At a very young age, he used to sell ice buko in the streets of Nabua in CamSur. For lack of money, he and his grandmother only ate once a day ━ a meal of rice with some cooking oil and salt to taste.
Then he started selling memorial plans and became a waiter in a small restaurant. Through sheer effort and determination, he was able to finish college until he became a Certified Public Accountant.
He found a job as an accountant in the Middle East where he gained experience and knowledge about power plants.
“I got involved in the power plant business when I was working there because the company I was working for was a joint venture of a company owned by one of the sons of the King. What we do is we build power plants and other businesses,” Manzano said.
I have worked with Enron and I’m the only one with brown skin and I’m the shortest guy. But I’m never scared, because if you know what you are doing, it doesn’t matter if you are small, if you are brown, or whatsoever. You can do it,” he added.
Mr. Manzano is general manager of Marianas Energy Company in Guam. He has clients in South Africa, South Korea, South America and United Kingdom.