and their siblings are always on the radar of “Bilyonaryo.”
Credit this to the fact that they were raised to be humble. Their fathers ingrained in their minds to always remember they started when they had nothing and everything was achieved through hard work.
Robina’s family owns one of the biggest chains of retail and food manufacturing businesses in the country, aside from real estate, banking, petrochemical, telecom, publishing and airline businesses.
When I first met Robina in the mid 1980s, when she had just returned from college at New York University (NYU) and applied to be a writer at Daily Express, her biggest treasure was her dog, which she usually brought to the office. She only had two handbags: one black and one brown, both by Cardams, a Marikina brand.
“The first time I had a branded item was when my husband Perry Pe gifted me with Prada shoes,” Robina smiles. “And my first time to ride in Business Class was when Perry and I went on our honeymoon.”
Her family’s economic power is best used for good purposes in advocacies through the Gokongwei Brothers Foundation which their patriarch, John Gokongwei Jr., aimed to focus on education. “It is my belief that education is the only way to save this country,” he said. “We have to strengthen our hold on our science and education courses.” So Robina’s family has carried on with this mission.
One reason why Robina and her siblings, particularly Lisa, are into publishing, is that they grew up enjoying books. Their dad would reward them with books instead of toys. Robina herself went into newspaper publishing until politics got in the way. Until now, Robina still enjoys writing, but mainly speeches during company events.
But let us not forget how Robina was able to muster the power from friends and fellow UP alumni to let the once-moribund UP Maroons rise to basketball supremacy. Hail to Robina’s power!
Alice Eduardo: ‘Power means giving strength to others’
Power is the ability to inspire and influence others, bringing out the best in them to achieve meaningful outcomes for the greater good. It is about uplifting and empowering those around you, cultivating a collective strength that leads to purposeful and positive change,” says Alice Eduardo, a top construction leader, who is known for building foundations for major infrastructure. And also for building lives.
She explains: “As Beth Revis said, power isn’t control at all—power is strength, and giving that strength to others. A leader isn’t someone who forces others to make him stronger; a leader is someone willing to give his strength to others that they may have the strength to stand on their own.
“True power is quiet and profound; it manifests in confidence, grit, and integrity. It is grounded in respect and kindness, understanding that these qualities are strengths, not weaknesses.”
On a personal note, Alice says: “I harness the strength of motherhood to nurture and guide the next generation, shaping their future with care and intention. As an employer, I strive to foster an environment for growth, and advocate for entrepreneurship to fuel national development and foster innovation.”
The renowned philanthropist says: “I am committed to empowering individuals by providing mentorship and the necessary resources to help them realize their full potential. By creating an inclusive environment where every voice is valued and heard, I aim to inspire positive change and contribute meaningfully to the well-being of our shared community.”
Karen Davila: ‘Power should be about empowering women’
Power is the ability to do something or act in a particular way. I want to use the power of speech, influence and knowledge to make a difference in the life of another.
“As a broadcast journalist for over 30 years, I have experienced and seen the power of television and radio and how it can move people towards a specific direction. So I have always seen myself as an educator in the process, too. One that can help contextualize issues and help Filipinos make better choices that can affect their future,” says Karen Davila, one of the most powerful media personalities in the country today. At the moment, Karen uses her voice to help women in particular.
“As a UN Women National Goodwill Ambassador, my years of journalistic work and track record in media has helped me access support we need for projects that I hope will help push for gender equality in certain fields. Just recently, we have launched our She STEMS Scholarship Awards, supporting 10 young women in the field of STEM in the goal of mainstreaming and creating more role models for women in STEM.
“This is our first project as UN Women National Goodwill Ambassador. Out of 10 STEM workers in the Philippines, only three (positions) are held by women. Women are paid less and often discriminated against. This must stop. STEM workers are paid higher and women shouldn’t be pushed aside in this field.
“Girls need role models. I believe choosing to be a role model for our young women today is choosing to use your power for good. What we say and what we do matter. I use whatever platform I have, the voice I was given to uplift women and girls. And that’s what I want to continue to do. Discovering these women as they were vetted was an emotional experience for us. Hearing their stories. Learning what they had to overcome.”
Davila asserts: “I believe that women supporting women can change the equation of women’s participation. Let us change the narrative. Let’s make it ordinary for women to be astrophysicists or neuroscientists—and the only way to do that is to mentor them now, support their dreams now, make them see that it is possible for them now.”