Comedian Michael V, Escudero lead seven TOYM 2005 awardees

A television comedian and one of Mrs. Arroyo’s arch critics are two people to be honored at ceremonies at Malacañang as this year’s winners of The Outstanding Young Man (TOYM) awards.

Beethoven Bunagan, more popularly known as "Michael V," is the TOYM awardee for arts and entertainment while Sorsogon Rep. Francis Joseph "Chiz" Escudero, a member of the opposition, will be cited for his youth leadership.

Other awardees include: Paul Felipe Cruz for aquaculture; Illac Angelo Diaz for social entrepreneurship; Edgardo Herbosa for countryside development; Alvin Valeriano Marcelo for medical information; and Maria Corazon de Ungria for forensic science.

"These seven outstanding young Filipinos have proven to be socially responsible for the cause of their fellow men by distinguishing themselves in their own fields such as arts, business, community development, medicine, science and leadership," the TOYM organizers said.

"Michael V" is known in the entertainment industry as a "Master of Disguises" and Asia’s "Best Actor Awardee."

He is a performer on GMA-7 and stars in several of their top-rated comedy shows. As a mimic and comedian, one of his frequent subjects is President Arroyo.

Escudero, meanwhile, is a popular member of the House of Representatives and leader of the opposition. The TOYM chose him for his commitment to his job and conviction, saying he has entered his prime at the young age of 36.

According to the TOYM, Escudero is highly regarded and respected for what he has accomplished and is taken seriously when it comes to his profession and political opinions.

Cruz, on the other hand, diversified his research and business interests in the late 1990s to include marine culture and sea-cage equipment supported by the Technology Application and Promotion Institute of the Department of Science and Technology.

One of the results of Cruz’s study was the Marine Culture Park concept, which institutionalized communal farming as a strategy to promote cost-efficient and environmentally-sound aquaculture.

Unhappy about the living conditions of Filipino seafarers, Diaz, for his part, decided to make a difference in their lives by providing affordable and clean places for them to stay complete with programs to help them find jobs.

Diaz founded the "Pier One Seafarers’ Center" where seafarers can stay for $1 per day while being educated about the deadly HIV virus and AIDS.

The awardee for countryside development revolutionized the agriculture and fisheries sectors. Herbosa’s outstanding achievement is his conceptualization and implementation of the E-commerce for Farmers Program of the Philippines.

He created an e-marketplace for agriculture and fisheries sectors on the website called b2bpricenow.com. Herbosa is setting up business centers in thousands of municipalities and cooperatives of Land Bank of the Philippines nationwide.

With his use of information and communication technology, the World Bank awarded Herbosa for his online marketplace for farmers and fishermen in 2001 and he was given a grant of $118,000 in 2005.

Marcelo, meanwhile, has acted as technical consultant, facilitator, leader and manager for projects related to health information systems development and evaluation of local, national and regional health organizations.

He chairs the University of the Philippines-College of Medicine Medical Informatics Unit, the hub of many education, research and development efforts in this area. An output of the MIU in relevant health professions education is the CHITS, a web-based open-source health information system designed for rural health units.

De Ungria is being cited for her continuing and untiring efforts in spearheading the research and development of UP’s Natural Science Research Institute DNA Analysis Laboratory, the pioneer in the forensic DNA analysis in the country.

She led the recognition and acceptance of DNA evidence in court cases and other forensic applications. She served as principal investigator for various research projects funded locally and internationally that generated a number of publications contributing to the present knowledge of forensic DNA technology in the country.

Her research has provided foundations for good science to improve the quality of Filipinos’ lives.

The President will hand out the TOYM trophies together with Manuel Pangilinan, chairman and chief executive officer of the Philippine Long Distance Co.

Pangilinan is this year’s chairman of the board of judges for awardees. He himself received the award in 1983 for international finance.

The TOYM search, now in its 46th year, is a national project of the Junior Chamber International Philippines or Philippine Jaycees Inc. with the TOYM Foundation Inc. and Gerry Roxas Foundation Inc.