The Quezon City local government recently honored six individuals and a performing group from the University at the 24th Manuel L. Quezon Gawad Parangal.
The six individuals associated with UP Diliman (UPD) were Percival V. Cendaña; Prospero R. Covar, PhD; Ernesto S. de Castro, PhD; Ricardo “Ricky” A. Lee; Zeus A. Salazar, PhD; and Marilyn B. Barua-Yap, DPA. The performing group UP Kontemporaryong Gamelan Pilipino, or Kontra-GaPi, was also an awardee.
Cendaña was awarded the Social Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity Pillar, while Covar and Salazar were each given the Human and Social Services Pillar.
Cendaña is the Akbayan representative to the Philippine House of Representatives. He earned his Bachelor of Arts in Philippine Studies from UPD in 2003. Covar and Salazar were esteemed members of the UPD faculty. Covar is widely recognized for his works on Filipino culture and society, while Salazar is known as the Father of New Philippine Historiography. He was the UPD College of Social Sciences and Philosophy dean from 1991 to 1994.
De Castro was recognized as Urban Development Pillar, Barua-Yap as Institutional Development Pillar, and Lee as Creative Arts and Cultural Heritage Pillars, together with Kontra-GaPi, the resident cultural music and dance performing group of the UPD College of Arts and Letters, established in 1989 by art studies professor Pedro “Edru” R. Abraham Jr.
De Castro is president of ESCA Engineering and ECA International, Inc., an organization that provides technology-driven engineering solutions for the built environment. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering in 1967 and Master of Science in Engineering in 1968 from UPD. Meanwhile, lawyer Barua-Yap is the chairperson of the Civil Service Commission (CSC). Prior to her stint as CSC chair, she was secretary general of the House of Representatives (2007-2013). She earned her Bachelor of Arts in English and Comparative Literature, cum laude in 1973, Bachelor of Laws in 1985, and Doctor of Public Administration in 2014, all from UPD.
National Artist for Film and Broadcast Arts Lee majored in Bachelor of Arts (English) from UPD, and later taught screenwriting at the Film Institute of the then UPD College of Mass Communication, now College of Media and Communication.
According to the Quezon City government Facebook post, the MLQ Gawad Parangal is the highest honor given by the city to individuals and/or groups for their outstanding leadership, service, and innovation.