Local, Malaysian firm tie up to prevent dengue spread

MANILA, Philippines – What would you do if you suddenly receive a call that a member of a royal family from another country is coming to have dinner in your home?

For Eugenio “Jun” Ynion, Jr., president of Le Soleil shipping company, the call about the plan of the Prince of Malaysia to visit his San Pedro, Laguna residence was first thought of as a prank.

“I really did not take it seriously at first because why would a prince visit the house of commoner like me,” Ynion says, recalling his initial reaction. “I only believed it when my brother Carlo confirmed that indeed the prince was coming.”

Despite the short notice, Ynion managed to prepare something decently elegant for the prince. It was a rainy Sunday evening yet a number of Ynion’s friends in the government and private sector came. They were all excited to meet a prince and dine with him.

It was past 8 pm when His Royal Highness Tunku Naquiyuddin ibni Tuanku Ja’afar, the eldest son of the 10th king of Malaysia, arrived at Ynion’s doorsteps at La Marea subdivision. He came with his younger son Kuyim.

The prince was in a casual mood, dressed only in striped long-sleeved shirt and dark trousers. He told Ynion that his visit was a gesture of goodwill, a symbol of the forging of ties between their companies.

Ynion’s new company Yngentech was recently appointed exclusive distributor of the Quiti-Kill, a completely organic and non-toxic product that kills mosquito larvae, thereby preventing the spread of malaria or dengue. Entogenex, the prince’s company, is the principal that owns the product (international brand name of Quiti-Kill is Mousticide).

The prince was warmly welcomed by Ynion along with his family and some close friends, namely,  San Pedro Mayor Calixto Cataquiz, Congressmen Dan Fernandez and Edgar San Luis of Laguna’s 1st and 4th districts, and Maite Defensor, a former lawmaker from Quezon City.

“The prince is very enthusiastic about Quiti-Kill and its prospects,” Ynion recalled. “His eyes light up every time he talks about the many people, mostly children, who have been and can be saved from dengue because of Quiti-kill.”

Ynion described the prince as very unassuming and completely down-to-earth.

“He doesn’t brag about his status in life and the power such status gives him,” says Ynion.

Power and wealth are two of the things the prince possesses but never flaunts. Aside from EntoGenex, the prince is head of the Antah HealthCare Group, the largest Malaysian-owned healthcare marketing and distribution company. He is chairman of Noble Mineral Resources Limited, an Australian mining firm, and sits on the board of other public companies in Malaysia.

Yet the prince says he is never stressed out.

“He has a positive outlook in life,” says Ynion. “He always sees through the problems, always believing that the solution is always there somewhere; you just need to be calm to find it soon.”

But even though he is serious about his business, the Malaysian prince devotes more than half of his time to philanthropic work.

The prince has put up the Yayasan Tunku Naquiyuddin foundation that provides assistance to young students from poor families. The foundation assists the underprivileged from rural communities, mainly in the fields of healthcare and education, as well as in other vital areas such as well-being, the environment and sports. The foundation is currently undertaking a project to improve the teaching of English in rural schools in Malaysia.

“At one time, the prince was helping more than 50 schools and 65,000 students,” Ynion said.

And through EntoGenex, the biotechnology company that he heads, Tunku Naquiyuddin has become very active in anti-dengue campaign.

“The prince wants to educate people especially in rural areas where the risk is higher and they in turn will educate their parents. His program is called REAP or short for Reduction (of mosquitoes), Education (on diseases and control), Activation (of communities) and Protection (from mosquito-borne diseases) that complements other NGOs working on prevention of mosquito-borne disease,” Ynion noted.