1. Carlos Benjamin Orestes "Kokoy" Trinidad Romualdez was a Filipino politician who served as Governor of Leyte and later appointed as ambassador to the United States, China and Saudi Arabia.
12 Facts About Benjamin Romualdez
1. 2.
Benjamin Romualdez was a younger brother to former first lady Imelda Romualdez Marcos and the father of House Speaker Martin Romualdez.
3.
The son of the late Vicente Orestes Romualdez, a former dean of the law school of St Paul's College in Tacloban, Kokoy Romualdez began his career in politics after serving as an assistant of Speaker Daniel Romualdez, his first cousin, from 1957 to 1961.
4.
Benjamin Romualdez was a younger brother to former First Lady Imelda Marcos and the father of House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez.
5.
Benjamin Romualdez was married to Juliette Gomez and their children are: Daniel, a practicing architect in New York, and partner Michael; Benjamin Philip, president and chief executive officer of Benguet Corp.
6.
Benjamin Romualdez was part of the Romualdez Clan, the strongest political clan of Eastern Visayas.
7.
Benjamin Romualdez embarked on his own career in the diplomatic service and in politics spanning more than 20 years.
8.
Benjamin Romualdez served several terms as Leyte governor from 1967 to 1986.
9.
Benjamin Romualdez was instrumental in the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Philippines and the People's Republic of China in the 1970s, becoming Manila's first ambassador to Beijing.
10.
Benjamin Romualdez led the Marcos government's negotiations with the United States regarding the renegotiation of the two countries' bases agreement.
11.
Benjamin Romualdez was elected as a member of the Batasang Pambansa in 1984, but chose to remain ambassador to the United States, and was therefore disqualified to sit in the parliament.
12.
Benjamin Romualdez died on the afternoon of February 21,2012, of cancer, at Makati Medical Center in Makati at the age of 81.