Alberto Romulo
A steadfast political anchor, he served four Philippine presidents across key economic and diplomatic posts, steering foreign policy through pivotal transitions.
Born 1933 (age 93)·Philippine politician and diplomat·Birthday: August 7·The Silent Generation
Biography
Alberto 'Bert' Romulo's career is a map of modern Philippine governance, his tenure spanning the administrations of Corazon Aquino, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, and Benigno Aquino III. Born in 1933, he became the ultimate cabinet insider, a trusted figure handed the nation's most critical portfolios: Budget, Finance, Executive Secretary, and, most prominently, Foreign Affairs. His long stewardship of the Department of Foreign Affairs was marked by a pragmatic, worker-focused diplomacy; he famously championed the welfare and rights of millions of overseas Filipino workers, reframing them as 'modern-day heroes.' Romulo operated not as a flamboyant ideologue but as a steady, detail-oriented administrator, providing institutional continuity and calm expertise through periods of political and economic turbulence.
The Silent Generation
1928–1945
Born between the Depression and the end of WWII. Too young to fight, old enough to remember. They became the conformist middle managers of the 1950s — and the civil rights leaders who quietly dismantled Jim Crow.
Alberto was born in 1933, placing them squarely in The Silent Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Alberto Was Born
The biggest hits of 1933
#1 Movie
King Kong
Best Picture
Cavalcade
Alberto's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1933Born
FDR's New Deal launches; Prohibition ends
Gas: $0.18/galPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Stormy Weather" — Ethel WatersBest Picture: Cavalcade
1938Started school
Kristallnacht and the escalation toward WWII
Gas: $0.20/galHome: $2,850Min wage: $0.25/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Begin the Beguine" — Artie ShawBest Picture: You Can't Take It with You
1946Became a teenager
United Nations holds its first General Assembly
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $5,150Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Prisoner of Love" — Perry ComoBest Picture: The Best Years of Our Lives
1949Could drive
NATO founded; Mao proclaims the People's Republic of China
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,450Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Riders in the Sky" — Vaughn MonroeBest Picture: All the King's Men
1951Could vote
First color TV broadcast in the US
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,925Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Too Young" — Nat King ColeBest Picture: An American in Paris
1954Turned 21
Brown v. Board of Education desegregates US schools
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $8,925Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Little Things Mean a Lot" — Kitty KallenBest Picture: On the Waterfront
1963Turned 30
JFK assassinated in Dallas; Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' speech
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,100Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Sugar Shack" — Jimmy Gilmer & The FireballsBest Picture: Tom Jones
1973Turned 40
US withdraws from Vietnam; Roe v. Wade decided
Gas: $0.39/galHome: $22,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" — Tony Orlando & DawnBest Picture: The Sting
1983Turned 50
Internet adopts TCP/IP, creating the modern internet
Gas: $1.16/galHome: $57,700Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Every Breath You Take" — The PoliceBest Picture: Terms of Endearment
1993Turned 60
European Union officially established
Gas: $1.11/galHome: $86,600Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"I Will Always Love You" — Whitney HoustonBest Picture: Schindler's List
2003Turned 70
US invades Iraq; Human Genome Project completed
Gas: $1.59/galHome: $146,000Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"In Da Club" — 50 CentBest Picture: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
2013Turned 80
Edward Snowden reveals NSA surveillance programs
Gas: $3.53/galHome: $152,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Thrift Shop" — Macklemore & Ryan LewisBest Picture: 12 Years a Slave
2026Age 93 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Served as Secretary of Foreign Affairs for nearly nine consecutive years, one of the longest tenures in the Philippines' history.
- Presided over the Department of Foreign Affairs during a major policy shift with the change from the Arroyo to the Aquino III administration in 2010.
- Instrumental in passing the Philippine Economic Stimulus Act of 2009 as Finance Secretary during the global financial crisis.
- Previously served as Executive Secretary, the highest-ranking member of the Philippine Cabinet, under President Corazon Aquino.
Did You Know?
He is the brother of former Philippine Senate President Alberto Romulo.
Romulo graduated valedictorian from the University of the Philippines College of Business Administration.
He initially served as Budget Minister under President Ferdinand Marcos before the 1986 People Power Revolution.
He is a recipient of the Philippine Legion of Honor, Rank of Chief Commander, the country's highest presidential award.
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