Recognizing excellence

It cannot be denied that profit motive is behind the establishment of all business entities. But it cannot likewise be denied that there are business establishments put up by people who have a social conscience stimulating them to help in the improvement of the society within which they operate and where their businesses thrive best. This is the conscience which breathes into them that spirit of social responsibility arising from the biblical message that “to whom much is given much is expected in return”.

One of these establishments is undoubtedly the Metropolitan Bank and Trust Company (Metrobank) founded sometime in 1963 by a businessman-banker with a golden heart, George S.K. Ty who is apparently endowed with a vision and a mission to contribute and participate not only in the economic improvement but also in the social development of our country. Indeed, in no time at all, Metrobank became one of the top commercial banks in the country prompting Mr. Ty to put up a foundation (Metro Bank Foundation) on January 8, 1979 or 16 years after he founded the bank. 

The Metrobank Foundation is engaged in social development projects in the Philippines and other parts of Asia. As the corporate social responsibility arm of the Metrobank Group, the Foundation implements various programs in education, visual arts and healthcare in active and dynamic partnership with other organizations that likewise provide services for the disadvantaged. It also supports programs aimed at educating the citizenry on public-interest issues through research and lectures given by the distinguished holders of the Metrobank Foundation Professorial Lecture established by the Foundation in partnership with reputable educational institutions. The Foundation is likewise the principal owner of the Manila Doctors Hospital (MDH), one of the leading centers of wellness in the country.

Among the Foundation’s flagship programs are the Metrobank Art & Design Excellence (MADE), Search for Outstanding Teachers (SOT), College Scholarship Program (CSP), Metrobank-MTAP-DepEd Math Challenge (MMC), The Outstanding Philippine Soldiers (TOPS), Country’s Outstanding Policemen in Service (COPS), and the recently launched Search for Journalists of the Year (JOY) which follows the same tradition of recognizing excellence among outstanding public servants as the other above mentioned recognition programs.

According to Metrobank Foundation president, Aniceto M. Sobrepena, their “recognition programs are aimed at strengthening and advancing strategic sectors of society considered as key pillars in nation building which is also the very essence of the recognition programs to journalists who have produced outstanding works and serve as role models for aspiring media practitioners and journalists, and we take pride in discovering these gems in the media sector”.

For this year, these “gems” are the winners of the first ever Search for Journalists of the Year (JOY) after several months of thorough selection process. In partnership with Probe Media Foundation, Inc. (PMFI), JOY recognizes excellence in Philippine journalism across all media platforms — television, radio, print, and online. With the theme, “Shaping the Nation through Powerful Storytelling”, the Search honors “Filipino journalists whose excellent storytelling has contributed to positive social change and nation building”, and who “have practiced their career in influencing and developing their audiences towards constructive growth”.

 PMFI founder and trustee Cecilia “Cheche” Lazaro said they “enthusiastically agreed to collaborate” when Metrobank Foundation included “journalists among its annual searches for excellence in unheralded fields” because the Foundation’s “desire to reward journalists for contributing to positive social change was but a natural extension of their efforts to mold such journalists”. Thus she also expressed their commitment “to train those so-inclined in the highest ideals of Journalism”.

While this is the first year of the Search for JOY, it would be remembered that way back in 2001, the Metrobank Foundation partnered with the Asian Institute for Journalism and Communication (AIJC) to conduct a Search for Outstanding Journalists (SOJ). Recipients then were Sheila S. Coronel (print), Jessica A. Soho (broadcast), and the late Armando J. Malay, Sr. (Distinguished Leadership in Journalism).

 This year’s search for JOY is really a source of pride and joy for us in the Philippine Star because one of the winners is our colleague, columnist Jarius Y. Bondoc (Gotcha) and host of DWIZ’s radio program “Sapol ni Jarius Bondoc”. Jarius really has a remarkable knack of gathering info from reliable sources in his relentless pursuit of the truth that resulted in official investigations and prosecution of those involved, and changes in the government agencies concerned. The other winners are:  Maria Lourdes ‘Malou’ C. Mangahas, host of GMA News TV Channel 11 “Investigative Documentaries” and executive director of the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ), and (3) Rodrigo ‘Jiggy’ D. Manicad, Jr., news producer of GMA7 News & Public Affairs and anchor of GMA7’s Reporters’ Notebook, 24 Oras Weekend, and GMA News TV Channel 11’s Quick Response Team (QRT).

JOY nominees have gone through the screening process by a Selection Committee to which they submitted five (5) of their best works in the last 10 years that were evaluated based on the criteria of skills and craftsmanship, relevance of content to the community or target audience, and contribution to positive social change. Six (6) finalists then underwent a panel interview by the Board of Judges chaired by Supreme Court Chief Justice Maria Lourdes P.A. Sereno with members—Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) chairperson Dr. Patricia B. Licuanan; University of Santo Tomas (UST) 96th rector Very Rev. Fr. Herminio V. Dagohoy; University of the Philippines (UP) System former president Dr. Emerlinda R. Roman; Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation president Carmencita T. Abella; Asian Institute of Journalism and  Communication (AIJC) president emeritus and senior adviser Dr. Florangel Rosario-Braid; and UP Institute of Islamic Studies dean Prof. Julkipli M. Wadi.

The three (3) winners will each receive P300,000 cash prize and a special medallion during the formal awarding ceremony in October 2013. They will also be conferred the title “Metrobank Foundation Fellows in Journalism” where they will have the opportunity to share their expertise and experience through the conduct of lectures before identified audiences in Metro Manila and other regions of the country.

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