The University of the Philippines Board of Regents (UP BOR) is set to choose who among Dr. Fidel Nemenzo, Dr. Victor Paz, and lawyer Edgardo Carlo Vistan will be the next UP Diliman chancellor on Monday, April 3.
Nemenzo, who is eyeing a second term as UP Diliman chancellor, is a mathematics professor with 31 years of teaching experience and holds the highest academic rank of Professor 12.
Paz, on the other hand, has been an archeology professor for the past 36 years, while Vistan is currently serving his first term as dean of the UP College of Law.
Under Nemenzo’s leadership, UP Diliman earned several awards, such as the Government Best Practice Recognition Award from the Development Academy of the Philippines, the UP Gawad Pangulo Award for Excellence in Public Service for its comprehensive Covid-19 response, and the Anti-Red Tape Authority Report Card Survey 2.0 Silver Award for its administrative processes, given to only five out of 50 government agencies.
He seeks to improve governance and create a smart, safe, and ecologically sensitive campus.
Paz, who also serves as chairman of the University Hotel Board of Overseers, aims to prioritize affordable housing for students and faculty and improve campus security.
He wants an immediate review of academic policies, the general education program, and admission policies, as well as better coordination with government agencies.
Meanwhile, Vistan seeks to nurture the public service capabilities of students and provide them with lifelong learning opportunities.
He has cited the need to take on more part-time faculty members to ease the load on the current faculty and allow them more time for research.
Also, he wants his programs to be formed through active collaboration with UP Diliman units.
Among the three candidates, Nemenzo has been receiving overwhelming support from the UP Diliman academic community, underscoring the crucial importance of the UP BOR's decision.
Observers say that it is a choice among well-qualified and probably the best candidates for the UP Diliman chancellorship: a time-tested leader using the simplicity and logic of a mathematician; an archeology expert who has an invigorated interest in the future of the university; and a lawyer who seeks to develop relevant programs in consultation with the different UP Diliman units and stakeholders.