Empowering young journalists matters for the nation’s future
MANILA, Philippines — AboitizPower recently renewed its partnership with the Inquirer Foundation for its journalism scholarship program, which represents both organizations’ continued joint effort to support the future of Philippine media.
At the signing, Inquirer Group of Companies President and CEO Sandy Prieto-Romualdez addressed the young student beneficiaries — both old and new — and offered profound advice for journalists.
Sandy urged the scholars to be resilient to the point of being stubborn in the service of journalism, as it is a noble form of public service. She also called on them to be agents of change and transition, while maintaining the Philippine Daily Inquirer brand of trust.
On investing in future media practitioners, she said that while the industry may be challenging, what keeps it going is its faith in people.
“There may be uncertainty [in the media], but that’s why we believe in people more than anything,” she said. “If there is any institution that must, it should be the media because it’s built on those values.”
Indeed, faith is important. Readers give journalists a level of trust, and that faith must be rewarded with a relentless pursuit of excellence in every story told. Likewise, the media industrymust also have faith in its future practitioners, and it starts by giving them the help and support they need.
Today, Philippine society faces incredibly complex issues, including the energy transition, geopolitics and global trade, and evolving consumer needs. In today’s information landscape, where misconceptions can easily cloud public discourse, the nation needs clearer access to the truth.
This societal imperative lies at the very center of the Philippine Daily Inquirer-AboitizPower journalism scholarship. It recognizes the need for trained communicators who can bridge the gap between jargon and public understanding and foster objective, constructive conversations by surfacing facts over widespread misconceptions. Their work helps shape the nation’s present and future.
To that end, the ultimate goal of the Philippine Daily Inquirer-AboitizPower journalism scholarship is to support highly deserving students so they can focus on their studies and on-the-job training with little to no interruption. By helping remove the financial burden, students can focus on publishing quality reporting, championing competence, and practicing independent journalism.
The initiative also aligns with AboitizPower’s purpose: Transforming Energy for a Better World. This overarching vision extends far beyond generating and distributing electric power. It is also meant to help uplift lives through sustainability and people development.
Both AboitizPower and Inquirer are already witnessing the tangible, inspiring outcomes of the collaborative endeavor. Past scholars, Lau Bacia and Jaemie Talingdan, who graduated with top Latin honors from the University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman just this year, have now transitioned into professional roles as full-time employees of the Inquirer.
Their peer, André Esguerra, earned the prestigious Best Thesis Award. Equally promising are the new batch of scholars, which includes Julienne Reyes and Rafael Quilling of UP Diliman, and Jia Enad of UP Cebu — the first recipient selected from outside the National Capital Region in the Inquirer scholarship program’s thirty-one-year history.
While no one can predict the future of the media landscape, the values of competence, quality, and independence must not change. To Sandy’s point, journalism must remain a noble form of public service, requiring the resilience of those who call themselves journalists.
By helping alleviate personal challenges and providing access to invaluable opportunities, the Philippine Daily Inquirer-AboitizPower journalism scholarship enables promising young media practitioners to hone their craft, live out the journalistic values, and ultimately, continue to wield the power of the pen.
Suiee Suarez is AboitizPower VP for Corporate Affairs
