Law dean Danny Concepcion named new UP president

Danilo Concepcion, dean of the UP College of Law, was named Tuesday as the new president of the University of the Philippines.

JUST IN: UP Law Dean Danilo Concepcion is the new UP President. @gmanews

— Erwin Colcol (@erwincolcol) November 15, 2016

He is the 21st president of the university, according to the Tinig ng Plaridel, the official student publication of the UP College of Mass Communication.

JUST IN: UP College of Law Dean Danilo Concepcion is the new UP President-Select. pic.twitter.com/Tx24GYArl6

— Tinig ng Plaridel (@tinigngplaridel) November 15, 2016

The selection was shared to the members of the media by Student Regent Raoul Manuel on Tuesday.

Manuel said Concepcion "got more than half" of the votes after a one-round secret balloting was conducted by the 11-member Board of Regents, the university's highest policy-making body.

All members of the Board of Regents were present in the deliberation, said Manuel.

Concepcion was selected among five other nominees, including UP Vice President for Academic Affairs Gisela Concepcion, former UP Vice President for Public Affairs and Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Commissioner Prospero de Vera, former UP Diliman College of Engineering Dean and Science and Technology Undersecretary Rowena Cristina Guevara, UP Vice-Chancellor for Academic Affairs Benito Pacheco, and former UP Diliman Chancellor Caesar Saloma.

Concepcion will succeed outgoing UP President Alfredo Pascual, whose term will end in February 2017. 

Challenges ahead

Concepcion, in an interview with reporters, said he did not expect to be selected to become UP president. "Tayo ay natutuwa sapagkat tayo ay pinagkatiwalaan ng ating Board of Regents," he said.

But the president-select admitted that he feels more challenged now that he will head a university of more than 50,000 students.

"Napakalaki ng challenge ahead of us, malaking trabaho ito kaya kinakailangan din natin siguro na hindi maging kampante sa paghawak ng posisyon na ito," Concepcion said.

Concepcion said he plans to consult his constituency first before he assumes his new post. "Kailangan mag-consult pa tayo, that's the cornerstone of my management style. [We] must be consultative."

CHED chairperson Patricia Licuanan, meanwhile, said she found the selection process "easier than expected."

"It was very friendly and the discussions were good," Licuanan, who is also the chair of the Board of Regents, told reporters.

Asked about her thoughts on Concepcion, Licuanan said: "He's an excellent manager, he troubleshoots well, he's a brilliant lawyer, that certainly helps."

Current UP Diliman Chancellor Michael Tan shared the same view.

"I'm just very happy. This is a guy with heart," Tan told reporters.

Tan was previously part of the list of nominees. He was, however, disqualified due to age requirement.

Outgoing UP President Alfredo Pascual is also hopeful of Concepcion's presidency.

"The advantage of the incoming president is he is familiar, because he was my Vice President for Legal Affairs," Pascual told reporters. 

"There will still be pointers that I would have to give him, insights, but he's already familiar with what's going on. So I'm confident with the continuity. We will ensure that the next president will continue and build upon what we have started on," he added. —KG/VVP/KBK, GMA News