Puregold’s Lucio Co is the unnamed Chinese partner-financier of the breakaway Rustan boutique shop of Tantoco sibling, Eman Pineda.

Former First Lady Amelita Ramos has resigned from her baby, the Clean and Green Foundation, over festering internal issues. The reported resignation could not be independently verified; the foundation’s executive director, Myrna Julieta-Jimenez, was unable to return a phoned inquiry.

To mark the return of former Defense Secretary Avelino Cruz Jr., former Ombudsman Simeon Marcelo and four former undersecretaries, Villaraza and Angangco has not only voted to resurrect the law firm’s old name, CVC Law, the country’s best-connected law office is also throwing a party next week to formally re-launch the revivified firm.

Almost anyone who is anyone has been invited, including all the presidentiables. The most prominent non-invites: ex-clients Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and telecom businessman Raymond Moreno.

A Philcomsat official said Senator Juan Ponce Enrile was being literary when the elder statesman characterized the shameless corporate chicanery perpetrated by Malacañang directors in Philcomsat Holdings Corp. by “Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves.”
What the senior Enrile had wanted to say in less polite companies was actually “Aling Baba” or “Ali Tata.”

Not only had the Malacañang directors voted to give themselves real estate loans and luxury vehicles charged to a partially-sequestered, but publicly-owned corporation, one government nominee even ordered the company to purchase his imported hearing aid and pay for its annual maintenance.

According to recently-unearthed documents, Free Press publisher Enrique Locsin charged to Philcomsat Holdings Corp. P380,000-worth of hearing aid equipment and the special batteries needed every year for its auditorial enjoyment.

(Disclosure: Locsin has a libel complaint against the Manila Standard Today pending before Makati prosecutor Edgardo Hirang.)

Thelma Sioson-San Juan will re-assume the editorship of the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s Lifestyle section on February 1, vice Chelo Banal-Formoso, who is being moved to edit a new Education page.

Imelda Marcos is turning 79 this July but the former First Lady apparently still have the energy of a much younger woman.

After attending the birthday party of Marcos-era Solicitor General Manuel Lazaro in the Manila Polo Club the other day, Mrs. Marcos was later seen that night rubber-necking at the new Greenbelt 5 with her constant escort, Dr. Eleuterio Pascual.

The Social Security System finally unloaded its Equitable-PCIBank block — where each share is now equivalent, post-merger with Banco de Oro to 1.8 shares — to taipan Henry Sy Sr. last Friday at P51.11 each.

The crossed transaction was worth P17.2 billion.

After having climbed up the peak of Mount Pulog, Benpres patriarch Oscar Lopez, who turns 78 this year, is preparing to next assault the country’s highest mountain, Mount Apo, sometime in March.

Dismissed Malacanang nominee, Philcomsat Holdings chairman Enrique Locsin, has retained a public relations consultant of Bangko Sentral Governor Amando Tetangco Jr.
The consultant charged P650,000 in professional fees, excluding out-of-pocket expenses, for a minimum three-month contract, all charged to the PHC coffers, to continue Locsin’s propaganda battle not only against the majority shareholders of Philcomsat Holdings Corp. but now even against the Malacanang search committee and Solicitor General Agnes Devanadera.