Dee Hwa Liong Academy

Mr. Cao Pek also known as Dee Hwa Liong was born in Gunkang, Fukien, a province in Mainland China on August 30, 1917. At the tender age of six years, his parents brought the young boy to the Philippines, settling at Moncada, Tarlac. Those early years were difficult for the immigrant family from China.

Orphaned when he was still young, mr. Cao Pek left Moncada to seek his fortune in Manila when he was 17 years, he learned to fend for himself by first working as messenger, a market vendor, then as a radio technician.

At one time, he also served as a temporary staff member of the Chinese Christian Gospel Church. He sent himself through school, first to the Nan Yang High School, and later to the National Radio Academy at Raon St., where he spent many long nights after work learning the skills of a radio technician.

His love for sports also began early in life, when the Philippines hosted the 10th Far East Asian Games in 1934. Disappointed to see Chinese athletes losing to competitors from neighboring countries, he decided to do something about it on a personal level. He became an excellent athlete himself, eventually representing the Filipino-Chinese community in track and field at the 7th Chinese National Games held in Shanghai, China in 1948. on a higher level, he and his friends set up the Kiong Hun Athletes Association in 1934 to promote sports development within larger Chinese community.
He maintained his commitment to youth and sports development throughout the rest of his life. He became a patron of the track and field movement expending much of his own time and money to work with young men and women who wished to develop their skills on the field. When the Philippines was drawn into the Pacific war, Mr. Cao Pek did not sit idly by. He joined the Ex-cowhm Guerilla unit to resist the Japanese invasion. When his elder brother was captured by the Japanese army, he surrendered himself to gain his brother’s freedom. He was later released by the Japanese in awe of his courage in the face of death.

After the war, Mr. Cao Pek put together what little savings he had to buy military surplus equipment. He put all his skills as a radio technician to good use by repairing and reassembling these equipments for eventual resale at a good profit. At 30 years old, Mr. Cao Pek, with only P300.00 as capital, created the Deeco Electronics Manufacturing on February 2, 1948. thru sheer hard work, self abstinence, perseverance, talent and entrepreneurial spirit, he grew from his humble beginnings to become one of the largest manufacturers and suppliers of electronics of electronics and communications components in the country. With wife, Elena Dy, they steered their company to greater accomplishments, yet continuing their simple and frugal lives.

Along the years, DEECO embarked on the assembly and manufacture of Transformers, Battery Chargers, Welding Transformers, and public Address Systems. To meet the increasing demand in the telecommunications industry, Single Side Band (SSB) transceivers and Telephone Switching Systems were also added to its product line. From the manufacturing and retailing telecommunications equipment, DEECO branched out the sale of home appliances.


In 1960, DEECO started over-the-counter sale of all its products. A five-storey building in the heart of Manila now houses the DEECO executive offices. Branches were later set up in Cubao, Quezon City, and Makati. So as not to lose its initial commitment, a Telecommunications Division was set up in 1973, its sole purpose to cater the needs of the telecommunication community.

To date, over 80 Commercial Radio Stations, and 12 Telephone Exchanges are operating with equipments supplied by DEECO. Behind this wide range of broadcast and telecommunications equipment are fully established enterprises Deeco Electronics Manufacturing, and Dee Hwa Liong Electronics Equipment Corporation.

In 1983, with the company in the competent hands of his sons and daughter, Mr. Cao Pek “resigned” from active participation in DEECO’s affairs and devoted his full time to his philanthropic work. He took over the Principalship of the 200-student Cheng Kuang School and transformed it into the 1000-student Cheng Kuang High School, with two new 3-storey building erected under his supervision. Mr. Cao Pek’s public spirit also evident in the outlying provinces around the Metro Manila where he donated School Buildings thru his active participa in the Filipino-Chinese Chamber of Commerce various activities.

Mr. Cao Pek’s untimely death on June 29, 1992 in the hands of his kidnappers was a big loss, not only to the business community, but to the education and sports community as well.