Son tells mother on firm row: Don’t play favorites

ROY YANSON, the eldest among the Yanson siblings, today enjoined his mother, Olivia Villaflor Yanson to stop playing favorites and hurting the feelings of his children and even her grandchildren. He believes this dispute among the Yansons “will surely end” soon and ultimately, Olivia and the rest of the Yansons will come together as a family.

For weeks now, the Yansons had been involved in an alleged intra-corporate

dispute after the board of directors decided to terminate the services of Leo Rey as company president. Known as LRY, Leo Rey refused and failed to explain why he withdrew millions of pesos from company funds without the authority of management, a move which violated earlier agreements among the siblings.

After getting the support of his mother, Leo Rey had dug in and refused to acknowledge the authority of the board and even the courts. Leo Rey initiated a civil case before the courts, a move that violated the Family Constitution which prohibited legal suits among the six siblings.

Roy said these issues would not have happened had his mother respected what his father, Ricardo Yanson senior did when he apportioned his estate among the six while he was still alive. As majority shareholders, the four siblings had control over the board and whatever the board decides on, the rest of the management, including Leo Rey who remains as a director, and its employees are mandated by law to follow.

Yanson says it is for the good of everyone, including the third generation of Yansons, to cease from fighting and respecting what they have agreed upon in the Family Constitution as well as the Shareholders’ Agreement which was passed ten years ago.

“While it pains us to see our family being wrecked by these controversies, it further hurts us to know that our mother is playing favorites when this is the particular time that the family needs unity.

Our mother is already old. She must retire already and trust her children with the reigns of the company. She must not play favorites. We are not kids anymore.

For years, we have endured, had been patient and had been quite an understanding lot about how our mother had treated Leo Rey and Ginneth as her favorite son and daughter. It pains us, it hurts our own children, her grandchildren, but that’s the way it is. I know that other families are not like this, but as the eldest, I have to accept that our mother do play favorites inspite of the love, the commitment and the hard work, we also gave to the company when we were still young and even when we were already parents like her,” says RSY in an interview.

What the company is encountering, Roy says, is normal for family corporations like them transitioning to a more corporatized setup. Groups especially those accustomed to old management styles, would certainly oppose moves to change the management.

“Change is inevitable, and our mother must accept that. She says we had our chance. I must apologize and say that isn’t true. Our father gave us the chance and trusted us. Sadly though, our mother never gave us the chance and the nurturing love we expect from her, particularly now that she’s already eighty plus years old, never came.”